Ferrari Mailing List: Go Risi!

[Ken Rentiers (rentiers]

Fortunes Finally Shine on Risi for Le Mans

Written by: ALMS Communications   http://www.americanlemans.com
05/27/2008 - 02:20 PM
Charlotte, N.C.

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For once, it seems like luck is on the side of Risi Competizione. Both  
of the team’s Ferrari F430 GTs are en route to Europe for the 24 Hours  
of Le Mans, this despite a hard crash of the No. 62 car in the latter  
half of the Larry H. Miller Dealerships Utah Grand Prix presented by  
the Grand and Little America Hotels. But only the right-rear quarter  
panel had to be replaced, and the car’s shock tower needed repairs as  
well.

The Risi squad is looking for all the good fortune it can get. Jaime  
Melo and Mika Salo, after winning nine times last season and the GT2  
class championship, have only mustered three points in five races this  
season with a best finish of ninth at St. Petersburg. They led, with  
Gianmaria Bruni, at Sebring before a Melo crash near the halfway point  
and their luck hasn’t gotten much better since.

Salo, Melo and Bruni will try to reverse their fortunes at Le Mans, a  
race that Risi had under control in 2007. Ahead for nearly 11 hours,  
Melo spun in the wet on the Mulsanne Straight and impacted a tire  
barrier. The collision


 eventually led to a water pump failure and retirement for the Ferrari.

Tracy Krohn, Nic Jonsson and Eric van de Poele will drive the other  
Risi entry, which finished second in class last year.

The 76th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans runs from 9 a.m. ET (3  
p.m. local time) from the Circuit de la Sarthe in Le Mans, France.  
Thirty-nine drivers will be representing the American Le Mans Series,  
whose teams have captured seven overall victories and 22 class  
championships since 1999. SPEED will televise the event live, and  
Radio Le Mans will have flag-to-flag coverage of the race as well as  
the June 1 test day, and practice and qualifying on June 11 and 12.