For its fourth 2011 round, the one that will mark the end of the first part of the season, the International GT Open is heading to one of the cradles of motorsports, Brands Hatch. This will be the third time that the series visits Kent’s legendary track, which after a first event back in 2007, has become a regular fixture in the calendar in 2010.
British fans will have the opportunity not only to watch the usual exciting show offered by the GT Open, but also a battle for titles that is becoming more and more interesting. On top of the overall standings, the Vittoria Competizioni pair composed of Marco Frezza and Cochito López will do their utmost to extend their points capital (currently, 94) and continue their exceptional trend of one win at each round. To that end, they have decided to continue campaign the “old” Ferrari F430 rather than the new 458. On the contrary, Andrea Montermini-Emanuele Moncini, on the Villorba Corse Ferrari 458, will try to impose the new machinery of the Prancing Horse, while other 458s, like the ones of Giammaria-Ramos (EdilCris), Ayari-Marroc (JMB Racing) or Peter-Broniszewski (Kessel Racing) will look for their first win this year, and Alvaro Barba-Andrea Ceccato, on the 997 by Autorlando Sport, will lead the Porsche assault to the championship.
In the GTS category, the battle is fiercer than ever between the Porsches of Fabio Babini-Gianluca Roda (the current leaders and twice race winners, with their Autorlando car) and Thomas Gruber-Marco Seefried (Deboeuf), and the Ferraris 458 of Lorenzo Bontempelli-Stefano Gattuso (who have won 3 races for Kessel Racing so far) and of young guns Stefano Bizzarri-Andrea Rizzoli (AF Corse), who after four seconds in 6 races, will really want to climb that last step on the podium. It is in this category that will be entered the most interesting novelty in the 25-car strong field, as the Mercedes SLS AMG GT3 will make its first appearance in the GT Open, thanks to Portuguese team Sports&You, who will campaign a unit for the rest of the season, entrusted to Italian former single-seater stars Nicola De Marco-Marcello Puglisi.
It is also in the GTS category that will race the local heroes: the all-British Team RPM Ford GT of Alex Mortimer-Peter Bamford, that shine regularly in the series since 2010, will certainly want to do well in front of their home crowd, while Daniel Brown and Glynn Geddie will make their debut at the wheel of an AF Corse Ferrari 458 GT3 and the Trackspeed Porsche GT3 of David Ashburn will not miss its yearly outing.
Source : GT Open