The BMW Italia-Ceccato Racing Team driver successfully defended his title from last year winning the race with his co-equiper Raffaele Marciello in the penultimate race of the season. The GT Cup class race, suspended after the eighth lap, saw the victory of Di Fabio-Pierantoni, but all titles are still up for grabs and everything will be decided in tomorrow's race.
The 34-year-old German driver Jens Klingmann (BMW M4 GT3) has clinched the Italian GT Sprint Championship title today at Monza during the first race of the fourth round of the season. Driving for BMW Italia-Ceccato Racing Team alongside Raffaele Marciello, he dominated Race 1, crossing the finish line 3.966 seconds ahead of Michelotto-Stadsbader (Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo2-VSR) and 6.638 seconds ahead of Denes-Bartholomew (Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo2-Imperiale Racing).
With 23 points earned (20 for the win, 2 for both pole positions, and 1 for the fastest lap), the 34-year-old German driver is now virtually unbeatable at the top of the overall standings, with Michelotto and Stadsbader 22 points behind.
The GT Cup class race was suspended due to darkness at the ninth lap and saw the victory of Di Fabio-Pierantoni (Pro-AM 1st Division), Borelli-Casè (AM 1st Division), Pisani-Zerbi (Pro-AM 2nd Division), and Zanini-Fabiani (AM 2nd Division), with all classifications still open and to be decided tomorrow in Race 2.
GT3: Double pole, fastest lap in the race, victory in Race 1, and the Italian championship title won with one race to spare - this is the fantastic performance of the BMW crew, enriched for this final round of the season by the presence of a great champion like Raffaele Marciello. The BMW Italia-Ceccato Racing Team drivers dominated the race from the very first meters, with poleman Klingmann pulling away lap after lap from his immediate pursuers, handing the car over to Marciello with a lead of over 3 seconds. The Swiss driver, after serving a 12s penalty, emerged in second position but had no trouble overtaking Stadsbader, who had taken over from Michelotto, at the exit of the third safety car, which was necessary due to some off-track excursions. Once in the lead, Marciello pulled away from the Belgian driver to win ahead of the Vincenzo Sospiri Racing crew and Denes-Barholomew, who completed the podium.
Malvestiti-Ebrahim (BMW M4 GT3) ended in fourth place overall. They completed the success of BMW Italia-Ceccato Racing Team by winning the GT3 PRO-AM Italian title one race early, ahead of Moncini-Cola (Audi R8 LMS-Tresor/Audi Sport Italia), who recovered from 12th on the grid, and Di Giusto-Alatalo (Aston Martin Vantage GT3-L&A Infinity), who also made a good recovery from the fifth row of the grid.
From 14th on the grid to seventh place, Muller-Fulgenzi (Porsche GT3R-EFR) finished a recovery race, ahead of the first of the Ferraris entered, the 296 GT3 of Di Amato-Mosca (AF Corse), and the two Honda NSX GT3 of Nova Race entrusted to Jelmini-Berto and Simonini-Scarpetta, who finished the race ahead of the Mercedes AMG GT3 of Marco Antonelli, first in the GT3 AM. The provisional classification of this subclass sees Massimo Ciglia (Honda NSX GT3-Nova Race) in the lead, second at the finish line paired with Luca Magnoni, with a 15-point advantage over McIntosh-McGee (Mercedes AMG GT3-Antonelli Motorsport), only sixth at the finish line due to a puncture that stopped them on the 15th lap.
Bad luck continued in the race for Audi drivers Mazzola-Delli Guanti, who were stopped in the early part of the race due to a mechanical problem, just as the two Ferrari 296 GT3 of Easy Race's Bontempelli-Trulli and AF Corse's Nurmi-Ferati, involved in the starting battle at the first variant, ended their race prematurely.
GT Cup: The GT Cup race lasted only 7 laps as it was prematurely halted by race direction due to darkness following the accumulated delay during the afternoon. Starting from the pole, Di Fabio took the lead ahead of Zanon, Bucci, and Pollini, but the safety car immediately neutralized the race. At the restart, the Pesaro driver confirmed his lead. Behind him, Zanon lost positions to the two Team Best Lap drivers (Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo), the 17-year-old former karting champion Mattia Bucci, who was in great form since the qualifying sessions, and Lorenzo Pegoraro, still in contention for the title paired with Simone Patrinicola. Lorenzo Casè (Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo-AF Corse) was also prominent, taking the lead in the AM 1st Division. In contrast, in the 2nd Division, the drivers of Team SP Racing, Eugenio Pisani (PRO-AM) and Stefano Zanini (AM), took the lead in their respective subclasses. The red flag, finally, prematurely ended the hostilities, handing victory to Di Fabio-Pierantoni ahead of Bucci-Croccolino, Pegoraro-Patrinicola, Zanon-Tribaudini, and Pollini-Pollini.
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THE START OF THE GT3 RACE
THE START OF THE GT CUP RACE
