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From YourSITE.com Motorsport News
After clinching the pole position on Saturday and the 3 points that come along with it, Gianni Morbidelli today had the chance to wrap up his first Italian crown since the 1989 F3 title, even with a restraint drive, as his edge over the closest trailing Jaguar driver amounted to 34 points with 43 more still up for grabs. Therefore Morbidelli just had in his mind to stay as removed from trouble as possible, and he did so in style, sitting on the first place throughout the whole race, watching in his mirrors rivals tussle and nudge. Giorgio Sanna, Morbidelli's team mate who started from the front row, had a couple of close encounters with the BMWs of Giuliano Alessi and former Olympic downhiller Kristian Ghedina, and the row with the latter prompted a stop-and-go penalty that the Audi homeboy did not have the time to comply to, as his damage oil cooler forced him to retire, not before having sprayed the circuit with oil. The Stewards called in the safety car, but the work to be carried out was way too much and the red flag put an early end both to the race --almost 10 minute in advance-- and to Morbidelli's title chase. The RS 4 was joined on the podium by Alessi and Ghedina, whilst former WTCC driver Alessandro Balzan fourth place was enough to keep him in the standings as runner-up to the newly crowned champion, but not nearly enough to keep the Championship up for grabs to the Monza final round.
2006 Superstars champion Max Pigoli was forced to retire after his Jaguar suffered damage in a contact on Lap 2 with Audi RS 4 privateer Stevo Goldstein. The young Colombian also suffered mechanical trouble, as his bent steering forced him to a mid-race pit stop that pulled him out of contention for points. Audi Sport Italia, that claimed their last touring car crown back in 1996 -courtesy of Dindo Capello and his unforgettable A4 quattro- dedicated this crown to Karl-Heinz Kluge, the German friend who had stubbornly developed the succesful 2007 RS 4 drive-train and prematurely passed away on the eve of Round 2.
Next round : Monza (I), 21 October About The Italian Superstars Series The Campionato Italiano Superstars (Italian Superstars Championship) is a series sanctioned by ACI-CSAI (Italy's national sanctioning body) and promoted by FG Sport, the Rome-based firm owned by Maurizio and Paolo Flammini which has successfully launched the World Superbike. Powerful production-based V8 sedans are eligible in 2007 : Audi RS 4, BMW M5 and 550, Cadillac CTS-V and Jaguar S-Type R.
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