By Irina Boyarskaya
Photo: Akis Temperidis
- Where is my validol? the press officer of the team asked me when we were watching the race broadcasting in Mugello. The phrase should be the slogan of the last weekend of Porsche Carrera Cup. So, Mugello. The race for iron nerves. Go on!
The gearbox of Oleksandr Gaidai's Porsche was blocked on the third gear when entering from pit lane to the first qualification. We had such a story at the beginning of the season – it is a manufacturing defect of the gearbox compressor. Gaidai managed to drive only two laps in the first qualification, but got the eighth time result and passed to the second qualification round.
The second qualification was enough to find out that the car has the oversteer and it is too hard. A couple of hours left to the race and the team dedicated it to the replacement not only of the notorious compressor but also all the shock-absorbers. So, we were ready to start on Saturday!
The race started with the safety car: 5 minutes and all the peloton was parading peacefully as on the walk in the kindergarten. Oleksandr Gaidai is on the 8th position.
As far as the safety car leaves the track, the bedlam starts. Matteo Cairoli who started forth, rapidly overruns Alberto De Amicis and Massimo Monti. Giovanni Berton flies off on the gravel. Oleksandr Gaidai lances to Angelo Proietti, but he surpasses the trajectory. Monti comes to senses and wins back the position. Gaidai is already attacking De Amicis, the latter makes a mistake, and the Tsunami RT pilot gets the sixth place...
At the moment dark clouds hanging over Mugello track begin to wet the asphalt. Peloton leader Gianluca Giraudi goes to change wheels for the rain tires, and other competitors follow his example... Oleksandr Gaidai is on the second position now, just behind Matteo Cairoli!
7 minutes till the end of the race. The rain is making up. Cairoli is in the boxes to change the wheels. Gaidai is leading the peloton!
It's difficult to say if all the participants have changed tires. In any case, Alberto De Amicis, Alex De Giacomi and Ilya Melnikov are sliding fiercely. Oleksandr Gaidai with slicks on the absolutely wet track is driving as on the rails, keeping the trajectory perfectly (where is my validol?!). Matteo Cairoli, now on rain tires, is overrunning the competitors as if they were standing and comes closer and closer to Gaidai.
The last race lap! Cairoli overruns Gaidai, but Oleksandr makes no mistake and finishes on the second position in the impeccably clear and smooth manner. The first podium in our pilot's career in Porsche Carrera Cup Italy!
O. Gaidai: "If the rain hadn't become heavier I would have come first. I don't know how I have decided to reach the finish without changing tires, it was very hard, but I was driving after all. Of course, my team was waiting for me on the pit lane, and I didn't come. Three laps before the finish they understood that they have to wait for me either on the podium of somewhere in gravel.
It was a kind of test for me, if I'm able to do that. And I passed it. I have never driven in such circumstances and I haven't even supposed that I'm able to drive on slick under the sheeted rain! It was the perfect race, unique and astonishing! Perfect race, perfect result!"
Porsche Carrera Cup Italia, Mugello
Race 1
1. CAIROLI Matteo (Antonelli Motorsport) 14 laps
2. GAIDAI Oleksandr (Tsunami RT) +15.218
3. MONTI Massimo (Ebimotors) +21.251
...
14. NEGRA Pietro (Antonelli Motorsport) +2 laps
The track was completely dry on Sunday. But the second race was not at all less vibrant.
Gianluca Giraudi becomes the leader at once. Oleksandr Gaidai started from the fifth position (let us remind: the top-6 pilots of the previous race starts in reverse order for the second one). Having rapidly overrun Massimo Monti, Gaidai becomes forth. The leading group leaves no space for others: Alberto de Amicis, Ilya Melnikov, Oleksandr Gaidai, Edoardo Liberati... And everything happens very quickly...
O. Gaidai: "Melnikov was struggling with De Amicis and when the former was braking he started to shift towards outside from the inside part. I was driving just behind him with Liberati to the left. At the moment of braking Liberati started to shift towards my side. I am not sure that he saw me there, and I am not at all sure that he understood that I couldn't shift. We all were in braking stage and had no space to exit the situation."
The result is a contact and Gaidai's and Liberati's turns. At this, Gaidai's car is playing for time failing to start for of about half a minute. Besides, he has a bent steering rack, the steering wheel is located awry and it will be difficult to drive. And it's only the start of the race!
There are attacks on all the tracks: Matteo Cairoli is pressing Ilya Melnikov, Giovanni Berton is winning back his positions...
And here is the rough fly-off of Glauko Salieri. Wheels and the car wreckages scatter on all the track! The safety car helped Oleksandr Gaidai a little: he managed to reduce the distance to the nearest competitor. And here is the "battle" formation again. Gaidai is working forward, he is eighth and attacks Rinat Salikhov! Tim Berton strikes the back of Gaidai's car when braking and the latter pushes Salikhov's Porsche (where is my validol?!). Thank's God, there are no turns and fly-offs, but Berton overruns both the Ukrainian and the Russian pilots.
And the last lap. Alberto De Amicis is the leader! Gianluca Giraudi is rushing behind him and is attacked by Matteo Cairoli. Oleksandr Gaidai is the ninth... and his tire bursts on the final! He has passed almost all the distance, Gaidai is qualified, but only with the 13th result...
O. Gaidai: "It is the first race in the season where I haven't got the points, and it's a little bit offensive. But I have positive impressions of the weekend, in any case. When my tire burst, people were applauding on the stand I've stopped at. A huge amount of people came and congratulated me yesterday and today. Thanks!"
Porsche Carrera Cup Italia, Mugello
Race 2
1. DE AMICIS Alberto (Ghinzani Motorsport) 15 laps
2. GIRAUDI Gianluca (Cardeco Racing) +3.412
3. CAIROLI Matteo (Antonelli Motorsport) +3.565
...
13. GAIDAI Oleksandr (Tsunami RT) +1 lap
And it is time to stop a little and make a pause – the next PCCI stage will take place in the end of the summer on Paul Ricard track. And then the races will follow one another: both French and Italian Porsche Cups keep the hottest scrimmages for the autumn. We have many races ahead, the season continues!