Trofeo Magazine N. 3

Maserati Trofeo World Series 2014 N.3 August 2014

Maserati Trofeo World Series 2014

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SPA FRANCORCHAMPS

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RACE 1 Gabriele Gardel - RACE 2 Mauro Calamia

03.05.2014 SPA- BELGIUM Length of the Circuit 7.395 Km

HUNGARORING RACE 1 Mauro Calamia - RACE 2 Mauro Calamia - RACE 3 Mauro Calamia

01.06.2014 BUDAPEST - HUNGARY Length of the Circuit 4.381 Km

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SILVERSTONE RACE 1 Riccardo Ragazzi - RACE 2 Riccardo Ragazzi - RACE 3 Gabriele Gardel

20.07.2014 SILVERSTONE - UK Length of the Circuit 5.891 Km

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VIR INT’L RACEWAY RACE 1 .................. - RACE 2 .................. - RACE 3 ..................

24.08.2014 ALTON - USA Length of the Circuit 5.260 Km

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SHANGHAI RACE 1 .................. - RACE 2 .................. - RACE 3 ..................

12.10.2014 SHANGHAI - CHINA Length of the Circuit 5.451 Km

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ABU DHABI RACE 1 .................. - RACE 2 .................. - RACE 3 ..................

12.12.2014 ABU DHABI - UAE Length of the Circuit 5.554 Km

STANDINGS AFTER ROUND 3 OVERALL 1. Mauro Calamia 2. Gabriele Gardel 3. Alberto Cola

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103 P. 86 P. 70 P.

SINGLE DRIVER CUP 1. Alberto Cola 108 P. 2. Riccardo Ragazzi 89 P. 3. Alan Simoni 83 P.

TWIN DRIVERS CUP 1. Mathijs Bakker - Andrea Cecchellero 2. Massimo Mantovani 3. Sandro Bettini

121 P. 82 P. 70 P.

OVER 50 1. Roberto Silva 2. Roberto Rayneri 3. Michael Cullen

89 P. 69 P. 56 P.

UNDER 30 1. Mauro Calamia 111 P. 2. Alberto Cola 94 P. 3. Andrea Cecchellero 48 P.

THE MASERATI 450S WINS THE INAUGURAL VIR RACE

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he fourth round of the Maserati Trofeo World Series contested on the Virginia International Raceway adds another chapter to the one hundred year history celebrated this year by the carmaker with the Trident logo. Carroll Shelby, who earned worldwide fame by winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1959 and created the iconic Cobra sports cars in the early 1960s, won VIR’s first ever feature race. He claimed victory in a 20-lap, 65-mile event for top sports cars in 1957 driving the number 98 Maserati 450S. After winning, Shelby became an outspoken supporter of VIR’s challenging course and is famously remembered saying, “One lap at VIR is like a hundred at Watkins Glen.” “The first official race at VIR was won by a Maserati, so it’s only fitting to have the series here during our biggest race weekend of the season,” said Connie Nyholm, owner and CEO of VIR. “The addition of the Maserati Trofeo World Series to the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship event lineup at VIR brings yet another impressive name for a weekend of high-quality racing. We’re honored to be the only U.S. stop for the series and look forward to a great race”.

THE 8CTF ENTERS THE HALL OF FAME MASERATI 8CTF ‘BOYLE SPECIAL’ RUNS VICTORY LAP AT THE INDIANAPOLIS 500

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eminiscent of its renowned win at the very same track, the Maserati 8CTF “Boyle Special” 8CTF (serial number 3032) relived its final “Victory lap” around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway exactly 75 years later. On the brink of Maserati’s 100th anniversary, the 8CTF was honored at the Indy 500 in the last may in commemoration of its declared win in 1939. Behind the wheel of the vintage automobile was Johnny Rutherford, three-time Indy 500 winner, much like the celebrated Wilbur Shaw that historically claimed his two-time victory for Maserati in 1939 and 1940 respectively. The legendary Maserati 8CTF was immortalized by the Historical Vehicle Association (HVA) today as the first foreign manufactured automobile to be permanently archived into the United States Library of Congress, a new effort to authenticate historically significant automobiles. Recorded under the U.S. Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Heritage Documentation, the documentation will remain part of the HVA National Historic Vehicle Register and Historic American Engineering Record (HAER).

