Sometimes only two days embrace an incredible number of events, emotions, adventures, feelings, efforts and pleasure... If these two days happened during the weekend, you are very likely had a racing weekend. For example, it was Porsche Carrera Cup Italia round in Misano.
Tsunami RT arrived there with four crews: our ranks increase in number! 19-year old Matteo Gonfiantini joined Alessio Rovera and Curti brothers. It was a real success – he demonstrated the sixth time result during the free practices!
However, his qualification was not so successful: his fastest lap was canceled because of going out of the track boundaries, and he got only the 14th place on the starting grid. But Alessio Rovera won on the first segment, and then on the second one, having earned two qualification points and the pole position for the first race.
Alessio Rovera: “In Q1 I did a small mistake but the all the rest was OK. In Q2, I also did a small mistake on the Quercia corner but it was OK, even if we could have lapped under the 1'36" barrier. I am very happy because I haven't been on pole position since 2013 - I think it was Imola!”
Carlo Curti: “Qualifying was quite good. My position is not very good but we are close and I am sure we are going to have fun in the race”.
Lino Curti: “I am happy because after the difficulties I met in the qualifying of Imola, here I am 11th and I can improve even more, so I see a spectacular race today”.
Matteo Gonfiantini: “I would say my qualifyng was bad because didn't manage to stay in the track limits during my best laps. In the end these are the track limits and we have to respect them. I hope we can make it better in the race”.
So, Rovera was on the pole position, others were at their places in the Saturday evening, the starting signal light turned off... Go!
Lino Curti, Matteo Gonfiantini and Riccardo Pera rushed to the charge from the very beginning. And, if the first two drivers could do what they wanted and we were OK with that, Pers’a attack was absolutely inappropriate, because Riccardo was trying to catch up Alessio Rovera.
In 7 minutes, the new Tsunami driver Matteo Gonfiantini was already on the 11th position and Carlo Curti was working on the defense against his competitors. Everything was going, as it should be... Except for the behavior of Alessio Rovera’s car. It (the car) began to lose the adherence of the rear wheels to the track that is why he (Rovera) was having even more difficulties holding the restless Riccardo Pera behind...
10 minutes before the race start. Pera attacked Rovera literally in every turn.
13 minutes before the race start. Pera overran Rovera perfectly. Alessio could not keep the competitor’s pace, but would not give nobody a chance to occupy the second step of the podium, no doubt.
Meanwhile, Jonathan Jackon (solo) and the duet of Ivan Jacome and Francesca Linossi made very beautiful and spectacular mistakes. Viewers applauded, announcers admired. In addition, Matteo Gonfiantini surreptitiously reached the 8th position and honestly tried to enter the top-6 (you remember that the driver who has the sixth position gets the pole position the next day, tight?), but the race unfortunately ended.
It ended not only with the silver podium of Alessio Rovera, but also with the bronze in the Michelin Cup classification for Lino Curti!
Alessio Rovera: "The start was good and in the first few laps the car was good, but after I started having grip problems on the rear and I couldn’t drive as I would. Pera surprised me during the overtake at the Tramonto corner because I had kept a large - qualifying style - line instead of a closer one. And after he overtook me I couldn’t keep his pace, he was very fast today".
Carlo Curti: "Well, I had a good start and in the first laps I was keeping the pace of the group in front of me but soon I started having tyre problems and the car was drifting to much and I struggled a lot. Though I am not happy with my position, I gained a lot of experience".
Matteo Gonfiantini: "It was 4 years I hadn’t done a standing start and I was stressed about but I did a good one. Then I did some overtaking moves and I am happy with that, but in the mid of the race I lost my pace because I was forcing and then I tried to relax and I improved again a little bit. In the end I was very close to the two drivers (Pellegrinelli & Giacon) in front of me but I delayed with slower cars and I couldn’t make it. It would have been nice to finish 6th and start from pole tomorrow…"
Porsche Carrera Cup Italia 2017, round 2, Misano
Race 1
1. PERA Riccardo (Ebimotors) 19 laps
2. ROVERA Alessio (Tsunami RT) +3.149
3. QUARESMINI Gianmarco (Dinamic Motorsport) +7.116
...
8. GONFIANTINI Matteo (Tsunami RT) +25.590
...
11. CURTI Lino (Tsunami RT) +41.697
...
15. CURTI Carlo (Tsunami RT) +49.760
...
20. WALTER BEN (Bonaldi Motorsport) +1 lap
Michelin Cup
1. DE GIACOMI Alex (Dinamic Motorsport)
2. GIACOMA Ivan (Ghinzani Arco Motorsport)
3. CURTI Lino (Tsunami RT)
...
10. WALTER BEN (Bonaldi Motorsport)
On Sunday, we came back to the track where Alessio Rovera was preparing to demonstrate us his overrunning technique, as in Spa. However, there was no need to repeat Spa: Alessio started from the fifth position, and we, as ascetics and minimalists, were OK with just those four overruns.
The four overruns passed so perfectly and quickly that it was unclear what to do in front of the screens for the next 20 minutes. Luckily, we had three more drivers to support! That time our attention was drawn to Lino Curti who, having tasted the prize champaign the day before, attacked Niccolo Mercatali fighting for the victory in the Michelin Cup classification!
Only three tenths of a second separated Lino from much more experienced Mercatali! For the first time in his Porsche Carrera Cup career, the Tsunami RT driver Lino Curti raised on the second podium step as a Michelin Cup participant! Ole!
The Italian anthem sounded on Sunday in the honor of Alessio Rovera who had brought the gold to its team in the second race in Misano!
Alessio Rovera: “I'm really happy for this result. Today the car was perfect from the start to the finish and I felt really confortable! Now it's important to keep this type of results”
Matteo Gonfiantini finished on the seventh position, Carlo Curti – on the eleventh, and these are good results!
Matteo Gonfiantini: “I'm quite satisfied of my race, I did a good start from p8 to p6, but in the first laps I did a mistake trying to overtake Fulgenzi and as a result I finished p10. Then I regained up to p7! Sadly I did that mistake because my feeling is that my potential was a bit higher”.
Porsche Carrera Cup Italia 2017, round 2, Misano
Race 2
1. ROVERA Alessio (Tsunami RT) 19 laps
2. PERA Riccardo (Ebimotors) +0.725
3. PELLEGRINELLI Simone (Bonaldi Motorsport) +5.268
...
7. GONFIANTINI Matteo (Tsunami RT) +18.527
...
9. CURTI Lino (Tsunami RT) +37.039
...
11. CURTI Carlo (Tsunami RT) +43.473
...
18. MINETTI Roberto (Ghinzani Arco Motorsport) +2 laps
Michelin Cup
1. MERCATALI Niccolo (Dinamic Motorsport)
2. CURTI Lino (Tsunami RT)
3. SELVA Livio (Ebimotors)
...
9. MINETTI Roberto (Ghinzani Arco Motorsport)
June has just started. There are a lot of emotions and events ahead, a lot of efforts and pleasure... We mean there are two more weekends waiting for us, in Le Mans and in Vallelunga. The main thing is not to lose pace. Moreover, we know well how to do it!
By Irina Boyarskaya
Photo: Akis Temperidis