Barcelona, Spain – Solaris Motorsport grabbed the third place in an eventful International GT Open final round at Barcelona. The Italian Aston Martin suffered a faultless contact in the middle of the race and then put up spectacular comeback. Sini-Fannin celebrated with champagne their first race as team-mates, proving to be competitive in a round that saw 23 supercars on grid. The third place conquered by the Solaris Motorsport Vantage GT3 was the best result obtained by an Aston Martin in the two Spanish races.
Solaris Motorsport’s Vantage improved its performance session after session, having to discover all the secrets of the 4.655 km Barcelona track and the behaviour of the Michelin tyres used in the International GT Open. Since Thursday’s test session, the Solaris Motorsport Vantage GT3 showed a good potential and the team worked a lot, even in the Friday’s free practices, on the research of the best setup.
The first qualifying session saw Jody Fannin bringing home a good P7, but race control moved him down to P11. In such a high competitive championship, with a lot of cars with similar performances, the Solaris Motorsport Aston Martin finished tenth, posting good lap times but it was slowed in the middle of the race by the BMWs, which were slower on an entire lap but faster on the straights, thus making impossible any overtake attempt.
The second qualifying session, held on Sunday morning, nearly gave an incredible first row to Solaris Motorsport, thanks to a Francesco Sini in the top part of the charts all session long. Sini posted the best chrono both on wet and damp track and he was repeating himself on a dry track with slick tyres, but a slow car ruined his best lap when all the opponents were improving. So in the end Ringhio was just eighth, with a little bit of regret for the great opportunity lost.
At the start of Race 2, Sini took advantage of an eventful first lap to move up to fifth, gaining third position during the race. When the podium seemed locked, “Ringhio” was sent off on the grass by a lapped car which hit him in Turn 1. The solidity of the Vantage GT3 allowed the Italian driver to rejoin the track and begin a huge comeback before leaving the wheel to his team mate at the mandatory pit stop. When Fannin took the track, he set a very quick race pace and gained some positions overtaking the opponents on track and bringing back the Aston Martin in third place. The safety car that went on track in the last part of the race allowed to the English driver to close the gap from the front and begin a spectacular battle for the win in the last few laps. Sini and Fannin, third under the checkered flag, brought home the best result of the weekend for Aston Martin. This is the fourth podium of the season for the Solaris Motorsport, the first one in the International GT Open.
“I’m very happy about this podium, we had to fight until the end to take it! The contact in the middle of the race was very hard, I was quite sure I had to retire but this Vantage is very strong! Jody was incredible, very quick and smart. It’s a pleasure to race with him,” said Francesco Sini. “We proved we can be competitive in international events and this is the most important thing. We improved our performance session after session, taking the podium at the end.”
“The car was much improved for Sunday’s race and it showed straight away with a strong stint from Francesco. He was unlucky to have contact with a back marker, so when I got in the car I did my best to regain the places and made it up to P3,” commented Jody Fannin “It was very difficult to get close enough to the second placed BMW to try to pass it, so I decided to bring the car home in third. I’d like to thank all the Solaris Motorsport guys for their hard work over the weekend!”
“With such highly competitive opponents, we are very happy we confirmed our strength and we were the best Aston Martin on track. It’s the right prize for the hard work we did this year. Jody was an incredible discovery, a very young driver but already quick and smart,” said Roberto Sini, Solaris Motorsport Team Principal. “Now we have to start thinking about the 2017 season, we want to enjoy the fruits of the work done this year. But before we will to celebrate this season with all our supporters at Pescara Racing Show, scheduled on November 18-19-20th.”
For further information you can visit the web site www.solarismotorsport.com or send an email to media [at] solarismotorsport.com
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Massimiliano Palumbo

Scarperia (Fi), Italy – The 2016 season of the Italian GT Championship ended this Sunday at Mugello circuit. The Italian track saw probably the best Aston Martin of the season, the Vantage GT3, in fact, was very competitive in every sessions, sign that the Solaris technicians were able to take the maximum advantage from the data of the race in July. The Sporting Director Laura Sini ‘celebrated’ one more time the recent marriage with her husband Orges, coming on the Race 2 starting grid with her wedding dress.
After having posted the best time during the free practice, the Solaris Motorsport’s Aston Martin missed the its high performance in the Saturday’s morning qualifying, where, on a track that was drying itself after the huge rain fallen during the night, Max Mugelli and Francesco Sini brought home just the 8th and 6th row on the starting grid with a car that lacked of grip.
