Paulsen and Wohlwend triumph in Race 1

The first race of the Trofeo Pirelli at the Finali Mondiali Ferrari on the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli ended in triumph for both Frederik Paulsen (Formula Racing), first past the chequered flag overall and the winner of AM class, and Fabienne Wohlwend (Octane 126).

The race proved a thriller from the very start, with the pole-sitters from their respective classes, Frenchman Thomas Neubauer (Charles Pozzi - Courage) and Paulsen in AM class, staging a heated battle around the opening corners which would end in a collision. The contact, albeit light, penalized Neubauer who fell back to mid-group before attempting to stage a comeback, managing to set the best lap time in the process.

With the head of the field conquered, Paulsen managed to fend off attacks from an unbridled Cooper MacNeil (Ferrari Westlake), who had been able to move into second position in the opening stages. A few tenths of a second behind were Fabienne Wohlwend, John Wartique (Francorchamps Motors Luxembourg), Matús Vyboh (Scuderia Praha), second in AM class, Emanuele Maria Tabacchi (Rossocorsa) and Christian Brunsborg (Formula Racing), third in AM class. Florian Merckx (Baron Motorsport), with the third fastest time in his class, however, did not take the start. The initial stages of the race saw seven tightly-packed laps, with Paulsen continually increasing the pace until he was able to record the fastest lap. Behind him MacNeil, a protagonist from the North America series of the Ferrari Challenge, progressively slowed up before Wohlwend slipped by with a fine overtaking manoeuvre. With drivers poised for the grand finale, an off-track excursion by Han Sikkens (HR Owen), caused by the loss of a tyre, prompted a Safety Car entrance which neutralized positions over the remaining four minutes. Paulsen crossed the final chequered flag and won the race in the AM class, with Wohlwend first in the Trofeo Pirelli, Wartique (third overall) and Tabacchi (fourth overall), whose attempts at a comeback had been thwarted by the entrance to the Safety Car. American driver MacNeil should be satisfied with a fourth place in his class and seventh overall position.

In AM class, behind the winner Paulsen, was Matús Vyboh, who thanks to an excellent getaway was able to get the better of Formula Racing’s fellow-Dane, the young Brunsborg. Fourth place in the class, ninth overall, went to Lucky Khera (Graypaul Birmingham), champion of the UK series of Ferrari Challenge, while Claude Senhoreti (Ferrari of Ft. Lauderdale), protagonist in the North America series, wrapped up the race in seventh place in the class.