“It’s heaven on earth” PAUL NEWMAN

BECOME A MASERATI TROFEO DRIVER

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hose who take a Master Maserati driving course will be offered the chance to sign up for the Racing Academy. This will be organised for early 2015 and gives drivers the opportunity to obtain the licence needed to compete in the Maserati Trofeo World Series.

Master Maserati driving courses: discover the extraordinary driving experience combined with Italian lifestyle. Spurred on by the great success enjoyed since years, the new Master Maserati driving courses programme has been confirmed for 2014. These driving courses enable existing owners and prospects to experience the thrill of putting high-power Maserati’s through their paces in a controlled racetrack environment on the technical Varano de’ Melegari (Parma) circuit in Italy. In addition, participants learn about performance driving and safety techniques that will enable them to appreciate the cars’ full potential and improve their driving skills. The programme is run by highly trained, professional Maserati instructors led by ex- Formula 1 champion, Andrea de Adamich, who instructs participants not only in the art of high-speed driving but also how to deal with emergency situations - making the courses both challenging and, at the same time, extremely enjoyable. Maserati plans to organize its driving courses not only in Italy, but also in other countries around the globe. To find out more about the different levels of driving experience (Master GT1 Day, Master GT2 Days, Master High Performance and Master Italian Lifestyle Experience) and check the next available dates, please visit www.maserati.com, email info@mastergt.it

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04. A BATTLE BETWEEN EUROPE AND AMERICA

VIR INT’L RACEWAY, USA Length of the Circuit 5.260 Km

TIMETABLE

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ound 3 at Silverstone saw Mauro Calamia crowned king of the continent. Now that reigning champion Renaud Kuppens has pulled out, the search is on for a successor with Calamia looking most likely. Second overall is Gabriele Gardel but he can be ruled out as his season ended at the last round.

One driver who will be feeling confident is Italian Riccardo

Ragazzi and, if his luck turns, so will Alan Simoni. Now the circus moves onto the international stage with the US Virginia Internationl Raceway next up for the European pack.

They will be up against around ten North Americans in the triple challenge that includes two 30-minute sprints and an endurance event with a compulsory stop (with a driver change for crewed cars). Maserati’s VIR return is imminent.

BACK IN THE DAYS

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Kuppens scored another one-two in 2013 in the sprints, first beating Cedric Sbirrazzuoli and Mikkel Mac and then Ange Barde and Alan Simoni. The endurance event was taken by Ange Barde as he began a run that saw him triumph in all the longer races run in that Maserati Trofeo season.

2014 AUGUST 21 THURSDAY 09.00 - 09.30 CTSC (GS) FP 09.30 - 10.00 COOPER TIRE PROTOTYPE LITES FP 10.00 - 10.30 CTSC (ST) FP 10.40 - 11.10 CTSC (GS) FP 11.10 - 11.40 COOPER TIRE PROTOTYPE LITES FP 11.40 - 12.10 CTSC (ST) FP 13.00 - 13.30 MASERATI TROFEO WORLD SERIES FP1 13.30 - 14.00 CTSC (GS) FP 14.00 - 14.30 COOPER TIRE PROTOTYPE LITES FP 14.30 - 15.00 CTSC (GS) FP 15.00 - 15.30 MASERATI TROFEO WORLD SERIES FP2 15.40 - 16.10 CTSC (GS) 16.10 - 16.40 COOPER TIRE PROTOTYPE LITES FP 16.40 - 17.10 CTSC (ST) 17.10 - 17.40 MASERATI TROFEO WORLD SERIES FP3 17.40 - UNTIL TRACK WALK

