Balaton hosts the Ferrari Challenge Europe for the first time

The Prancing Horse single-marque series will be held for the first time at the Balaton Park Circuit, which will host the second round of the season. The racetrack, inaugurated in 2023, is located 85 kilometres south-west of Budapest, near the lake of the same name, one of Hungary’s best-loved tourist destinations.

After the early May event at Mugello, featuring no fewer than 70 starters, the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Europe is gearing up for another weekend of spectacle and adrenaline on Hungarian soil, with the new 296 Challenge and the 488 Challenge Evo competing in the championship’s five classes.

Trofeo Pirelli. In the main class, Bence Valint (Ferrari Budapest - Rossocorsa) is expected to consolidate his position: the young Hungarian arrives at his home circuit leading the standings thanks to the first and second place clinched in Tuscany. Behind him, seven points adrift, is seasoned driver Franz Engstler (Gohm Motorsport - Engstler), winner of the 2022 Coppa Shell and the Trofeo Pirelli Am in 2023, who will seek to challenge him, after getting off to a winning start in the Mugello race. Philipp Baron (Gohm Motorsport - Baron Racing Team), who produced two steady races and a pole position in the opening round, will also be present, while Giacomo Altoè (Emil Frey Racing), fresh off the back of a podium finish in the Misano round of the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint, makes his season debut.
The thrilling challenge between the Am drivers sees the top three in the overall standings each separated by one point: Claus Zibrandtsen (Formula Racing) and Hendrik Viol (Scuderia Praha Racing), who achieved a first and a third place each at Mugello, and Marco Zanasi (CDP - Pinetti Motorsport), who posted two runner-up places. There will be no shortage of other contenders for success, including Britain’s James Owen (Meridien Modena - Engstler), who finished fourth twice at Mugello.

Coppa Shell. With a first and a second place and two convincing performances, Henry Hassid (Kessel Racing) comes to Balaton as leader of the class standings. Among the adversaries are Hungarian driver Tibor Valint (Ferrari Budapest - Rossocorsa), father of Bence, who achieved success in the first race in Italy, and the ever positive Manuela Gostner (Ineco - Reparto Corse RAM).
There are 21 drivers entered in the Am class, which saw newcomer Zois Skrimpias (Ineco - Reparto Corse RAM) excel in Tuscany with a first and a second place.

488. Among the drivers in the class that still features the Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo, Fabrizio Fontana (Formula Racing) will be at the start in Hungary, having impressed on his debut at Mugello with a win, a second place, and two pole positions.

Schedule. After testing and free practice sessions on Thursday and Friday, the stopwatches will start on Saturday, 1 June with the qualifying sessions: at 9 a.m. the Coppa Shell Am; at 10 a.m. Trofeo Pirelli and Trofeo Pirelli Am, and at 11 a.m. Coppa Shell and 488. The first races will get underway with the same sequence of classes at 2 p.m., 3.15 p.m. and 4.30 p.m. The programme is repeated with the same schedule and order on Sunday, 2 June. The qualifying sessions and races will be streamed with free access and English commentary on the live.ferrari.com website and the official Ferrari YouTube page.