Baldi wins the 2011 Trofeo
Campagnano (I), 18 September 2011 – Second spot in the Trofeo was enough to see David Baldi crowned the Trofeo Maserati GranTurismo MC 2011 champion. This was the outcome of the Vallelunga meeting and means that, buoyed by a brilliant victory in Race 1 on Saturday evening, Baldi takes the title with a round to spare. So, the Tuscan celebrates victory in a series in which he led from start to finish. Since the opening race at Imola, he has battled long and hard with a determined Nicolò Piancastelli and Gaetano Ardagna. A win this afternoon was not good enough for the Romagna driver to deny Baldi but it did see him overhaul the Venezuelan in the overall standings; Ardagna took a solid third today.
Race 2 was won by Alessandro Pier Guidi in a repeat of yesterday’s result. Pier Guidi also kept up his amazing record of always winning when he has been in the Maserati GranTurismo MC. The Tortona driver was a guest this weekend and so didn’t win any championship points, nor did his Swiss Team companion from the International Superstars Series, Andrea Bertolini. The two are turning out this year in the Maserati Quattroporte Evo and both tested new technical solutions that might appear in the 2012 Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo.
Things were also settled in the Team series at Vallelunga with the title going to AF Corse thanks to the efforts of Cedric Sbirrazzuoli and Alessandro Chionna. In Race 2, the category win went to Davide Durante, from Swiss Team, who finished ahead of Chionna and Scuderia Jolly Club’s Olivier Doeblin.
The two journalists taking part, Massimiliano De Giovanni and Massimo Arduini, finished sixth in their respective races in the N. 18 Radio Monte Carlo car.
The Vallelunga weekend was held under new rules with the cars competing alongside entrants from the GT Cup. Races were ten minutes longer (with more points awarded) and each driver had to make a 45″ pit stop.
David Baldi “I am astounded; I can’t believe I have won the Trofeo. I am really, really happy. I won the title after collecting six wins and managing drop to the points at Spa, my unluckiest round, as the regulations allow. I would like to thank Maserati for giving me the chance to race on some of Europe’s best circuits. Today at Vallelunga I was in a back-up car and still managed to bring home the result. This proves how the GranTurismo MCs are the same for all the drivers. This is one of the single-make series’ important factors. I will be much more laid back in the last round at Mugello as it is my home circuit. I won’t be trying to add up the points but just enjoying the event with my friends”.
Alessandro Chionna (AF Corse): “I was much calmer today after Cedric made sure of the title with yesterday’s performance. It was tough making it to the finish because the tyres were really worn down. I tried for the category win but couldn’t pull it off. I would like to congratulate Swiss Team for their win”.
The final round in the 2011 Trofeo Maserati will be held on 2 October at Mugello.
Driver interviews, photos, videos and in-depth reports from Maserati’s single-make series are available on the Maserati Corse website (www.maseraticorse.com).
Race 2 – Trofeo Race 2 – Team
1. Alessandro Pier Guidi 28 laps 50’11.260 * 1. Davide Durante (Swiss Team) 28 laps 51’27.690
2. Nicolò Piancastelli 28 laps 50’38.711 2. Alessandro Chionna (AF Corse) 28 laps 51’28.434
3. Andrea Bertolini 28 laps 50’39.441 * 3. Olivier Doeblin (Scuderia Jolly Club) 27 laps 50’17.025
4. David Baldi 28 laps 50’52.829
5. Gaetano Ardagna 28 laps 51’04.522
* guest drivers who do not pick up any championship points
Trofeo Classification Team Classification
1. David Baldi – 155 points 1. AF Corse (Sbirrazzuoli/Chionna) – 189 points
2. Nicolò Piancastelli – 121 points 2. Swiss Team (Grassi/Durante) – 116,5 points
3. Gaetano Ardagna – 113,5 points 3. Scuderia Jolly Club (Olivier Doeblin) – 64,5 points
Maserati Corse Press Office, Filippo Ghialamberti, mediaracing@maserati.com
Photo: credits Maserati/Mario Chiarappa