2014 AUGUST 22 FRIDAY 08.30 - 09.30 CTSC FP1 09.45 - 10.35 LAMBORGHINI SUPER TROFEO FP1 10.50 - 11.20 MASERATI TROFEO WORLD SERIES FP4 12.20 - 13.20 CTSC FP2 13.35 - 14.25 LAMBORGHINI SUPER TROFEO FP2 14.40 - 15.40 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP GTLM/GTD FP1 15.55 - 16.55 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP PC FP1 17.10 - 17.25 CTSC (ST) Q1 17.40 - 17.55 CTSC (GS) Q1 18.10 - 18.55 MASERATI TROFEO WORLD SERIES Q1Q2

2014 AUGUST 23 SATURDAY

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The Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo competed in the United States for the first time in 2012. The setting was Sonoma, in California’s Napa Valley, and saw Renaud Kuppens star: in what was the season’s fifth round, the Belgian won two out of three races. He only missed out on a clean sweep with a retirement when in the lead. In the end, victory went to South American driver Alex Popow, from Riccardo Ragazzi and Andrea Dromedari. The other two podiums, behind Kuppens, were filled, respectively, by Giorgio Sernagiotto and Johannes Van Overbeek and by Popow and Dromedari/Pigoli.

The ambitious 2005 project saw Maserati return to official competition. It did so with an MC12 that lined up in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) with the No.35 entrusted to Andrea Bertolini/Fabrizio De Simone/Fabio Babini; Babini only took part in the endurance event. Maserati did not let anyone down and twice finished on the podium (Road Atlanta and Road America) and the MC12 driven by Bertolini/De Simone/Babini finished fifth in the Sebring 12 Hour, GT1 class.

08.00 - 08.40 LAMBORGHINI SUPER TROFEO Q 08.55 - 09.55 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP GTLM/GTD FP2 10.10 - 10.40 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP PC/LITES FP2 10.55 - 11.25 MASERATI TROFEO WORLD SERIES R1 11.40 - 11.55 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP GTD Q 12.00 - 12.15 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP GTLM Q 12.25 - 12.45 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP LITES Q 12.55 - 13.10 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP PC Q 14.15 - 16.45 CTSC RACE 17.25 - 18.10 CTSC TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP PC/LITES R 18.25 - 19.15 LAMBORGHINI SUPER TROFEO RACE 1 19.30 - 20.00 MASERATI TROFEO WORLD SERIES R2

2014 AUGUST 24 SUNDAY 08.15 - 08.35 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP GTLM/GTD W.UP 08.50 - 09.10 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP PC/LITES W.UP 10.45 - 11.30 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP PC/LITES RACE 12.30 - 13.30 MASERATI TROFEO WORLD SERIES R3 13.45 - 14.35 LAMBORGHINI SUPER TROFEO RACE 2 16.05 - 18.50 TUDOR CHAMPIONSHIP GTLM/GTD RACE

GER

05 USA

Andreas Segler

ITA

Ronald Vogel

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Giuseppe Fascicolo

07

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

USA

10

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

IRL

08

TBA Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

USA

Mark Turley - Michael Cullen

Thomas O’Gara

12 Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

ITA

18

Lino Curti

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

USA

14

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

ITA

TBA

Alan Simoni

23 Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

ITA

29

Riccardo Ragazzi

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

ITA

27

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

ITA

Alessandro Iazzetti

30

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

USA

31

Roberto Silva - Roberto Rayneri

TBA

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

MASERATI GRANTURISMO MC TROFEO SPOTTER GUIDE

ITA

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2014 SILVERSTONE - RICCARDO RAGAZZI

CH

Mauro Calamia

35

USA

Michael Bartels

GER

46

33

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

USA

ITA

51

Swiss Team

Jim Taggart - Tom Long

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Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

