THE latest exotic to join the growing ranks of GT sports car racing in Australia, Trofeo Motorsport’s ex-works Maserati GT3 coupe, made a successful debut last weekend at Queensland Raceway.
Barely a week after its arrival from Modena, Italy, the V8-powered Maserati driven by Rod Wilson and Jim Manolios finished second in a one-hour race for round four of the Australian Sports/GT Intermarque Championship yesterday during the Australian Motor Racing Series (AMRS) meeting.
The result for the Pirelli Australia-sponsored car consolidated Wilson’s lead in the Outright and Class A points standings. Manolios is fourth outright and third in class.
Importers Maserati Australia assisted in flying the GT3 out to Trofeo’s Melbourne headquarters, where it was sent straight to the paint shop.
Sporting striking yellow-and-red Pirelli livery and entered by The Ultimate Drive Day, the Maserati ran strongly after some initial set-up problems were sorted in practice and during two five-lap races on Saturday afternoon.
“We’re very pleased with car for a first outing, especially since Jim and I had not even sat in it until Friday practice, ” Wilson said.
“It has lots more potential and when we get our second car, which is coming from Italy by sea, Trofeo Motorsport should be in a very strong position for the remaining two rounds of the championship. ”
The Maserati GT3s contested last year’s FIA GT3 Championship in Europe for the factory-backed team and are significant developments of the two Trofeo GT coupes Trofeo Motorsport has campaigned in the first rounds of the season at Wakefield Park, Calder and Winton.
They run exclusively on Pirelli race tyres, for which Trofeo Motorsport is the Australian importer and distributor.
Entrant “The Ultimate Drive Day” is Trofeo Motorsport’s program of exclusive Maserati track-experience days.
The all-day events put enthusiasts behind the wheel of the roadgoing Maserati GranSport coupe and Quattroporte sedan and give them some hot passenger laps in the race cars.
The next round of the 2007 Sport/GT Intermarque Championship will be another one-hour race at Winton, Victoria, on 25-26 August. For more information about Trofeo Motorsport, the Sports/GT Intermarque Championship and the AMRS,
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