Risi Competizione heads to Lime Rock Park

Lakeville, Connecticut -- The Risi Competizione Ferrari team comes to Lime Rock Park this week with hopes of perpetuating the Ferrari legend that lives in the hills of the northeastern corner of Connecticut. Piloting the #12 Ferrari for Risi Competizione will be Italian Mimmo Schiattarella and German Ralf Kelleners, who finished second at Phoenix in April and had to settle for ninth overall and seventh in class at the recent Miami-Homestead race after experiencing an on-course rendezvous which caused suspension problems to the beautiful red Prancing Horse. The V-12 Ferrari 333 SP, which made its debut in 1994, has won five of the last six races at the 1.54-mile Lime Rock circuit. The venerable Gianpiero Moretti won in the inaugural race, teamed with Eliseo Salazar. In 1995 Wayne Taylor mastered a solo effort for victory in the MOMO Ferrari, followed by another combined Moretti/Max Papis win in 1996. In 1997 Andrea Mon termini and Antonio Hermann paired for a fourth MOMO Ferrari victory. In 1998 the Dyson Ford of James Weaver edged out Didier Theys and Fredy Lienhard for the top step on the podium. Last year, Theys and Lienhard avenged the previous year with another Ferrari victory. "I"m looking forward to Lime Rock and driving the Ferrari there," said Schiattarella, who recently captured the pole at the Silverstone ELMS race. "We had some bad luck at Miami, but hope the Ferrari legend here at Lime Rock will smile down upon us." Neither Schiattarella or Kelleners have competed at the scenic tight and hilly circuit, but feel comfortable with their ride and chances for success. "We have a very good team and a car that is exceptionally well prepared," said Kelleners. "Mimmo and I will learn the circuit quickly and focus on increasing our speed every lap. The competition was tough at Miami and I expect will be tough again at Lime Rock, but we're up for the challenge," he added. Schiattarella is a former open-wheel driver with stellar performances in CART and Formula One, the two most prestigious open-wheeled racing organizations in the world. He has competed in sports car racing for the past four years, working on the development of BMW's prototype racer, as well as driving in the American Le Mans Series in 1999. Last season he also competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, finishing sixth in a Courage Nissan. He recently drove a privateer Lola-Judd to the pole over the factory teams at Silverstone, England. Ralf Kelleners has competed in touring car and road racing since the mid 1980's. He has experienced success with a GT2 class win at the 1997 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona in a Porsche 911, GT1 class victories at Watkins Glen and Petit Le Mans in a Porsche, and competed with the Toyota GT-One team as a factory driver at the 24 Hours of LeMans for two seasons. Last season he competed in the Porsche Super Cup, two races in ISRS competition piloting a Kremer 8 Sportscar, and made three appearances on the American Le Mans Series tour in a Porsche GT1. Risi Competizione, formerly Doyle-Risi Racing, is owned by Ferrari of Houston and Ferrari of Dallas principal Giuseppe Risi and Technical Director John McLoughlin, who campaigned the Ferrari 333 SP for the 1998 and 1999 seasons. Sponsorship for the team comes from Coollink.com and Enron. The car competes on Goodyear Eagle racing tires. The Risi Competizione Ferrari team plans to go direct from Lime Rock to Mid-Ohio for Round Five of the Grand American Road Racing Association series.