TBA

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

Massimo Mantovani + TBA

CAN

56

Robert Herjavech

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

TBA

USA

65 Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

ITA

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

CAN

Mario Cordoni

60

70

Damon Ockey

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

ITA

Carlo Curti

81 Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

USA

77

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

IRL

Patrick Byrne - Tyler McQuarrie Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

BEL

95

88

Pierre Marie De Leener - Adrien De Leener

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo

Patrick Shovlin

RACE 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

03.SILVERSTONE MAURO CALAMIA TAKES THE TROFEO EUROPA

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he third round of the Maserati Trofeo World Series on the Silverstone circuit decided the first title of the season: Mauro Calamia of the Swiss Team was awarded the Trofeo Europa, the title reserved to the driver at the top of the classification following the first three races on the Old Continent (Spa, Hungaroring and, of course, Silverstone). The weekend in England was an intense affair and full of surprises, starting with who wasn’t there. Absent from the list of entrants was Renaud Kuppens, twice winner of the Trofeo Maserati and current champion, who decided to withdraw from the championship together with his team mate (at Konvex Motorsport) Daniel Waszczinski. The surprises did not end there: in the first two races, it was Mauro Calamia who passed under the chequered flag but his car was later disqualified by race officials because it was not in compliance with Maserati Trofeo’s technical regulations. As a result of this decision, victory in both trials went to Riccardo Ragazzi. For the same reason, the car of another Swiss Team driver, Gabriele Gardel, was excluded from race 2, annulling his third place. In race 1, Mauro Calamia was in pole position after dominating with the fastest time in two free practice sessions and two qualifiers. At the start, however, he was overtaken by Ragazzi, who temporarily took command. Alan Simoni made a furious start, moving from 23rd to 12th place in a very short time and clearly anxious to show his mettle after a qualifying session hampered by a broken gearbox. At the end, he had managed to climb up to fifth place. Calamia seized back the lead on the third lap and retained it until the chequered flag. Victory then passed to Ragazzi due to the disqualification. Andrea Cecchellero took second place ahead of Alberto Cola. The pair had engaged in a fierce battle along with Gardel who, even though demonstrably the fastest, had to abandon the race in the end due to a broken drive shaft. In fourth place was Giorgio Sernagiotto, returning to the Trofeo Maserati after participating in the 2012 championship alongside Giuseppe Fascicolo (who took seventh place in race 1 at Silverstone, just ahead of the Irish driver Michael Cullen). The second trial of 30 minutes featured a collision at the start involving various cars, including those of Cullen, Sernagiotto, the Curti brothers and Simoni, the latter forced to fight his way back again after being pushed into the rear.

Behind Calamia, the trial witnessed a duel between Ragazzi and Gardel, with the Italian succeeding in defending his position to the end. In the main body of cars, Barrie Baxter, Carlo Curti, Max Gazzè

and Michael Cullen were battling it out. Mathijs Bakker, Fascicolo and Andreas Segler also fought each other to gain the edge. The German, who performed one of his finest trials since he began racing in the Trofeo Maserati, saw the finish line fade away just a few laps from the end, when the loss of a fan caused the right rear tire to be punctured. He was forced to abandon the race after tenaciously defending fifth place. In the last laps, 5 penalty points were imposed on Gardel and Mark Turley for not complying with track limits.

Calamia reach the finishing line first but, because he and team mate Gardel (third at the line) were disqualified, victory was awarded once again to Ragazzi, followed by Alberto Cola, held back by steering problems, and Alan Simoni. Bakker was fourth, ahead of Fascicolo and Lino Curti, probably penalized by contacts at the race start.

