Filed under: Motorsports, Sports/GTs, Supercars, Ford
Matech Ford GT wins its first race in FIA GT3
click above image for 45 more desktop wallpaper-size pics
No doubt followers of FIA GT3 racing were surprised at how well the Ford GTs from Matech ran in the first two races at Silverstone earlier this month. No one, however, was prepared for the can of whoop ass they opened up in Bucarest last weekend. Despite heavy rain at times, the two Matech Ford GTs were dominant, though not both at the same time.
The first GT3 race of the weekend was won by the #34 JMB Racing Ferrari F430, but the #43 Matech Ford GT driven by Thomas Mutsch and Martin Bartek finished second, the best result in the first three races of the season for a Ford GT. The second race of the weekend, however, concluded with the #44 Matech Ford GT driven by Stefan van Campenhoudt and Romain Bera crossing the finish line first, ahead of no less than three Porsche GT3s that were chasing it down. Romain Bera was driving the Ford GT at the race's conclusion and didn't realize until after the race that one of his rear tires had gone flat near the end. Despite that and the heavy rain, Matech left Bucharest with its first win and a solid second-place finish – an amazing result considering their program is about four months old.
We've got a gallery full of gorgeous shots from the Bucharest street race, and we threw in a lot of extra pics taken of the headlining FIA GT race, as well. We wish it were easier to follow the FIA GT series from the U.S., as watching such varied marques battling on the same track would be a dream come true, or at least better than watching NASCAR's CoT turning left all day long.
[Source: FIA GT3]
_opt_thumbnail.jpg)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
John P. 8:50PM (5/23/2007)
It warms my heart to see that thing taking the checkered flag. yummy!
Reply
bmoredlj 8:53PM (5/23/2007)
This is off-topic, but I'm curious...how does Dodge know about the new autoblog?
Reply
bmoredlj 8:54PM (5/23/2007)
mever mind, i found the article explaining it...
Reply
Don 9:09PM (5/23/2007)
That's always killer to hear!
Reply
Dan 9:15PM (5/23/2007)
Anyone know where I can catch this series on TV in the US?
Reply
Zepolcire 10:09PM (5/23/2007)
Ya I would love to watch this, but seems it is never on TV.
bernie 10:44PM (5/23/2007)
What a great looking car. I wish he street version looked like that -- I'd be interested in one.
Reply
phuc vu 10:59PM (5/23/2007)
...and Ford discontinues the profitable GT. It's sad. Great car that blew away GM and others and made some money is now dead.
Reply
yatcyd 11:16PM (5/23/2007)
YouTube has some of the race, search for "Bucharest Challenge 2007, FIA GT race" and it should pop up. Very cool!
Reply
Deezee 11:59PM (5/23/2007)
Thats a bad ass ride right there. Ford should have kept it. Every company needs a flagship.
Reply
Bryan 12:06AM (5/24/2007)
I think Ford should have kept this too but I guess they really need to focus on other things right now. Like my 09 F150!!!
Reply
Shane 12:17AM (5/24/2007)
Sad to see the Ford GT go, but it follows along with the tradition of American automakers making really bad decisions.
Reply
Nellydesign 7:58AM (5/24/2007)
I love hearing people spout off about bad decisions who have no idea what they are talking about. The GT in it's current form would not pass the new safety regulations that just came into place. Modifying the car would have been a massively expensive undertaking (in both monetary and human resources). I'm pretty sure this has all been gone over before The company has other things it needs to focus on, like saving it's business with cars that every day people can and want to buy. And where did you hear it was ever profitable? I highly doubt that the low sales numbers on an expensive, short lived and exclusive product ever even broke Ford even with the out of pocket cost cost to engineer, design, and produce it.
Reply
Carguy 9:59AM (5/24/2007)
Nelly,
It doesn't matter. The amount of money lost on producing this car is a pittance compared to the amount of positive branding Ford gets out of the deal. This car hits boomers squarely in the gut nostalgia-wise and puts Ford in the same breath as Porsche and Ferrari at the track. That kind of branding can hardly be bought at any price...not letting the car run in basic maintenance mode at low low volumes for many years was just dumb.
Reply
J.Crew 10:29AM (5/24/2007)
I agree that race series is be better than watching any NAS-CRAP. Ford should tie the GT into its racing budget and axe any and all involvement in Nascar which does nothing for ther brand. This would keep the car alive in the racing world so the rich owners of this great car can watch it compete and win on the world stage. Go to Lemans and run agianst the Corvettes and Astons in a real endurance race. A Taurus or Fusion should be able to turn left all day... but lets get a real victory under the Ford name.
Reply
naggs 12:24PM (5/24/2007)
you guys forgot SPOILER ALERT
Reply
Mr. Oak 12:57PM (5/24/2007)
Errr, J.Crew:- Though I disagreed with the decision to kill GT, You must be insane to think that Ford gets nothing from NASCAR. Why do you think Toyota got involved in the Craftsman Truck series and Nextel Cup? NASCAR fans are the most fiercely brand loyal folks in the U.S.
This car could do for Ford, what the Corvette does for Chevrolet. Ford desparately needs a flagship car, especially Lincoln is back sliding into mediocracy.
Reply
Mr. Oak 12:59PM (5/24/2007)
This car could do for Ford, what the Corvette does for Chevrolet. Ford desparately needs a flagship car, especially since Lincoln is back sliding into mediocracy.
Reply
Mr. Oak 12:59PM (5/24/2007)
This car could do for Ford, what the Corvette does for Chevrolet. Ford desparately needs a flagship car, especially since Lincoln is back sliding into mediocracy.
Reply
amp 9:18AM (5/25/2007)
The title pic for this post looks like it was ripped from one of those new fancy-schmancy high-def racing games, simply gorgeous.
Reply