Points-paying finish with plenty of positives from Imola weekend

The second round of the 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship saw Proton Competition travel to the picture-postcard setting of Imola in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region. Although not delivering the results the team would have hoped for, there were still lots of takeaways from the weekend.

One of the biggest positives was the performance of Proton Competition’s pair of Ford Mustang LMGT3. The #77 car finished in the points for the first time this year thanks to the efforts of Bernardo Sousa, Ben Tuck and Ben Barker behind the wheel and some expert work from the pit crew.

Ultimately it was a story of what might have been for the #77 crew. With just two hours of the race remaining, the car was in a strong third position, in with a shot of a podium. However, a minor virtual safety car infringement relegated the team back down the order. Barker then delivered a strong final stint to bring the car home in tenth.

“It was a race of ups and downs for us,” said Barker. “We definitely had the pace to fight for a top 3 finish, but a little bit of bad luck and a slight misjudgement cost us. The main thing is that we really pulled together as a team and showed what we are capable of this weekend.”

Another positive was the performance of the sister car (#88), piloted by Italians Stefano Gattuso and Giammarco Levorato together with Norwegian Dennis Olsen. Gattuso was outstanding in qualifying once again, making it through to Hyperpole for the second race in succession where Levorato managed to put the car on the third row of the grid.

Gattuso started the race well to remain within striking distance of the leaders. However, any hopes of a solid points haul were dashed after a penalty and two additional pit stops to repair damage, with the car ultimately finishing 16th.

For the #99 Porsche 963, it was another tough battle in the hugely competitive Hypercar class. Neel Jani put together an excellent first stint, staying in touch with the Hypercar field and even edging ahead of the works Porsche at times. Nicolas Pino and Nicolás Varrone picked up where the Swiss driver left off, setting some fast and consistent lap times to bring the car home in 14th, ahead of the likes of Ferrari, Cadillac and Aston Martin.

The next stop on the FIA World Endurance Championship calendar is the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps on the 8 to 10 May. Before then, Proton Competition are back in action in the European Le Mans Series, which visits Circuit Paul Ricard in Le Castellet the weekend before (2 to 4 May).

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Copyright: Proton Competition (Paola Depalmas)