One year after the car and sports plans were unveiled, Maserati returns to Spa-Francorchamps for round 3 of the Fanatec GT2 European Series Powered by Pirelli. Over a weekend when the 24 Hours of Spa is also being held, the three Maserati GT2s were the stars on Friday, achieving a magnificent one-two in Race 1 with the victory of LP Racing’s number 1 car, driven by Leonardo Gorini and Carlo Tamburini who finished ahead of teammate Philippe Prette, the winner in the Am class. In the same class, the third Maserati, the TFT Racing team’s number 24 driven by Alexandre Leroy, crossed the finish line in second (fifth overall). In Race 2, the Belgian took the bottom step of the podium for the class.
At the end of qualifying for Race 1, the Maseratis took the top three places with Leroy taking his first pole position of the season. At the start, the number 24 picked up on the advantage to maintain the lead in the race but was forced to give way to the number 1 Maserati GT2 with Gorini at the wheel, who made his way to the front of the pack after a few laps. Passing the baton to Tamburini, the latter then made a mistake at Les Combes, giving his teammate Philippe Prette the opportunity to catch up significantly, although he still kept the lead. Tamburini was the first to the chequered flag, with Prette finishing 2.8 seconds behind, confirming the Maserati one-two and his third win of the year in the Am class. Leroy remained in the battle for the overall podium all throughout, but then dropped to fifth to take second in the Am class.
In the second 50-minute race held on Saturday morning, Prette was forced to pit in the early laps due to a puncture, compromising the rest of the race. After a good start, Tamburini found himself in fourth, but after about 20 minutes he slipped to eighth after contact with an opponent. At the end of the mandatory pit window, Gorini – who took over from Tamburini – began to make up for falling behind but was unfortunately forced to pit again due to a puncture; he ended up finishing tenth. Leroy, with a steady pace throughout the race, finished sixth overall and third in the Am class.
The next event, round 4 of the Fanatec GT2 European Series Powered by Pirelli, is scheduled to take place in Hockenheim, Germany, from 19 to 21 July.
Giovanni Sgro, Head of Maserati Corse: “Our winning streak with Maserati GT2 continues: I couldn’t have hoped for anything better this weekend at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, despite a bit of bad luck in Race 2. Once again, taking the first and second places in Race 1 demonstrates that we have developed an outstanding car for motorsport customers, professional racing teams and gentleman drivers. Maserati’s racing vocation, recently celebrated with the two MC20 Icona and MC20 Leggenda special editions for the 20th anniversary of the MC12’s debut, both in GT1 and Stradale versions, is the common thread that binds all our cars. Starting from the MC20, via the Maserati GT2 to the MCXtrema, our brand reiterates its intent to develop cutting-edge technologies and to meet customers’ requirements, both on the road and on the track. We can’t wait to line up on the grid for the next round of the 2024 Fanatec GT2 European Series Powered by Pirelli at Hockenheim”.