The Swiss Team soon redeemed itself in the endurance trial, its standard-bearers taking the first two places with Gardel finishing ahead of Calamia, taking to the track in a replacement car. A skilful Gardel took first position from Calamia at the start but the latter seized back the lead after a few laps. The two began to break away while, behind them, Ragazzi, Sernagiotto and Cola led the pack, with Cullen further back in eighth place ahead of a small cluster of cars driven by Simoni, Curti, Bakker, Silva and Fascicolo. The obligatory pit stop reshuffled the cards, bringing Alberto Cola up to second place between Gardel and Calamia, who lost an additional 20 seconds on top of the 45 laid down for the pit stop (despite exclusion from the races, the regulation for calculating extra time takes the order of arrival into account just the same). The Swiss driver displayed great determination, however, and, after a few bends, he found a spot to overtake Cola and try and recover the gap with Gardel. Just 10 minutes from the end of the race, however, the Safety Car came onto the track to remove Silva’s car, which had ended up in a position that presented a hazard. The GranTurismo MC Trofeo No. 30 managed to restart without emergency intervention but, in the meantime, the intervals between the cars had been cancelled and, when the race restarted, Calamia and Cola were both flat out for victory. There was very little time and the chequered flag gave victory to Gardel, ahead of Calamia (who celebrated the Trofeo Europa), Alberto Cola, Sernagiotto, Ragazzi Cecchellero/Bakker, Simoni, Culler, Fascicolo and Segler. Max Gazzè, the Italian singer, achieved 12th place in his first trial in the Trofeo Maserati, recording his best result so far (in previous races, he had finished in 15th and 14th place).

Riccardo Ragazzi Andrea Cecchellero Alberto Cola Giorgio Sernagiotto Alan Simoni Michael Cullen Giuseppe Fascicolo Roberto Silva Lino Curti Mark Turley Carlo Curti Alessandro Iazzetti Barrie Baxter Philip Burgan Max Gazzè Thomas Herpell Charly Conde Roberto Rayneri Daniel Diaz Varela Gabriele Gardel Massimo Mantovani Andreas Segler Mauro Calamia

31:15.652 +3.474 +8.547 +8.900 +16.372 +21.570 +24.502 +38.265 +40.721 +59.165 +1:01.747 +1:02.170 +1:02.528 +1:04.837 +1:07.710 +1:32.380 +2:04.451 1 Lap 1 Lap 3 Laps 10 Laps 10 Laps NC

Car 35 (Mauro Calamia) excluded for Technical non conformity with the Maserati Trofeo 2014 Sporting and Technical Regulations

RACE 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 35 50

Riccardo Ragazzi Alberto Cola Alan Simoni Mathijs Bakker Giuseppe Fascicolo Lino Curti Roberto Silva Mauro Cesari Michael Cullen Barrie Baxter Daniel Diaz Varela Alessandro Iazzetti Philip Burgan Max Gazzè Thomas Herpell Roberto Rayneri Mark Turley Carlo Curti Charly Conde Andreas Segler Giorgio Sernagiotto Mauro Calamia Gabriele Gardel

31:06.292 +26.085 +32.945 +33.625 +35.531 +41.077 +54.333 +54.973 +56.785 +1:10.998 +1:13.739 +1:14.858 +1:20.964 +1:25.267 +1:30.595 +1:35.977 +1:40.548 +1:41.545 1 Lap 2 Laps 2 Laps NC NC

Cars 35 (Mauro Calamia) and 50 (Gabriele Gardel) excluded for Technical non conformity with the Maserati Trofeo 2014 Sporting and Technical Regulations

RACE 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

Gabriele Gardel Mauro Calamia Alberto Cola Giorgio Sernagiotto Riccardo Ragazzi Andrea Cecchellero Alan Simoni Michael Cullen Giuseppe Fascicolo Andreas Segler Carlo Curti Max Gazzè Barrie Baxter Alessandro Iazzetti Roberto Rayneri Philip Burgan Thomas Herpell Charly Conde Roberto Silva Daniel Diaz Varela Lino Curti Massimo Mantovani Mark Turley

1:00:28.268 +0.786 +0.917 +2.100 +3.610 +3.878 +4.045 +6.494 +7.691 +10.003 +36.882 +41.077 +41.347 +41.483 +43.127 +54.259 +1:03.900 4 Laps 4 Laps 11 Laps 12 Laps 21 Laps 22 Laps

