Official qualifying
No. 10 F.Babini/T.Biagi (Vitaphone Racing Team) 5th 36 laps 1.32.276 chassis n. 07/15443
No. 9 M.Bartels/T.Scheider (Vitaphone Racing Team) 6th. 39 laps 1.32.388 chassis n. 02/15439
No. 15 A.Bertolini/K.Wendlinger (JMB Racing) 8th 46 laps 1.32.814 chassis n. 08/15444
No. 16 C. Pillon/M. Zani/L. Pirri Ardizzone (JMB Racing) 9th 34 laps 1.33.177 chassis n. 04/15441
Weather: clear skies, dry track
Circuit length: 4.300 m


The result of official qualifying at Zhuhai confirmed the values that emerged in free practice. The added ballast assigned to the MC12 for the FIA GT championship did not let the drivers of the two teams to claim pole position. It was unthinkable for the three MC12 drivers at the top of the classification, to go for top performance.
So wisely the teams worked on a race set up in order to find the right balance and choose from the different types of tyre and brakes, as these components suffer unusual wear owing to the extra weight on board. The best time was set by the Aston Martin of Cristophe Bouchut. He edged out the 550 driven by Gabriele Gardel and 575 fielded Team GPC.
Fifth was the Maserati driven by the Italian pairing of Fabio Babini and Thomas Biagi. The Pirelli test driver set a time of 1.32.276, two seconds off the best time of the day. The number ten Vitaphone Racing Team that won at Oschersleben had 150 kg on board, ten more than the twin car entrusted to the winners of the Spa 24 Hour and the race in Istanbul, Michael Bartels and Timo Scheider. The performance of the two German drivers was similar to that of their team mates, with a time of 1.32.388.
The objective of both crews is to try to sneak points from Bertolini/Wendlinger and maintain the advantage over Gardel. It was a good placing for for the two unmistakable black and green cars that allows the Vitaphone Racing Team to have hope to win the team championship in anticipation. In eighth place was the JMB Racing MC12 driven by Andrea Bertolini/Karl Wendlinger, just off 1.32.814 down on the leader. For the championship leading car from the midway stage of the season, this is not the first time that have had to start from down the field. Despite this they have always finished on the podium. This bodes well for tomorrow's race. In an identical car is the untested crew of Cristophe Pillon, Marcello Zani and Luca Pirri Ardizzone. They vastly improved their time in the second qualifying session. For Pillon and Zani this is the second time in the JMB Racing MC12 while it is the first for Pirri. As they have only 30kg extra weight, the chances of a good finish are quite high.
Karl Wendlinger: "We worked all day in race mode, simulating long runs. The car is well balanced, the tyres work well despite the added weight and this calms us and is reason for optimism. The brakes will be crucial in the race as the ballast will work them hard. This is why it will be difficult to brake late and overtake, even GT2 cars. In order to score points, concentration levels have to be maintained, as does a constant pace until the finish. Even our direct adversaries, Gardel apart, are in the same position regarding weight. This is why I think the championship will come down to the final race".

In any case, Maserati has already made the Manufacturers' Cup a mathematical certainty. Here at Zhuhai last year the MC12 secured its second victory in the four races it competed in. Andrea Bertolini and Mika Salo crossed the line ahead of Johnny Herbert/Fabrizio De Simone. The local fans are hoping for more of the same from the Trident cars.
Maserati has a presence in China with a Shanghai based joint venture, while Auto Italia Ltd. is the importer that operates in Hong Kong and Macao. The Chinese market has enormous potential while the Hong Kong one is already well established. On Friday 21 October the new showroom was opened in Wanchai.
The race starts at 13 local time (7 a.m. in Europe). It will be shown live on five Chinese channels: Guangdong Satellite TV, Guangdong TV – Sports, Macau Asia Satellite TV, Jiangsu TV 3 hours and Zhuhai TV. Another three channels will transmit the event at a later time: TV Southern, Beijing TV and CCTV-5. Eurosport will be broadcasting an extended highlights show from 20.30 to 21.30.
In the FIA GT the MC12s sport Pirelli tyres as they do in the North American ALMS series. This collaboration is further confirmation of the successful relationship between Maserati and Pirelli on the track. This has been confirmed by the results obtained in the Italian GT and the Trofeo Vodafone Maserati Europa.