Tucker and Brown Shine at Road Atlanta

April 21, 2009

The second round of 2009 Ferrari Challenge North America was held at Road Atlanta April 17-19th. The action was fierce in the rolling hills of the north Atlanta countryside as the competitors mastered the daunting twists and turns of the famed Georgia circuit.

The action began on Saturday with Ferrari of Houston's Richard Fant capturing his first career Ferrari Challenge pole position with a stunning lap that stopped the clock at 1:26.699, 0.2 seconds clear of Ferrari of Silicon Valley's Zak Brown. Third quickest was Homestead double winner Scott Tucker.

When the green flag flew, Brown got a great start and was able to motor into the lead by the first corner. Boardwalk Ferrari's Tucker was less successful on his start and fell back to sixth place during the opening laps. Over the next eight laps the top three positions, Brown's Ferrari of Silicon Valley Henri Richard among them, shadowed one another looking for an opportunity to advance. On lap nine Richard found a way past Fant for second position before a red flag cooled the action for a few laps.

With the field bunched, Tucker was fortunate to reduce a significant gap to the lead pack. On the ensuing restart, Tucker made a great exit off of turn 7 for the long run down Road Atlanta's famed back straight. Under braking he was able to pick up third place from Houston's Fant. Executing a similar move on the next lap, Tucker was able to pass Richard for second and set his sights on Brown. Brown driving inspired laps was able to keep Tucker at bay until the 19th cycle. Tucker deftly feigned an inside move down the long back straight and Brown took a more defensive line on the approach to 10. With this, Tucker returned to the standard racing line and was able to work his way past on the outside of 10 - truly a driving accomplishment. Over the next laps, Brown endeavored to respond but Tucker was able to control the gap and take the victory.

Ferrari of Houston's Mark McKenzie, who came into the weekend second in the championship, started the race from the back of the grid because of a qualifying mishap. Driving well and consistently, McKenzie worked his way from 20th to 6th at the checkered, salvaging valuable championship points. Also turning in a solid performance was Ferrari of Ontario's John Farano, who moved up from 8th starting position to 4th and consistently turned lap times within striking distance of the leaders. Full race results can be seen here.

Sunday’s action began with Saturday’s runner-up, Zak Brown, blistering to a new track record and taking the pole with a smoking 1:26.673. The top five starting positions were rounded out by Scott Tucker, Mark McKenzie, The Collection's Mike Zoi, and Ferrari of Ontario's Martin Burrowes, respectively.

When the 45 minute timed race went green under damp conditions, it was Tucker, starting on the outside of row one, who got the drop on the field and moved into the lead quickly with Brown falling into P2. Fifth place starter, Martin Burrowes, quickly moved into third place. In the opening laps, Tucker, Brown and Burrowes circulated nose to tail. By lap 2, Burrowes intent on working past Brown spun on the exit of turn 5 after he added just a touch too much throttle and ended up watching the entire field go by before he was able to resume. At that point, it turned into a two cavallini battle with Tucker and Brown moving in lock step. In the end, the pace proved a bit too much for Brown and Tucker was able to take the checkered with 1.4 second advantage over Brown. The remaining podium position was filled by McKenzie, again earning solid championship points.

Turning in an excellent performance was Ferrari of Newport Beach rookie sensation Steve Hill who advanced from 7th starting position to 4th. Full race results can be seen here.

The Ferrari Challenge heads to Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA on May 2-3 for its next round.

The Ferrari Challenge Series is organized by Ferrari North America, Inc., and sanctioned by the Grand American Road Racing Association. Complete Challenge information can be found on www.ferrarichallenge.com where VIP Hospitality passes can be purchased for the upcoming events. General admission tickets for the Infineon Ferrari Challenge weekend can be purchased directly at the track.

Ferrari North America, Inc. is headquartered in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., and is the exclusive North, Central and South American importer of Ferrari vehicles including the 599 GTB Fiorano V-12 sports coupe, F430 Berlinetta, F430 Spider convertible sports car, 430 Scuderia, California Gran Tourer and 612 Scaglietti (luxury performance 2+2).