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HOW TO IMPROVE WITH TELEMETRY

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he scene is a common one where drivers and engineers crunch the data following free practice. The aim is to analyse track performance via telemetry to correct any errors and fine-tune the drive. It is an extremely important time and one that distinguishes the Maserati Trofeo World Series as it is the only single-make, gentleman driver championship that offers this service. Occasional drivers, like experts, can, by using telemetry, improve their performance and aim for the podium or claim a win. “We use a system supplied

by Magneti Marelli that allows us to capture a series of the GranTurismo MC Trofeo’s functional parameters. The aim is twofold: evaluate the car’s performance and provide an indication of the driver’s performance”. Illustrating the process is Gionathan Lunetta, a Maserati engineer who has worked on some aspects of the championship since 2010, the year in which it was modified. The Maserati engineers, with great precision and attention to detail, passionately and objectively try to offer advice to the drivers. “Our objective is not to bring all the drivers to the same level but to help them correct a series of things. “Sometimes we highlight gaps to the top lap times: when these are over five seconds the car is not to blame as they are all, basically, the same”. The start point is taking the session’s best time and comparing it to that set by the driver analysed. Then it is on to a study of the main factors: gears, engine revs, speed, accelerator, brakes, steering and a special frequency that focuses on which factors are improving and which are getting worse. “The aim of the season”, explained Lunetta, “is to limit the gap by trying to comprehend the braking points and the gears that should be used at different points along the track. We have to evaluate whether the deficit derives from the driver not fully knowing the car.

Consequently, our advice is to use the same range of gears for each sector. A newcomer to the Maserati Trofeo will concentrate on the gears, brakes, the number of laps and warning lights but pay less attention to the actual driving. We want to identify the reference points, making sure that these are memorised so that the driver can focus more on the driving with all the rest looking after itself”. The service really helps drivers enrolled in the series. “It really is a plus point”, commented the Maserati engineer. “Statistics show that, in 80% of cases, times improve after the half-hour analyses - sometimes by a few seconds.

For instance, we generally work with gentleman drivers and, regarding braking, try to show that stepping on the pedal 10 metres later, or stamping on it, can close a gap. The same goes for when exiting a curve or using the accelerator: if the driver

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accelerates a tenth of a second late, the car is slower out of the turn. Another important parameter is the use of the steering wheel and the steering angle: if it is bigger this proportionally increases the distance covered and, consequently, the overall time. The smallest differences affect track performance”. Engine braking is significant too; this influences the car’s dynamic and natural set up. Gear changes are also crucial: “the car features quick shifts in a set but very limited rev range, from 7200 to 7600 rpm, and it is when drivers should change gear”. To round things off, lots of drivers make mistakes because they haven’t tried to find their limit or because they don’t know the car well enough, unlike experts who know just how much they can push.

“This is what really makes the difference”, concluded Lunetta.

“Connect and listen to a Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo do a lap”

USA RACER

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here will be around ten Americans taking part in Round 4 of the Maserati Trofeo and the marque’s renown is a draw for many. This is because it was in the US that Maserati wrote some of the most important chapters in its history, both on the track and on the road. On the entry list will be drivers who had the fortune to tame the 488bhp GranTurismo MC Trofeo in 2012 and 2013 at Sonoma, California. For the third consecutive year Canadian driver Damon Ockey will appear. Also back is Ronald Vogel and the crew formed by Patrick Byrne and Tyler Mcquarrie; Mcquarrie finished fourth in Race 2 last year. Newcomers will be Thomas O’Gara, Jim Taggart, Tom Long, for the USA, and Robert Herjavech, from Canada.