The two races gave back to the Italian Vantage the right competitiveness, with the Aston Martin able to lap with the same race pace of the top contenders. IIn both the races, the English coupè was one of the fastest car on track, but it couldn’t concretize its high potential because of the start on the back of the field. The huge comeback of Race 1 of Sini and Mugelli, that enjoyed the fans on the grandstands and at home thanks to a lots of overtakes, ended with the 8th position. The placement could have been also better, but the safety car, entered in the last laps, stopped the Aston Martin fielded by Solaris Motorsport.
The last race of the season offered a very particular starting grid. Laura Sini, Sporting Director of the team, wanted to ‘re-celebrate’ her recent marriage with her husband Orges, coming on the starting grid with the wedding dress, consecrating her union to the motorsport world. The newly married DS, then, attended the race by the usual spot on the pit wall, giving radio informations to the drivers with the usual headphones and the ‘white dress’. Also Race 2 saw the English coupè recovering positions by positions, but the comeback stopped at Lap 10, when a contact between Sini and the Frassinetti’s Lamborghini forced both the drivers to a retire.
“Really I don’t know what to think. For sure I’m disappointed because we gathered very little, an eight place and a retirement for sure don’t satisfy me. However, we were among the fastest on track and with better qualifying we could fight for the win.” commented Francesco Sini. “I’m sorry for the contact in Race 2, it wasn’t my purpose to ruin the race mine and Alex’s, but it’s something can happen in motorsport when you are fighting for a position. We were a lot faster, the Lamborghini was good to close all the doors, when I saw a little space I tried to overtake, but it didn’t go as I expected. It was a pity, really.” Anyway, Ringhio is confident for the future: “Now we have the certainty to have a very competitive car! We can reach important goals: this Aston Martin is a rocket!”
“The Mugello circuit clearly is not in favour with us. As the same in July, also this time we weren’t to able to end Race 2, but today the car was very fast. I’d have liked to conquer a good result here in my home-race, but the qualifying has frustrated all our hopes. We had a very competitive car on the dry track, but we suffered on the damp and with low temperature during the qualifying on Saturday morning.” said Max Mugelli. “I want to thank all my sponsors, all my supporters and the team for this year so incredible and intense. We brought home two second and a third place in a so much competitive championship. We lacked the victory, but to be arrived many time so close is a sign of our good job.”
“The results of the Mugello’s weekend are unsatisfying and not not in line with our expectations, but anyway I’m very happy about what I saw on track. In comparison to the round in July, our Vantage seemed completely another car, we worked well at home and now we are competitive also here. The qualifyings are the bigger regret of the entire weekend, on the damp track we didn’t find the right performance and we lost an important part of a weekend that could see us as big protagonists, as Max and Francesco showed during the races.” commented Roberto Sini, Solaris Motorsport Team Principal. “I want to thank all the people worked with us in this first, important and challenging year under the Aston Martin logo: sponsors, supporters, technicians, drivers. All together we wrote this first incredible chapter of a new story.” Sini added also: “Last race of the Italian GT Championship gave us two stunning races and a level of cars and drivers very very high. We would like to repeat this series next season, if there will be the right conditions and if the Federation will find the way to solve the issues that have come to light in this year.”
For further information you can visit the web site www.solarismotorsport.com or send an email to media [at] solarismotorsport.com
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Massimiliano Palumbo

Imola, Italy – Once again Solaris Motorsport had a brilliant weekend at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola. The Italian team conquered the third podium of the season in its best weekend of 2016. The first row on the Race 1 grid was the preamble of a solid P2 in the first race, while on Sunday’s Race 2 the Aston Martin Vantage GT3 showed a very competitive pace.
The visit of Aston Martin Racing chairman David Richards, who arrived in the Solaris box on Friday morning and stayed followed with the team the two free practice sessions, motivated the Solaris Motorsport squad and led to a positive P2 in the FP1.  The Vantage GT3 was very competitive also in qualifying and reached the first row on the Race 1 grid, just one tenth of a second from the pole. Sini probably missed the pole only because of a red flag that stopped his flying lap on new tyres. Max Mugelli brought home the fourth row on the Race 2 grid.
The first race of the weekend saw a perfect start by Sini, who immediately took second behind Venturi’s Ferrari. The Vantage GT3 kept a qualifying pace for the entire first stint, giving Max Mugelli the chance to enter the track again in P2 after the mandatory stop for the driver’s change. With a smart race, Mugelli looked out to contain the comeback of Bortolotti’s Lamborghini and Albuquerque’s Audi, conquering the second place for the the Vantage GT3, at its third podium of the season, in a thrilling final.
