16 June, 2013 – Race Day at Red Bull Ring has been a rollercoaster ride today for Michela Cerruti as she lined-up for Round 2 of the Italian GT Championship in Austria. The Italian female racer lost a safe runner-up finish in Race 1 due to a mechanical issue during the last lap, but rebounded to a brilliant fourth place in Race 2 after being hit from behind at the start.
Driving her works-supported BMW Z4 for ROAL Motorsport, Michela took-off from the pole in Race 1 before falling back to 4th during the opening lap. Eventually, she quickly came back to third and then managed to regain the lead after the pit-stops.
“While I was running in third during the first part of the race – said Michela – I knew that the two drivers out front would have suffered from a time penalty in the pits, so I decided to save my car and avoid useless risks. In the closing part of the race, the Ferrari of Venturi made up some ground, and while I lost a bit of time in lapping a slower car, he was able to get in my slipstream and around. At that point, I was holding a comfortable second place, but an electric issues caused the fuel pump to malfunction, and it was over…”
Despite the early disappointment, Michela didn’t back down and took-off for Race 2 determined to reverse her fortunes. “The start has been strange. I had the impression that some other drivers went on the throttle a little early. Nonetheless, I held onto fourth but I was hit from another car at the first corner. Luckily I keep running and recovered back to fourth. In the closing stages it was tight, I was just one second off the leader! I had Kristoffersson in front of me, but going for a move would have been too much of a gamble. The tires were almost done so I’ve been a good girl this time!”
Michela will now go for a quick break before being on-track on the 30th of June at Le Castellet. At the French venue, she will be back in control of her BMW Z4 for the third round of the Blancpain Endurance Series.