A special MC12 for the Centennial

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he special guest at the fourth round of the Maserati Trofeo, to be held in Virginia, will be the Maserati MC12. The car brought Maserati numerous successes in the FIA GT championship, including the Drivers title in 2006, 2008 and 2009, as well as the 2010 FIA GT1 world championship. All the while the MC12 was driven by Michael Bartels and Andrea Bertolini (and in the 2007 with Thomas Biagi). These extraordinary sporting achievements complement 22 wins, podiums, Team and Constructor titles and three victories in the Spa 24 Hour (2005, 2006 and 2008).Michael Bartels and his squad personally looked after the preparation of this MC12, owned by Niek Hommerson. This particular example has been sprayed by hand and sports a special livery dedicated to the Maserati Centennial that recalls highlights from the company’s glorious history.

“Two limited editions for Maserati’s US return”

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aserati has created two limited edition t-shirts to celebrate its US return. “Maserati is back at VIR with the Trofeo World Series race” reads the slogan that appears on the 500 tops. The t-shirts also feature an image of the Maserati 450S in which Carol Shelby won the US circuit’s inaugural race of the 1957 season. The other 500 one-offs are dedicated to the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion held at Laguna Seca, California, and which this year celebrated the Maserati Centennial.

Virginia Monterey USA

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PRESSCONFERENCE .02

RACE 1

Andrea Cecchellero

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“The race didn’t go too badly as I managed to climb a few places. It is a shame because it was compromised by qualifying when I couldn’t give my all; it is a pity not ending my stint in the Maserati Trofeo with a win...”.

Riccardo Ragazzi “I went for the win, getting off to a good start to take a temporary lead but, after three laps, Calamia retook top spot so I focused on keeping my tyres in good shape. Spa helpeda lot: after leading for most of the race in Belgium I had to give way with tyre wear”.

.03

Alberto Cola “I gained a spot at the start by overtaking Gardel and soon found myself tucked in behind Ragazzi. I started having transmission problems after the first lap and this meant that I dropped almost half a second a lap. I began losing ground on the leaders and Gardel and Cecchellero got past me. I ended up fourth as Gardel had to retire’.

.01

RACE 2

Riccardo Ragazzi

.03

“This was my fourth straight podium in the 2014 Trofeo and the season seems to be improving after a terrible start. I lined up on third and then managed to overtake Gardel.

It was a great battle and the Swiss driver was matching my lap times. It was tough but, in the end, I edged it. I couldn’t wait for the race to end”.

Alan Simoni “My start has conditioned by Cullenn locking his wheels, an incident that saw him run into Sernagiotto and force me right to the end of the run off area. Luckily I managed to avoid them by cutting across the track and mounted a comeback from the rear of the field to end up fifth, just like in Race 1”

.02

Alberto Cola “I started from fifth behind Sernagiotto; I got past him straight away and tucked in behind Ragazzi. The car stood up well in the early laps but the steering box gave out on lap four. My instinct was to retire but, as there was no one behind me, I decided to carry on despite losing a second a lap because of having to make continual corrections”.

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Gabriele Gardel

.03

RACE 3

Alberto Cola

“I am proud to drive for Swiss Team and would like to congratulate the mechanics for getting Mauro Calamia’s car ready so quickly. I don’t want to get into discussing the disqualification as rules exist and they have to be respected but, in my opinion, the parts investigated would not give us an advantage. This race was my last in the Maserati Trofeo and I am pleased at having driven in this series and taken on these drivers”.

“I overtook Sernagiotto at the start and chased down Ragazzi. I got ahead of him before the pit stops after he hesitated. I was in second when I came back out but then Calamia got past me. I tried to hit back after the safety car left but time ran out. I am now leading the Single Driver standings; a good way to end the European stages”.

.02

Mauro Calamia “In the first two races the officials found that my car didn’t comply with the regulations so they disqualified me and took away the points. I don’t really understand the decision but I’ll accept it. I swapped cars and managed to make the podium despite having to spend an extra 20 seconds at the pit stop. I would like to thank my team for preparing a new GranTurismo MC Trofeo in time for me to gather the points I needed to take the Trofeo Europa in Race 3”.

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