In the extraordinary setting of the Autodromo Nazionale, which over the weekend welcomed 65,000 spectators, Ferrari took sixth place at the Monza 6 Hours courtesy of the Richard Mille - AF Corse team’s 488 GTE, driven by Wadoux-Rovera-Perez Companc. In the LMGTE Am class, reserved for crews made up of professional and gentlemen drivers, the Maranello manufacturer also finished ninth and tenth with the number 21 and 54 AF Corse cars, while Kessel Racing’s 488 GTE was forced to retire early.
At the end of the fifth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, the final one to be held in Europe, the first Ferrari to finish was that of official drivers Lilou Wadoux and Alessio Rovera, sharing the car with Luis Perez Companc, who had started from fourth place on the grid. The result was affected by a collision in the second hour, while the Argentinean driver was at the wheel, which caused an off at the second Lesmo turn, obliging the crew to attempt a far from easy comeback. The fastest lap of the race was registered by Alessio Rovera in 1'47''096, who remained at the wheel for 61 of the 183 laps completed. At the end of the race, the Richard Mille - AF Corse team finished two laps adrift of the winning number 77 Porsche.
Finishing in the top ten were the two 488 GTE entries of the Piacenza-based AF Corse team. Ninth position went to Julien Piguet, Simon Mann and Ulysse de Pauw, with the Belgian - class of 2001 - setting the best time of 1'47''953. Tenth at the chequered flag was the Ferrari in the silver VistaJet livery, driven by Davide Rigon, Thomas Flohr and Francesco Castellacci. The crew’s best 1'47''434 marker was set by official driver Rigon, who handled the AF Corse car for 62 laps. The four-lap stoppage was brought about by the need to replace the gearbox at a stage of the race when the car was leading the class.
In the world championship round held at the Temple of Speed, the number 57 Kessel Racing-entered Ferrari 488 GTE, driven at Monza by Takeshi Kimura, Scott Huffaker and Kei Cozzolino, was forced to withdraw due to a mechanical issue.
The FIA WEC will be back in the spotlight on 10 September in Japan at the 6 Hours of Fuji.