With four hours still to run, the Ferraris continue in the fray for top positions with the no. 51 of Pier Guidi / Calado / Serra currently lying in sixth place. The race got off to a difficult start for the two 488 GTEs who were unable to fend off the adversaries’ attacks on the long Sebring straights.
GTE-Pro. Two full course yellow which became safety cars allowed the two Ferraris to remain in contention with the front-runners and were able to take advantage of lower tire temperatures than those of the race start. Rain made an appearance in the second hour although wet or intermediate tyres weren’t deemed necessary. Currently, car no. 51 holds sixth while no. 71 driven by Rigon / Bird / Molina occupies ninth place.
GTE-Am. In the GTE-Am class, after the forfeit of the car no. 61 of the Clearwater Racing team after an accident in qualifying, the two Ferrari entrants in the 1000 Miles of Sebring held positions just off the leaders, with Giancarlo Fisichella performing particularly well, with the driver from Rome managing to reach second place with the no. 54 Ferrari, the Spirit of Race behind Bergmaister’s Porsche. Fisichella, proving to be faster than his rival in that phase, produced an attack for the top spot which ended in contact, which was subsequently judged harshly by the commissioners who forced the number 54 to make a stop & go. With the episode out of the way, the Spirit of Race Ferrari continues to occupy the fifth position. Sixth is the car no. 70 of the Ishikawa / Beretta / Cheever III crew.