At Sunday’s Race 2 start, the Mugello-native driver had the better hand on Cerqui’s BMW in the first laps, placing his Vantage on P7. In a very close competition, in which the drivers from third to ninth position constantly ran the same lap times, the Aston Martin run by Solaris Motorsport kept the same race pace as the top competitors until the mandatory stop. After the driver’s change, Sini came back on track in P4, fighting all race long with Venturi’s Ferrari and Venturini’s Lamborghini. “Ringhio” took the checkered flag in a solid fifth position, which became sixth after a 7.2 seconds penalty due a pit stop violation.
“It was definitely a great weekend! We have shown a convincing pace in each session and probably this is the most important thing. I toyed a lot with the idea of the pole position in qualifying and maybe I could have posted a better lap without the red flag.” commented Sini. “The Vantage was simple perfect during the races, really quick and stable. The penalty in Race 2 was a pity, with a linear race we could have tried to catch the podium.” The Pescara-native driver added: “This is the third podium for our Aston Martin, the best way to thank David Richards for his visit and hope to see him soon again. I’m very happy because we showed we can race at the front, conquering a second place on the field and without taking advantage from any penalty.”
“The car was really competitive here in Imola and we were able to improve the third place we conquered in May. The team did an outstanding job, we were very quick in each session and our Vantage had a very impressive pace in both the races.” commented Mugelli. “I had a good pace in Race 1, the leading Ferrari was too far and so I just took care of bringing home the second position. I wanted to thank all the guys for their hard job this summer in rebuilding the car. The Race 2, instead, was the perfect demonstration of the very high level of the Italian GT Championship, with six car of 5 different brands clocking the same lap times. Unfortunately I made a little mistake entering the pit lane because I had to avoid a slow Porsche just in front of me. A little mistake that caused the loss of a position on the final classification. I’m sorry for the team. Anyway, the next race is in Mugello, my home track. I want to avenge the unlucky weekend of this summer!”
“Almost a pole position, the third podium of the season and two races ran with the pace of our best competitors. If someone had any doubts about the competitiveness of the team and the Aston Martin, today he had the answers he was looking for. All the guys did an awesome job, to have the chance to use the data from last May race pointed us in the right direction soon and we could work just on the fundamental details. I think it was what Richards expected from us and I’m happy to have been able to prove our strength.” commented Roberto Sini, who’s helped in managing the team by his sons Francesco and Laura “Both the drivers raced at their best without mistakes all weekend long, taking the maximum advantage from the high potential of our Vantage GT3. I’m confident we’ll see the Aston on top also in Mugello.”
The track situated in Tuscany will be the theater of the last round of the 2016 Italian GT Championship season, scheduled for the October 15th and 16th weekend. Francesco Sini and Max Mugelli will try to recover the 5 points they need to grab fourth position in the points standings.
For further information you can visit the web site www.solarismotorsport.com or send an email to media@solarismotorsport.com 
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Massimiliano Palumbo

Imola, Italy – This morning David Richards, Aston Martin Racing chairman and Prodrive CEO, visited the Solaris Motorsport team in Imola, the track hosting the sixth round of the Italian GT Championship. Richards arrived at the Circuito Enzo e Dino Ferrari to support the Pescara-based team and attend a race of the Italian series in person.
Starting from this season the italian team became in fact an Aston Martin Racing Team Partner and the reference in Italy for the historic English brand and are taking both advantage of a close and mutual collaboration. The Aston Martin Racing chairman wished to remain with the team during the free practices sessions, seeing the team at work on the Vantage GT3. Richards spent a lot of time with the technicians and the two drivers Francesco Sini and Max Mugelli, who set the 2nd and 10th fastest time in the two sessions. The performance in the second one could be better, but the Vantage GT3 was stopped twice by the red flag.


“I’m always pleased to be back in Italy, for me it’s like my second home. I love to come back here and to see a team like Solaris Motorsport, a real family team. It’s very special to me. Watching the performance in Imola, last time they was here they grabbed the third place, hopefully this weekend could be a first or second place. Looking to this morning practice the car seems strong.” said the Aston Martin Racing chairman. “It’s good for us to see an Aston Martin in a so competitive championship. With its 40 cars, the Italian GT Championship is a really competitive series, like the British championship and many other championship around the world. Anyway great weekend ahead of us, we have one more round on the championship. Looking forward to the next season when I’ll come back again and hopefully we’ll see Solaris regularly on the podium.”The sixth round of the Italian GT Championship in Imola will continue with the two qualifying sessions scheduled this evening, while the two races will start on Saturday at 2:15 PM and Sunday at 11:10, both will be avaible in live streaming on the Italian GT Championship web site (www.acisportitalia.it/CIGT).For further information you can visit the web site www.solarismotorsport.com or send an email to media@solarismotorsport.com Follow the Solaris Motorsport’s Aston Martin on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!
Massimiliano Palumbo