- Ferrari leads GT-Daytona team and driver championship as IMSA arrives at historic Road America
- Scuderia Corsa’s Ferrari 488 GT3 chasing history of Elkhart Lake-winning Ferrari 166MM
August 3, 2017 (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.) – The historic Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin is the next stop in Ferrari’s quest for a second consecutive IMSA GT-Daytona class championship.
Scuderia Corsa drivers Alessandro Balzan and Christina Nielsen, the defending GT-Daytona champions in the no. 63 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 488 GT3, have finished on the podium six times in the eight races held so far in this season’s IMSA SportsCar Championship including second-place finishes at Sebring, Circuit of The Americas, Detroit and the Six Hours of the Glen.
Following a sixth-place finish at the previous race at Lime Rock Park, Balzan and Nielsen grew their lead in the championship to 17 points. Their performance has also enabled Ferrari to grow its lead in the GT-Daytona manufacturer championship.
If Balzan and Nielsen score their first victory of the season at Road America, they will add to the list of victories for the Pracing Horse that date back to Elkhart Lake’s original road races in 1950. That year, Jim Kimberly drove a Ferrari 166MM to victory in the 100-mile race on the original 3.3-mile circuit adjacent to Elkhart Lake. After Road America opened in 1955, Ferraris scored four straight victories on the 4.0-mile permanent circuit. In modern times Risi Competizione has captured two victories at Road America with a Ferrari 458 GT2.
The Road Race Showcase from Road America will be broadcast live on Sunday, August 6 on FOX Sports 1 at 2:30 PM ET. Qualifying will be streamed live on IMSA.com on Saturday, August 5 at 1:25 PM ET.