Superstars Slovakia: Berton takes commanding race two win
Giovanni Berton took his second win of the season with a commanding drive in race two at the Slovakiaring
The Dinamic BMW driver made a big start from sixth on the grid, charging through the field to second place after just two corners, and then disposing of Andrea Bacci's CAAL Racing Mercedes before the end of the first lap to take the lead.
However, his initial advantage was shortlived. With race-one winner Tonio Liuzzi's Romeo Ferraris Mercedes suffering an explosive engine failure mid-way through lap one, the safety car was soon on track.
That gave Bacci a chance to retake the lead, his Mercedes too powerful at the restart.
But Berton wasted no time getting back in front, pulling the same move on Bacci to move back into the lead, before controlling the remaining 11 minutes of the race to take a 10-second win.
Thomas Biagi (Romeo Ferraris Mercedes) wound up second, after making two spots up on the last lap of the race. The first came from Luigi Ferrara, who, once again, looked like a sure bet for second until his Roma Racing Mercedes struck trouble.
The other was Gianni Morbidelli, who, through a combination of good luck with retirements and good driving, found himself in second place after starting in 13th.
However, the ex-Formula 1 driver and his overweight Audi Sport Italia RS5 were unable to hold off Biagi on the final lap, Morbidelli settling for third.
Ferrara managed to hold on to fourth after cruising through the final lap, while Max Mugelli (Dinamic BMW) and Bacci rounded out the top six.
Along with Liuzzi, Fabrizio Giovanardi was the race's other high-profile retirement, his Petri Corse Porsche expiring eight minutes from the finish while he was running fourth.
Results - 12 laps: Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap 1. Giovanni Berton Dinamic BMW 29m22.493s 2. Thomas Biagi Ferraris Mercedes + 10.076s 3. Gianni Morbidelli Audi Italia + 14.198s 4. Luigi Ferrara Roma Mercedes + 18.595s 5. Max Mugelli Dinamic BMW + 18.669s 6. Andrea Bacci CAAL Mercedes + 20.357s 7. Francesco Sini Solaris Chevrolet + 20.812s 8. Mauro Trentin Dinamic BMW + 21.047s 9. Diabolik Ferlito Jaguar + 33.243s 10. Roberto Benedetti RC Cadillac + 33.636s 11. Francesco Ascani Todi BMW + 35.713s 12. Leonardo Baccarelli CAAL Mercedes + 1 lap 13. Ferdinando Geri Audi Italia + 4 laps 14. Fabrizio Giovanardi Petri Porsche + 6 laps Retirements: Tonio Liuzzi Ferraris Mercedes 0 laps
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