Weekend Notebook: Ferrari on podium at Dubai in ALMS

The Dubai track hosted the first two rounds of the four-race 2023 Asian Le Mans Series. Four Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020s also competed in the GT3 class, with the AF Corse car claiming a third place in Race-2.

Podium. In the first two four-hour races, the Ferraris’ best result came in Race-2 on Sunday, with AF Corse number 21 finishing third. The trio of Stefano Costantini, Simon Mann and Miguel Molina saw second place slip from their grasp only in the last ten minutes, overtaken by their GetSpeed rivals. The other Prancing Horse cars competing at the Dubai circuit were way off the podium. The best, thirteenth at the finish line, was the number 74 488 GT3 Evo 2020 of Kessel Racing with Michael Broniszewski, David Fumanelli and Felipe Fraga.

The best of the Maranello manufacturer’s cars in Race-1 on Saturday was Formula Racing number 60 crewed by Johnny and Conrad Laursen with Nicklas Nielsen, who finished in eighth ahead of AF Corse number 21. Car Guy number 57 came fourteenth, delayed by a drive-through imposed after contact with an LMP3-class prototype.

Next event. The Asian Le Mans Series will continue over the weekend of 17-19 February, with Races 3 and 4, the last of the season, at Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.

GT Winter Series. Round three of the GT Winter Series was contested at Jerez de la Frontera. The many entries for this Spanish round included six Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo cars competing in the Cup 1 class, reserved for them. Frank Engstler of Team Engstler won the first Sprint event, while Samuele Buttarelli of Rossocorsa triumphed in the second 25-minute race. In the weekend’s final outing, the Endurance race, Buttarelli again crossed the line in first, this time accompanied by Stefano Marazzi. Also, in the endurance event, Uwe Lauer and Francesco Lopez of Die Biermacher Racing claimed third place in a Ferrari 488 GT3 in the GT3 class. The next round of the GT Winter Series championship is scheduled for 18 and 19 February in Valencia.