Have a FaceBook, Twitter, or other social networking account?

Link them to your fanatic account!

Add An Account

TAKE ME TO...
Grand Am
GRAND-AM: Risi Gearing Up For Rolex 24 Return
Team yet to confirm full-season plans for either GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series or American Le Mans Series...
John Dagys  |  Posted December 08, 2011   Chicago, IL
Risi Competizione took to Daytona International Speedway for the first time since 2004, this time with Ferrari's new F458 Italia Grand-Am. (Photo: John Dagys)
Risi Competizione returned to Daytona this week for the first time in nearly a decade, as the Ferrari GT specialists gear up for the debut of the new F458 Italia Grand-Am in next month’s 50th Rolex 24.

As one of four teams set to run the GRAND-AM version of the GT3-based Prancing Horse, the Houston-based squad arguably boasts the most Ferrari experience. Yet they quickly learned the new car is a totally different animal when compared to their American Le Mans Series GTE-spec F458, which took drivers Jaime Melo and Toni Vilander to class victories in both sides of the Atlantic this year.

With more production components, including different suspension, brakes, gearbox and tires on the GRAND-AM variant, factory Ferrari driver Vilander and Brazilian ace Rafa Matos initially struggled to come to grips with the new car.

However, they made considerable progress in Wednesday’s second and final day of testing, as the No. 62 machine ended the day as the quickest Ferrari and only less than a second slower than the GT class pace-setting TRG Porsche.

"I was more worried about dependability, as it's new to GRAND-AM,” chief engineer Mark Schomann told SPEED.com. “But we didn't really have that many problems. The only thing we saw is that we think the starter may be exposed to heat a little bit. But other than that, it's not been too much grief.

"We learned a lot about what we need in terms of as far as shock valving, springs, and things we didn't have here. So the goal will be to come back and see if we could improve the drivability. We can go fast enough for the lap time, but we also need it to be easy.”

Vilander and Matos, which will likely be joined by newly crowned European Le Mans Series GTE-Pro champion Gimmi Bruni for the Rolex 24, completed around 80 laps at the wheel of the Ferrari of Ft. Lauderdale-owned car, which became the first F458 to lap Daytona back in July. Incidentally, Matos was one of the drivers who participated in that history making test.

“We’re not really worried about the speed right now,” Matos said. “We’re working with the handling of the car and trying to improve the reliability of our new Ferrari. We really want to put miles on it and see what we have to improve and be better prepared for the race.”

While Risi’s Rolex 24 program has been confirmed, team manager Dave Sims told SPEED.com that no decision has been made on whether they'll continue in the Rolex Series after Daytona or return to the American Le Mans Series, where they have competed full-time since 2004, but struggled last year.

Sims, though, did confirm that Matos, who starred in his team debut at Petit Le Mans, has replaced Melo as a full-season co-driver with Vilander. Which GT championship they’ll be fighting for, however, will likely be finalized in the next two weeks.

John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
john_dagys's avatar

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

John Dagys

MORE BY THIS AUTHOR
Advertising | Jobs | Feedback | FAQ | Terms of Use | NEW Privacy Policy | Ad Choices | Site Map
Fox Sports | FUEL TV | FX Network | National Geographic | IGN | AskMen
The Motor Sports Authority, SPEED and associated logos are registered trademarks of Speed Channel Inc.
All Rights Reserved © Speed Channel, Inc. 2012

All external links will open in a new browser window. SPEED.com does not endorse external sites.