That is how you make a statement. Just two rounds after following driver Mauricio Lambiris in a team switch from Gurí Martínez Competición over to Jerónimo Teti's squad, engineers Federico Raffo and Gabriel Mazzei delivered a crushing victory at the autódromo de Rosario.
It was total dominance, with the machine leading almost everything on offer all weekend. Yet, standing in the podium zone after the race, Raffo made sure to acknowledge the origins of their winning equipment. As he pointed out, "This car was built in Gurí's team and of that I do not want to forget. There we had an incredible start to the season and then, for those things of motorsport, it led us to the change."
It was boring, but we enjoyed it. Lambiris drove very well, he didn't have to fight with anyone, and that made the car not wear out.
According to Raffo, the foundation for the triumph was laid right from the opening practice sessions, which is usually how it goes for those who manage to conquer the grueling Turismo Carretera field. "The ones who start the weekend well end up winning or being protagonists," Raffo explained. "Mauricio started firm and we corrected things that allowed us to show a great potential. It was all perfect."
Gabriel Mazzei, meanwhile, pointed to the tight-knit nature of the new structure as a vital piece of the puzzle. Building a unified group where a machine performs like it did in Rosario is no easy task, but the team managed it through hard work that matched any of their rivals.
Sure, the race itself lacked front-running wheel-to-wheel action due to the sheer pace of the leader, but nobody in the garage was complaining about that. Mazzei admitted it plainly: "It was boring, but we enjoyed it. Lambiris drove very well, he didn't have to fight with anyone, and that made the car not wear out."
