Giancarlo Fisichella: from Tamburello to Rivazza

Ten Italians will be at the start of the Imola 6 Hours in LM P1, LM GTE Pro and LM GTE Am. Among them, Giancarlo Fisichella is the crowd's blue-eyed boy. The driver with 223 F1 Grand Prix under his belt is back at a circuit that has been a very important one in his career.

The Enzo é Dino Ferrari circuit is a place full of history for all the Italian drivers. Even more so if they're at the wheel of a Ferrari.

For Giancarlo Fisichella, the place is a yardstick: “As an Italian I love driving at Imola. It's a home race for me and a circuit I'm very attached to. It was here that I won my first Formula 3 Grand Prix, and also where I scored my first points in Formula 1 with Jordan in 1997. Imola is full of good memories for me. I've got a lot of fans in the grandstands and the ambience is very special. The circuit itself is hard on the brakes and you have to really use the kerbs aggressively on numerous occasions.

“You have to have a quick package at every level,” the man from Rome continues. “Drivers have to have confidence in the handling and the reactions of their car. Imola is a very selective circuit. In the slow corners you have to have good traction, and on the straights it's the aerodynamic efficiency and the power that make the difference. The few really quick corners bring out the best in a good chassis.”