Weekend notebook: Five victories and a title at Monza

Ferrari achieved fourth and seventh place in the 8 Hours of Indianapolis, where only bad luck kept them off the class podium. At Monza, Lorenzo Casè and Edoardo Borelli clinched the title in the GT Cup Am 1st division with the Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo of AF Corse during the final round of the CIGT Sprint. The Maranello manufacturer’s cars achieved several placings and five victories on the Italian track.

GT WC America. Ferrari took a fourth-place finish in Pro-Am in Saturday’s Indianapolis 8 Hour, with both of AF Corse’s Ferrari 296 GT3s running in podium contention before experiencing disappointment in the final two hours. Ferrari Ambassador driver Toni Vilander took the checkered flag in 10th overall and fourth in Pro-Am, joining Jay Schreibman and Ozz Negri in the Number 163 iMBranded Ferrari 296 GT3 in the final race of the SRO GT World Challenge America campaign.

The No. 88 AF Corse Ferrari of Custodio Toledo, Cedric Sbirrazzuoli and Riccardo Agostini experienced heartbreak with one hour, 18-minutes remaining, when Agostini pulled to a stop in the runoff area for the final turn while running third.

Starting 22nd, the No. 163 Ferrari earned the Hard Charger of the Race award.

“It was a tough race for us,” Negri said. “We’re not young anymore, so it wasn’t easy, spending three hours in the car. The car is amazing. We had just put this deal together, and we finished top 10 in this very competitive field. A great day, and the podium was so close.”

The No. 163 Ferrari ran in contention for most of the race despite starting 22nd, with Vilander running second at one point in the early stages of the race. Negri worked his way up to fourth with three hours left. Vilander then took over but was forced to serve a drive-through penalty for exceeding drive time with 2:25 on the clock. Negri then returned and moved from seventh to third before turning the car back to Vilander for the final hour on a green flag stop that cost the team two positions. Vilander was able to take fourth with 37 minutes remaining, but was unable to make up any more positions as time ran out.

“I’m very happy for Jay (Schreibman) for making this happen,” Negri said. “It was amazing sharing the car with Toni, an amazing guy and a great teammate. We fought hard. Jay doesn’t have much experience, and he got thrown in the deep end of the pool. He made zero mistakes and brought the car home in one piece. We ran a trouble-free race.

“I’m so blessed to be involved with Ferrari. Who would say at my age that I would still be involved with the heavy-hitters. It’s so cool, and I’m thankful.”

The Number 88 car moved up to fourth with 4:42 remaining, when Agostini passed Schreibman. Sbirrazzuoli took third at the midway point, and kept the car in podium contention. Agostini was third when a drive-through penalty for speeding in pit road cost him a position. He quickly regained third, and held that position up until the mechanical problem took the Ferrari to the garage. Toledo returned to the race for the final half-hour, finishing seventh in Pro-Am.

The Indianapolis enduro marked the end of the 2024 SRO GT World Challenge America championship. Vilander and AF Corse will be among a seven-car Ferrari lineup on Saturday for Petit Le Mans, the final round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and Endurance Cup.

CIGT. Lorenzo Casè and Edoardo Borelli claimed the GT Cup Am 1st division title with AF Corse’s Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo number 250 in the final round of the Italian Gran Turismo Sprint Series Championship at Monza. The two Italian drivers secured the necessary points with a fifth-place finish in Race-2 and a victory in the first race, which lasted only seven laps, halted prematurely by Race Direction because of fading light following programme delays in the afternoon. The three Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo single-marque cars competed on Saturday, securing all positions on the overall podium. Victory went to Easy Race’s number 103, crewed by Di Fabio and Pierantoni (also first in the Pro Am class), while Best Lap’s car number 178, with Bucci and Croccolino took second place ahead of the team’s number 111, driven by Patrinicola and Pegoraro. However, despite their result in the first race and their victory in Race-2, also in the Pro Am class (which they led from pole to chequered flag), Patrinicola and Pegoraro fell short of the GT Cup Pro-Am title. The pair ultimately had to settle for third place in the final standings. The race was highly eventful, featuring two Safety Car interventions and ending prematurely on lap 21 when the red flag came out following a multi-car accident. The Ferrari number 177 of Double TT Racing, with Belgian driver Gilles Renmans, took the runner-up spot.

The second GT Cup Pro-Am 2nd Division race saw a third place for the Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo of Di Fabio and Pierantoni from the Easy Race team and a second-place finish in the GT3 Am for Samuele Buttarelli and Stefano Marazzi in the Ferrari 296 GT3 of Rossocorsa Racing, which enabled them to finish the season in fifth.

The team title winners will have to wait for the official publication of the final standings.

With the conclusion of its Sprint activities, the Italian Gran Turismo Championship will return from 25 to 27 October for the final Endurance round, once again at Monza.