Maranello, 13 October 2009

Thanks to AF Corse’s availability this morning Jean Alesi was back behind the wheel of a Ferrari on the Fiorano circuit. It was a proper test, keeping the promise made to the French driver on the occasion of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and evaluating, through the direct contact with the car, a possible employment in the international Gran Turismo Championships in the near future. After the test, which ended earlier than planned and after 65 laps, Alesi was enthusiastic: “I feel as if I was young again, like at the start of my career, when I still had to demonstrate my ability. It was an unbelievable emotion to get back on the track and I immediately gained confidence with the car, really phenomenal!” 1995 - Alesi’s last season as an official driver of the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro in Formula 1 - didn’t seem so long ago, when he got behind the wheel of the F430 GT2 made available by Amato Ferrari’s AF Corse.


Ferrari, impressed by Alesi, who back then was immediately able to drive the same lap times as the best drivers in his category, said: “We didn’t need to use a slot in the afternoon’s programme thanks to Jean’s exceptional performance in a test, where we just had to adjust the driver’s position in the car and refuel; no mechanical modifications were necessary. That’s why we are extremely optimistic as far as a possible involvement of Jean in our 2010 programme is concerned.”