Ferrari Rules at Silverstone
The FIA WEC 6 Hours of Silverstone proved to be a happy hunting ground for the AF Corse team as they took wins in both the LMGTE Pro and LMGTE Am categories. The nr51 AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia of Gianmaria Bruni and Giancarlo Fisichella won the LMGTE Pro class in a hard fought race, while the nr61 AF Corse-Waltrip Ferrari 458 Italia of Piergiuseppe Perrazzini, Marco Cioci and Matt Griffin were victorious in LMGTE Am finishing ahead of the nr50 Larbre Competition Corvette and the nr88 Team Felbermayr-Proton Porsche.
From the start of the race the LMGTE Pro battle was raging fiercely with pole sitter Richard Lietz holding onto the lead in the nr77 Felbermayr-Proton Porsche while Gianmaria Bruni in the nr51 AF Corse Ferrari and Darren Turner in the nr97 Aston Martin Racing Vantage were trading places, with Turner ending the opening hour ahead of the Italian.
It was more of the same in the next 60-minutes as the LMGTE Pro class provided some of the best racing. The nr97 Aston Martin Racing Vantage of Stefan Mucke closed the gap to less than a second to the leading nr77 Felbermayr-Proton Porsche of Marc Lieb, with the nr51 AF Corse Ferrari of Giancarlo Fisichella keeping pace with the two lead cars. Disaster struck as the race approached the halfway point when the nr77 Felbermayr-Proton Porsche suffered a rear suspension problem and had to crawl back to the pits for repairs, leaving the nr97 Aston Martin Racing Vantage in the class lead.
However the lead soon changed when the Aston Martin made a pitstop and the AF Corse Ferrari took the lead with Gianmaria Bruni back in the cockpit of the 458, with the Italian holding a 22 second advantage as the race entered the final stages.
At the chequered flag the nr51 AF Corse crossed the line to take the victory two laps ahead of the JMW Motorsport Ferrari of James Walker and Jonny Cocker with the nr97 Aston Martin taking the final podium position after a clash with the nr71 AF Corse Ferrari of Andrea Bertolini at the final corner which saw the Ferrari beached in the gravel trap.
At the chequered flag the nr51 AF Corse crossed the line to take the victory two laps ahead of the JMW Motorsport Ferrari of James Walker and Jonny Cocker with the nr97 Aston Martin taking the final podium position after a clash with the nr71 AF Corse Ferrari of Andrea Bertolini at the final corner which saw the Ferrari beached in the gravel trap.
The LMGTE Am class was closely fought with the nr61 AF Corse-Waltrip Ferrari holding the early lead, then it was the nr50 Larbre Competition Corvette, followed by the nr88 Team Felbermayr-Proton Porsche in the later stages of the 6 hour race. However as the race drew to a close it was the nr61 AF Corse-Waltrip 458 that was ahead and the car crossed the line 54 seconds ahead of their nearest rival. However at post race scrutineering the nr50 Larbre Competition Corvette was excluded for not complying with the safety rules.
Photo: TOWCESTER (NORTHAMPTONSHIRE, GREAT BRITAIN), SILVERSTONE CIRCUIT, 6 HOURS OF SILVERSTONE, SUNDAY 26TH AUGUST 2012, RACE.