Tarmac Magazine : Road > Rally

Ferrari 458 smashes Bathurst lap record

Posted : 14/11/2011

Related link : http://www.maranellomotorsport.com.au/

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In this weekend’s first test of Maranello Motorsport’s
2011 Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 endurance weapon, two highly regarded names in
motor sport are again on everyone’s lips. Maranello Motorsport and Allan
Simonsen, who piloted the 458 around the Mount Panorama circuit in a blitzing
time of 2:04.9560 to smash the lap record and set Maranello in the sights of
their competitors.

Having delivered the car just one week ago, the Maranello
Motorsport team continues to develop and impress with the support of title
sponsor Il Bello Rosso along for the ride once more. The crew took only days to
have the latest 458 locked and loaded, ready for its introduction to Australia
and the country’s racing mecca, the place they call ‘The Mountain’.

Impressing straight out of the box, the 458’s opening
laps of the 6.2km circuit edged close to record times, the Il Bello Rosso team
staying true to the guidelines of the Michelotto manufacturers, hitting the
mark and impressing among others Maranello Managing Director, Mark Coffey who
explained,

“The 458 is a great car. It’s worth the wait and really
is amazing how the time we spent at the factory with Michelotto has paid off
with the car so quick and stable so quickly.

“It’s terrific to not need months to dial it in. There’d
been a lot of people with stopwatches around the track and to now have
confirmation of the new record during the team’s first test is very exciting so
we’re looking forward to the racing.”

With half of the driver lineup on hand to complete the
opening test, Simonsen was joined by regular Maranello endurance driver Peter
Edwards who also took to the new machine with ease, putting in the fast times
and feeling settled in the new chassis.

As the lap count continued, the Il Bello Rosso crew made
minimal setup changes to the Italian horse, having proven from the outset that
the factory format was suited to the conditions, the team needing waste no time
to learn the 458 from scratch, setup being so close to ideal direct from its
Michelotto home.

Having experienced the 458 in his international racing
commitments, Simonsen was thrilled with the race package of the Maranello
Motorsport entry, saying,

“This car is damn fast! Given this is our first test,
it’s certainly nice to break the lap record finally and we did it in style.

“From the first laps at Bathurst the car was very quick,
given it has a great setup baseline from running in Europe this year so we knew
we’d be able to work from where they’d left off.

“The power and the chassis are so complementary and I’m
feeling really comfortable in the car and with the team.

“These new generation cars are all going to have a fast
pace, and there’s no doubt the (Bathurst) 12 Hour is going to be very fast and
incredibly competitive – it’s an event I’m definitely looking forward to on the
calendar.”

Having recently announced that Maranello and Michelotto
would join forces in the Australian GT series, the Il Bello Rosso team are
committed to not just growing their race program, but ensuring that their
stable of Ferraris will be at the forefront of the field, no matter the place,
no matter the category, Maranello Motorsport will be the ones to watch.

Maranello Motorsport’s 2011 Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 endurance weapon driven by Allan Simonsen

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