Qualifying: Viper takes Saturday honours
Three different makes in the first three grid positions for the Monza FIA GT race promise to deliver an intense scrap in tomorrow's (Sunday) season finale. The Mike Hezemans/Anthony Kumpen/Philippe Alliot Chrysler Viper hung onto its provisional pole position, finishing three-tenths ahead of the Luca Capellari/Fabrizio Gollin Ferrari 550 Maranello
This is the first career pole position for Kumpen. He will be hoping it will signal a turnaround in fortunes for the squad. The team has led many a race this year, but has yet to finish one.
The top three, completed by the leading Saleen of Franz Konrad/Walter Lechner Jr/Toni Seiler, are covered by eight tenths of a second. The Ferrari crew of Thomas Biagi and Matteo Bobbi, who have already taken the GT title, is down in seventh. This may well precipitate a charge from the all-conquering home pairing. British Lister enthusiasts will find their favourites in fifth (Andrea Piccini/David Sterckx/Gabriele Lancieri) and eighth (Jamie Campbell-Walter/Nathan Kinch).
The N-GT category is still open at this final round, and Fabrizio de Simone struck the first blow by taking class pole. De Simone, Stéphane Ortelli, Marc Lieb and Jamie Davies (fifth on the class grid) all have a chance to take the title after tomorrow's encounter.
Mike Hezemans/Anthony Kumpen/Philippe Alliot (Chrysler) 1m43.559s
Luca Cappellari/Fabrizio Gollin (Ferrari 550 Maranello) +0.375s
Franz Konrad/Walter Lechner Jr/Toni Seiler (Saleen S7R) +0.797s
Lilian Bryner/Enzo Calderari/Stefano Livio (Ferrari 550 Maranello +1.162s
Andrea Piccini/David Sterckx/Gabriele Lancieri (Lister Storm) +1.224s
Thomas Erdos/Mike Newton (Saleen S7-R) +1.298s
Andrea Bertolini/Fabrizio de Simone (Ferrari 360 Modena)
Tim Sugden/Emmanuel Collard (Porsche 996)
Stéphane Ortelli/Marc Lieb (Porsche 996)
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