FIA GT Nations Cup - Two Ferraris on the podium at Sakhir

Sakhir – The Ferrari 488 GT3 machines were key players in the first edition of the FIA Nations Cup reserved for GT3 vehicles and Silver and Bronze drivers. There were no less than nine cars from Maranello at the start and two of them managed to finish on the podium in the race that decided the title. In fact, behind the Turkish crew that won the race, the Team Uk and Danish team’s cars finished, both managed by AF Corse.

A thrilling start. The race that decided the title, held under the artificial lighting of the Sakhir track, had a start that was chaotic to say the least with four cars ending up out of the race, including the Belarussian Ferrari and the Belgian Audi. This left Turkey’s Mercedes, the Team Uk Ferrari and the Russian Ferrari in the lead.

Ferrari Challenge drivers. The driver change took place at the mid-race point: the Ferrari Challenge Europe Trofeo Pirelli Am champion, Chris Froggatt, left the wheel to Chris Buncombe in the Team Uk 488 GT3, whereas in the car from Denmark, Johnny Laursen left the driver’s seat to Nicklas Nielsen, 2018 champion of the Trofeo Pirelli Europe. In the final part of the race, Buncombe was unable to fend off Turkey’s attacks and, in the finale, even risked losing second place due to Nielsen’s attacks, making a brilliant comeback after starting tenth. However, the Team Uk driver managed to stand his ground, bringing second place home. The Russian Ferrari finished fourth and the Italian sixth.