5th April 2003

2003 FIA GT CHAMPIONSHIP - ROUND 1, BARCELONA
QUALIFYING – Saturday, 5th April

In today’s two qualifying sessions for the opening round of the FIA GT Championship, all three of the Care Racing supported Ferrari 550 Maranellos ran well and qualified within the top eight places at Barcelona’s Circuit di Catalunya.

The two BMS Scuderia Italia cars will start the 3-hour race from the front two rows, having qualified in 2nd and 3rd positions, while the Care Racing entered car of Lilian Bryner, Enzo Calderari and Stefano Livio will start in 8th place.

Just two tenths of a second off the pole setting time, the no. 22 car of Luca Capellari and Fabrizio Gollin was very close to achieving a quicker time. Gollin, who will be carrying out all qualifying duties this season, came upon a slower car while on his quick lap.

Luca Capellari explained: “We are a little disappointed as we think we could have got pole position. We looked at the computer afterwards and Fabrizio was half a second quicker than on any of his previous laps when he found himself behind a slower N-GT car and the fast lap was gone. But I am very happy to be driving with Fabrizio as he is very fast, we have found that we like to set the car up in a very similar way, and I think we will have a very good partnership.”

Just behind them will be the no. 23 car of Thomas Biagi and Matteo Bobbi. The two young single-seater stars have quickly adapted their driving style to suit sportscars, and are both impressed with the speed and performance of the 6 litre V12 engine.

Thomas Biagi: “I am very happy to be in this Championship and with the BMS team. Everyone is very professional and knows exactly what they are doing which is important with such a big team and good Championship. In qualifying I found some traffic on my second set of tyres so couldn’t get the best out of the car. I know it could have got pole position otherwise but it’s not a bad result for our first qualifying!”

The third Ferrari 550, entered by Care Racing but managed and operated on its behalf by BMS, qualified in the hands of Enzo Calderari. The experienced Swiss duo of Calderari and Lilian Bryner are joined this year by Italian Stefano Livio who views the opportunity of competition in the Championship with great enthusiasm.

Stefano Livio: “I am slowly getting to know the car, but this is the first time I’ve been to Barcelona so I am listening carefully to everything Lilian and Enzo say. We know the car is quick, and when we get to the next round at Magny Cours, a circuit I know, I hope to be able to make a bigger contribution.”

Combined Qualifying Results:

For further information contact Fiona Miller, Communications Manager, Care Racing Development on +44 7770 371 332 or email to f.miller@btinternet.com