An epic first race heat shaped the standings. Christian Merli came in second and first in the FIA European Hill Climb Championship standings. Third place went to Frenchman Geoffrey Schatz. Fazzino stopped on the last climb. Bondioni and Zanardini were separated by just one-thousandth of a second for the local supremacy.
Borno, July 15th, 2024 – Simone Faggioli confirms himself as the Master of hill climbs. At the end of an outstanding performance, he claimed the Trofeo Vallecamonica for the fourth consecutive time, in its 53rd edition, organized by the Automobile Club Brescia and valid as the sixth round of the FIA European Hill Climb Championship, the fifth of the Italian Supersalita Championship, and for the Italian Mountain Speed Championship.
The italian driver, in a Nova Proto NP01 Bardahl, secured his lead in the first run, climbing the 8.6 kilometers of the Malegno-Ossimo-Borno in 3’42.600, a new record for the track, perfectly set up by the Automobile Club Brescia staff. In the final standings, Faggioli finished with a total time of 7’29.523, beating his perennial rival Christian Merli, who in an Osella FA30 Judd LRM finished right behind and first in the FIA standings. Third fastest was Frenchman Geoffrey Schatz, in a Nova Proto NP01. Schatz was the fastest in the second run, but stalling the engine at the start of the first climb played against him, although catching Faggioli as he was today would have been very difficult.
Great misfortune for Luigi Fazzino. The Sicilian driver, in an Osella PA30, was third in the first run, but a technical issue stopped him midway through the second climb, depriving him of what would surely have been a great result for the twenty-four-year-old. In the Italian Supersalita Championship standings, behind Faggioli, Franco Caruso in a Nova Proto NP01-2 finished ahead of Trentino’s Diego Degasperi, in a Norma M20 GEA Zytek, winner here in 2018 and still on the podium. For the European series standings, behind Merli and Schatz, the Belgian Corentin Starck, in a Nova Proto NP01-2, completed the podium, achieving the fifth fastest overall time.
Among the many Brescian drivers, the supremacy was decided by just one-thousandth of a second. Ilario Bondioni, in a Ferrari 488 Evo, edged out the 2016 winner Mirko Zanardini, this year competing in a Lamborghini Huracán GT3, in a GT Group currently sub judice. Zanardini was more effective in the first run, but Bondioni made a comeback in the afternoon, going ahead by less than a blink of an eye.
Among the locals, there was a festive atmosphere in the Rally Group with Roberto Tottoli and Roberto Prandini from Boario, finishing in that order, both in Skoda Fabia RS Rally2. Third place went to Ossimo driver Giorgio Mendeni in the small Peugeot 208 Rally2 ex R2B. Noteworthy also was the great performance by Luca Tosini from Ceto, in an Audi RS3 LMS TCR, who won the TCR Group, once again proving to be one of the fastest.
In the CIVM race, the victory went to the Swiss Victor Darbellay in a Tatuus FR Evo, who won both climbs and regulated Gino Predotti in a Formula Renault by 19.4 seconds at the finish. Third place went to Leonardo Chesini in a Gloria C8. Andrea Lombardi, fourth in a BMW M3, won in Group A, while in Group N, Carmelo Fusaro celebrated in a Honda Civic Type R. In Group RS-S, Claudio Vezzoli took a solo victory in a Peugeot 106 Rallye, while in RS-Plus, the win went to Nicola Dabeni in an Abarth 500.
Among the historic cars, a great performance by Pierpaolo Serra in a spectacular March F2 ex-Bruno Giacomelli. In his second race with this car, Serra won the hypothetical overall standings and the 5th Group. A nice contest with Alessandro Trentini in a Lucchini SP90. After the first run, the difference between the two was only 2 tenths, but a gearbox problem for Trentini in the second climb handed the victory to Serra. Trentini still won the 4th Group. Third place in a comeback for Piero Lottini, last year’s winner, slowed down by a rear hit in the first climb that tore part of the wing. Great work by his team allowed him to reach the finish line.
The race was not easy even for the local Alessio Armeni, in a Porsche 911, who was third overall after the first run. A gearbox problem encountered in the second climb cost him many seconds. He finished fourth in the overall standings, ensuring victory in the 2nd Group. In the 3rd Group, Davide Giudici won in a Fiat Ritmo 75 CL, while in the 1st Group, another local driver, Francesco Tignonsini in a Fiat Abarth 1000 TC, who was also the first to tackle the course of this edition on Saturday.
Opening the event was the Maserati MC20 Cielo equipped with an entire “robo-driver” system and driven by AI developed by the Politecnico di Milano, which participated in the 2023 edition of the 1000 Miglia. The car climbed the Camuno track ramps as the lead car, marking the first time ever for a hill climb. Great work by the team coordinated by Prof. Sergio Savaresi, which included over 40 staff members among engineers, researchers, and graduates.
Also enjoyable was the football match on Thursday that saw the Hill Climb Drivers National Team face a representative of the Vintage Nero Verdi Darfo on the 11-a-side pitch in Borno. On the field among the drivers were Schatz, Faggioli, Dall’Oglio, Hin, Iraola, Gregori, Di Caro, Pedrotti, Lombardi, Aragona, Bacci, Tosini, Fazzino, Perugini, Leardini, and Chiocci. In the local team, also Massimo Maugeri, Sports Councilor of the Comunità Montana di Valle Camonica. At the end of the match, the proceeds of which will be used to purchase a DAE device for the Centro Sportivo Pineta that hosted the event, saw the drivers’ team win 4-3.
“An exciting weekend,” said the President of the Automobile Club Brescia, Cav. Aldo Bonomi, “seeing the fires burning all night, the great passion of the public, the excitement of the drivers, and a challenge of this sporting intensity allowed the Trofeo Vallecamonica to experience one of its most significant editions, a great way to celebrate the first sixty years of the event. A big thanks to the mayors of the municipalities of Malegno, Ossimo, Borno, Lozio, Cividate Camuno, to the Comunità Montana di Vallecamonica, the Province of Brescia, our partners, and all our collaborators who tirelessly worked to give us another unforgettable show.”
