Salo - De Simone / Copyright Maserati - Richard Dole
 

The race

Portland (or) - USA
31/07/2005

MC12 close to the podium at Portland

31/07/2005 - Portland (OR)
The No. 35 Maserati MC12 finished fourth in the GT1 class in the American Le Mans Series race at Portland International Raceway on Saturday evening.

Fabrizio de Simone started the race from fourth on the GT1grid, but quickly took third place from one of the dominant Corvettes just two minutes into the two-hour 45-minute race. A hit from a GT2-class car put him off line, allowing the Corvette to retake the position. The team pitted at 43m for fuel and rear tires, but lost valuable time due to a starter malfunction.

When a full-course caution started 16 minutes later, the Corvettes were able to pit under caution, gaining a lap advantage on the Maserati. Mika Salo took over at 1h15 and drove to the finish, with one final stop for fuel and tires during a caution period at 1h50. The pair finished fourth in GT1, ninth overall behind the winning No. 2 Audi driven by Frank Biela and Emmanuel Pirro.