On the heels of its Canadian Grand Prix event in June, Ferrari Challenge North America changes pace for a weekend in upstate New York.
Competitors — including the 488 Challenge Evo class after a one-race hiatus — embark on the second half of the season beginning this weekend at Watkins Glen International, which also represents the lone East Coast racetrack in the United States this year as part of a diverse series calendar in 2024.
History at the Glen
A trip to Watkins Glen has been intermittent in recent years for Ferrari Challenge. The series last raced at the 3.4-mile track in 2022 and had only visited prior to that in 2021, 2018 and 2014.
As a result, only a handful of drivers on this year’s entry list have experience — let alone winning experience — at Watkins Glen. Across 10 class podiums in 2021 and eight in 2022, just seven drivers from the two years have been victorious at the Glen, with Tony Davis (Continental AutoSports), Martin Burrowes (Ferrari of Quebec) and Jason McCarthy (Wide World Ferrari) leading the way.
Who to watch
The Trofeo Pirelli class continues to be up for grabs, with four drivers separated by a mere 12 points. Dylan Medler (The Collection) bolstered his championship lead with a Race 1 win in Montreal, but Matias Perez Companc (Ferrari of Central Florida) made his presence known by winning Race 2 on Sunday. Companc is only two points ahead of Dave Musial Jr. (Ferrari of Lake Forest) and four points behind Roberto Perrina (Ferrari of Seattle) in second.
The Trofeo Pirelli Am class enters Watkins Glen as a two-horse race between Brian Cook (Ferrari of Seattle) and Tony Davis (Continental AutoSports). After Cook dominated the first two events of the year, Davis capitalized on his rival’s misfortunes in Montreal by sweeping the weekend and re-entering the fight for the championship.
Of Coppa Shell competitors, Eric Marston (Ferrari of Westlake) continues to inch away with the championship lead after three wins in the last four races. Robert McWilliams (Ferrari of Washington), however, is the class’s most recent victor from Montreal — his first of the year — and Chuck Whittal (Ferrari of Central Florida) remains in contention for the title after a pair of runner-up finishes in Rounds 5 and 6.
Roger Monteforte (Ferrari of Central New Jersey) in Coppa Shell Am also strengthened his position in class with a win and second-place finish in Montreal, identical to his performance at Laguna Seca one month prior. While Bryan Waltersdorf (Continental AutoSports) and Steve Check (Ferrari of Rancho Mirage) enter Watkins Glen tied for second in points, Darren Bernstein (Ferrari of Washington) also brings momentum following a dominant and winning performance north of the border for the first time this season.
The 488 Challenge Evo grid returns at Watkins Glen for the first time since WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in May. With a perfect season, Massimo Perrina (Ferrari of Seattle) heads up the Trofeo Pirelli class, which sees 25 cars entered for the weekend.
Meanwhile in Coppa Shell, only 13 points split leader Gerdas Venslovas (Continental AutoSports) from Matthew Dalton (Ferrari of Long Island) in second and Richard Pineda (Ferrari of Washington) in third. While Dalton is the only driver of the three yet to win in 2024, Gregory Hopkins (Foreign Cars Italia) stole the spotlight from the trio at Laguna Seca with a runner-up finish in Race 1 and win in Race 2.
Schedule
Race action is set to take place on Saturday and Sunday afternoon at Watkins Glen. Race 1 for Trofeo Pirelli first goes green on Saturday at 1:40pm ET, followed by Coppa Shell at 2:30pm and 488 Challenge Evo at 3:20pm.
On Sunday, Coppa Shell leads the way with a start time of 1:10pm, then Trofeo Pirelli at 2pm and 488 Challenge Evo at 2:50pm.
All Ferrari Challenge races will stream live on the Ferrari YouTube channel and FerrariRaces.com.