Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli completed its second round in North America in style with racing action all day at Sonoma Raceway. Nestled in the heart of California wine country, drivers did not have much time to enjoy the views of the San Francisco Bay as the roller-coaster layout of the circuit and their Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo race cars kept everyone on their toes for the whole weekend.
Trofeo Pirelli. Cooper MacNeil (Ferrari of Westlake) continued his perfect run at the front of the Trofeo Pirelli race, and as the sole entrant in the Trofeo Pirelli category, earning pole and the win in Sunday’s on-track action. It was by and large smooth sailing at the front of the field as he launched to the lead early and built a gap before managing his pace to the checkered flag thirty minutes later.
Trofeo Pirelli AM1. Martin Burrowes (Ferrari of Ft. Lauderdale) returned to the top step of the podium in Sunday’s action after a challenging Saturday. The Ferrari of Ft. Lauderdale driver was off the front row to start, but stormed past outside pole-sitter Brad Horstmann (Foreign Cars Italia) but did not have the ultimate pace to challenge MacNeil. In fact his nearest competition was from behind as Enzo Potolicchio (Ferrari of Central Florida) took second in the category, only three seconds adrift of Burrowes. Neil Gehani (Continental Autosports) rounded out the AM1 podium with a third place finish.
Trofeo Pirelli AM2. Jason McCarthy (Wide World Ferrari) made his return to the top step of the Trofeo Pirelli AM2 podium after a remarkable drive in Saturday’s races. While it was certainly a more subdued performance on Sunday, McCarthy still managed to finish over 10 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor, Brian Davis (Ferrari of Palm Beach) who took second place. Class pole-sitter Brad Horstmann (Foreign Cars Italia) however had a more difficult afternoon after qualifying so well, tumbling to third in the category.
Coppa Shell. Dave Musial Jr. (Ferrari of Lake Forest) made a triumphant return to the top step of the podium, taking the Coppa Shell win in Sunday’s action at Sonoma Raceway. A wild 30-minute battle saw multiple lead changes among three different drivers as everyone tried to navigate the roller-coaster challenge of the famed California circuit. In the category, VIR maestro Todd Coleman (Ferrari of Denver) finished second while pole sitter Christopher Aitken (Ferrari of Houston) rounded out the podium with a strong third place finish.
Coppa Shell AM. Benoit Bergeron (Ferrari of Quebec) continued to make his presence felt in the Coppa Shell AM category in his first racing weekend with the championship, completing a perfect weekend in his very first attempt. Sunday’s win firmly established him as a force to be reckoned with, not only in Coppa Shell AM, but in the overall rankings as well as he finished second there. Further back, Franck Ruimy (Ferrari of Beverly Hills) took the second step, while Brett Jacobson (Ferrari of Austin) also secured a podium finish in only his second ever racing weekend.
Schedule. The North American leg of Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli will continue at Watkins Glen International Raceway with official sessions beginning on May 21.