Thanks to a brilliant performance, Antonio Fuoco and Yifei Ye secured first and second place in the Qualifying Race of the FIA GT World Cup, earning the right to start from the front row in the main race of the weekend tomorrow. The twelve laps scheduled for today’s race offered spectacle and excitement among the guard-rails and barriers of the challenging street circuit of over six kilometres, in a day marked by favourable weather and moderate temperatures.

The race. The start was handled well by the two Ferraris, with Fuoco taking the lead ahead of Ye, while Deng, starting from the back, took advantage of a series of multiple contacts at turn one to move into ninth place. Fuoco set an impossible pace in the early laps on new tyres, creating a cushion of around two seconds which allowed him to control the pace and the gap to his pursuers, always led by Ye. The first Chinese driver to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans was hardly troubled by any concrete attacks from Picariello, third behind him. In the middle of the pack, Deng, despite setting competitive times, was forced to cede his position to Boccolacci. In the final stages, however, Picariello's pressure on Ye became constant, but Ye kept his composure and followed winner Antonio Fuoco across the line. The official driver, who was third in last year's Qualifying Race, will start from the front in tomorrow's race, which gets underway at 12.35 p.m. local time and will run for 15 laps.

Driver comments. “I think I made a very good start and, capitalising on the new tyres, I was able to push more at the beginning, creating a gap that I then managed to maintain until the end,” explained Antonio Fuoco in the press conference. “The car was very good today and after a good start, I think we managed our pace. Tomorrow's race will be different, especially because we have faster cars than us on the straight behind us, so defending the position until the Lisboa corner will be fundamental.”

Second placed, behind the AF Corse driver, Yifei Ye told the journalists present: “We managed to get away well at the start together with Antonio, without losing time or positions, even if a car starting from behind managed to use its great speed to cause us some trouble at turn 1. I managed to hold the position thanks to a very important braking manoeuvre. Starting with used tyres I knew the race wouldn't be simple in the initial stages, but the goal was to cross the chequered flag in a good position and with the car in one piece. Today it made no sense to risk going after Antonio because there were no points at stake.”

The satisfaction with the result is also clear from the words of Antonello Coletta, Global Head of Endurance and Corse Clienti: “We are extremely happy and having finished the Qualifying Race first and second, maintaining our starting positions, which bodes well for tomorrow's race. We will start from the front row, although we have seen some of the most anticipated opponents gain positions, which makes the outcome of the race unpredictable. We will have to be able to repeat what we saw on the track today, that is, maintaining the lead at the end of the first lap and defending it for the rest of the race.”