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Silverstone

Eurosport Super Racing Weekends

13/05/2001

Round 4

Preview

Friday 11 May: One advantage of having so many series to cover is that when the Editor gets horribly behind and ends up writing a preview after a meeting has started, at least he knows that one significant entry has been withdrawn. That's the Prodrive Allstars Ferrari 550, the much talked about entry that was awarded a spot in the entry for the season, despite not being ready for the first three races. Silverstone should have seen its debut, but it got no further than Scrutineering on Thursday.

So back with the real entries, and the Listers were on brilliant home form last year, and the JC-W / Coronel car was the class of the field at Magny-Cours. The Flying Dutchman loves the Lister, JC-W is - as expected - matching his pace, and everything is as set as it can be for a home win. Can you ever imagine Laurence Pearce thinking like that though? Of course not. He takes nothing for granted. He'll be snarling at JC-W and Julian Bailey to stay away from each other in the first stints; it was only a 'kiss' between them at Magny-Cours, but perhaps even that was more than the big man's blood pressure can take. A 90 kg ballast penalty may be a concern under braking late in the race.

They're queueing up to deny Lister a home win - what might have been the third in a row, but for driveshaft failure in '99, when the team were just starting out internationally. Emanuele Naspetti reckons Silverstone is his favourite track, and the Rafanelli Ferraris will not lose out in the spotlight to a Ferrari interloper from the UK. Jean-Philippe Belloc reckons the Larbre Viper team "intend to win again!" while Emmanuele Clerico won't have team owner Paul Belmondo with him and Didier Defourny in the #12 car. Mike Hezemans is itching for that first win of the year in his revised car, and his partner knows the track from Formula Palmer Audi.

The Wieth Ferrari is missing for this race. If and when the four 550s get together (with a little more development behind them) the Listers and Vipers could be up against it.

N-GT sees the Ferrari 360 challenge continue. Pescatori and Terrien seemed remarkably low key about the maiden non Porsche win at Magny-Cours. Silverstone may be less to the 360's liking, so Riccitelli and Mowlem in the lead Red Bull GT3RS start out as favourites. Tim Sugden will be looking for less off track adventures in the EMKA Porsche than at the first three races. "We were running well at Monza when Steve O’Rourke went off," Tim Sugden explained. "I put the car into the gravel in Brno, and at Magny Cours we were fourth when Steve went off again. We know we have the potential to run in the top three or four in the class, if we keep it all together. We’ll do our best for our home race, but I don’t think we have any particular advantage. I like Silverstone, and Steve knows it very well, so I’m really looking forward to it."

He had a tyre nightmare here last year, but Dunlops should be well up to the task of getting the Yorkshireman into the Superpole session. That should be fun for those making the effort to be at Silverstone on Saturday.