The durability and reliability of Pirelli’s race tyres was highlighted in world-class endurance racing over the weekend after a successful opening round of the 2013 Blancpain Endurance Series in Monza.
With the race less than 20 kilometres from Pirelli’s headquarters in Milan, the season-opener proved to be resounding success with more than 60 GT3 cars representing 28 countries on the start grid. Conditions were dry over the course of the race, with the Ferrari 458 of Kessel Racing piloted by Cesar Ramos/Davide Rigon and Daniel Zampieri claiming the overall victory on Pirelli slicks after an eventful race. Claiming the runners-up position was the McLaren MP4-12C driven by Andy Soucek/Antoine Leclerc and Mike Parisy.
The increasingly popular Gentlemen’s Trophy class saw a podium lock-out for Italian manufacturer Ferrari after a race-long battle ensued between SOFREV, Kessel Racing and AF Corse.
The Blancpain Endurance Series is a five-round endurance racing championship which encompasses a wide variety of teams representing different manufacturers. The cars eligible are race versions of road-going supercars, as have already been seen on the opening round of the FIA GT Series in Nogaro, France, last month.
Pirelli’s senior engineer Matteo Braga commented: “Monza always proves itself as an exceptionally difficult race - and with so many cars on the starting grid, it was a real challenge for the teams competing. Our tyres adapted well to the demanding nature of the track, benefitting all the competitors – using a wide variety of cars – with their consistency and reliability. Despite all the different car configurations, we saw the Pirelli tyres work very effectively on each type. With such close racing witnessed in Monza, I am looking forward to some more bumper-to-bumper action at the next round at Silverstone in six weeks time.”
The next round of the Blancpain Endurance Series will take place at Silverstone, the home of the British Grand Prix, from 1-2 June.