The Autodromo Nazionale di Monza is set to host the fifth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, with four Ferrari 488 GTEs entered in the only class open to cars derived from the LMGTE Am series. Here are the comments from the Prancing Horse official drivers in the run-up to the Monza 6 Hours, scheduled to get underway on Sunday 9 July.
Lilou Wadoux, 488 GTE #83 Richard Mille AF Corse: “At Monza, our aim is to be in the fight for the podium, but my hope is to be able to compete for the win after the unlucky race at the 24 Hours of Le Mans: we are ready and confident. The Italian track, as everyone knows, is famous for its high speeds. Although it’s not my absolute favourite track – I say this sincerely – I really like the Variante Ascari, and I believe that all three chicanes are the sections where you can make the difference. Before the start of the season we organised two days of testing on this track that could be very important ahead of the 6 Hours.”
Alessio Rovera, 488 GTE #83 Richard Mille AF Corse: “We arrive at the Italian round with the ambition of getting a good result after having retired at Le Mans. On a personal level, Monza represents a ‘home’ track to me, where I have competed many times, picking up some important and satisfying results. As a Ferrari official driver, the 6 Hours will also undoubtedly be a race with a special flavour, where I’m expecting a good crowd: meeting our fans at the Brianza circuit gives an extra boost of motivation to do better, so we’ll be aiming for a great result with our 488 GTE.”
Davide Rigon, 488 GTE #54 AF Corse: “My expectations for the Monza 6 Hours? First of all, after the win for our Hypercar 499P at Le Mans, I’m sure that there will be a lot of fans in the stands and that the atmosphere will be like the other great occasions. As far as the race is concerned, also at the 24 Hours in France our car was very fast and competitive. The team at AF Corse always provides us with a perfect 488 GTE. So, expectations are high. Personally, I have very good feelings ahead of the fifth round, also since my teammates Thomas Flohr and Francesco Castellacci know this track well.”