The Carrera Cup Italia reaches 31 at the start in Misano between night and day

Yesterday’s test (with Larry Ten Voorde’s best time) was just a quick appetizer. From today to Sunday at the Misano World Circuit, the 2024 Porsche Carrera Cup Italia gets serious with a lineup of stronger drivers than ever to inaugurate the 18th edition of its history.

The prestigious single-brand 510 horsepower 911 GT3 Cup consolidates quality and quantity in numbers and values, both on and off the track, where sustainability projects linked to ISO 20121 certification continue. In a weekend that will divide the challenges between night and day , 31 drivers (of the 33 registered for the entire championship), 13 teams and 23 Porsche Centers from all over Italy will line up on the starting grid of the Romagna circuit.

The starting fleet presents several new features and confirms the international growth of the Italian single-brand brand with ten nations represented. Already in Misano the various challenges for the titles are announced to be balanced, which among others for the overall will see the aforementioned reigning champion Ten Voorde and the new official driver of the Q8 Hi Perform Team Keagan Masters at the start, in addition to the already titled Simone Iaquinta (2019 and 2020), Gianmarco Quaresmini (2018 and 2022) and Alberto Cerqui (2021) and the two-time Carrera Cup France champion Marvin Klein.

The lineup of contenders is enriched by well-known faces and new entries, among which stand out the drivers competing in the new ranking reserved for rookies in the Porsche Italia series, which for the first time will award the Rookie title, the big news of the season.

Not to be missed are the protagonists expected in the Michelin Cup, a category reserved for non-professionals in which the reigning champion Alberto De Amicis is challenged, and the under 23s selected for the Scholarship Programme, the coaching project promoted by Porsche which will follow eleven young talents in the throughout the entire season, encouraging their technical and sporting growth.

Live races on Dazn.

The first appointment in Misano Adriatico presents an extra variable thanks to race 1 at night, scheduled for Saturday evening at 9.00 pm, while race 2 completes the weekend on Sunday at 12.00. Both races will be broadcast live on Dazn (also in free mode), which for the first time will follow the entire championship live and on demand.

To enjoy all the races and on-demand contents of the season, it will be sufficient to have an active Dazn subscription or go to dazn.com/home and, after clicking on one of the free contents available on the homepage, register for free simply by email, name and surname.

In addition to the possibility of following the live broadcasts, the contents of the Carrera Cup Italia (both the races and the highlights) will remain available to users even subsequently in on-demand mode. Over the distance of 30 minutes + 1 lap, both Misano races will also be available in live streaming in HD on www.carreracupitalia.it.

“Protagonists”.

After the 2023 title and the best time also in the pre-2024 collective test held in Imola last April 11th, Ten Voorde returns at the start as the natural point of reference for the series.

The 27-year-old Dutch ace, who also boasts two titles in the Porsche Supercup and three in the German Carrera Cup, is the confirmation of the Enrico Fulgenzi Racing – Centro Porsche Udine team together with his young compatriot born in 2006 Flynt Schuringwho at just 17 years old already knows the world of the 911 GT3 Cup but will be making his debut in the Italian single-make series, where he will also attend the Scholarship Programme.

The only ones younger than him at the start are three born in 2007: the German Janne Stiakarrived in Target Competition – Centro Porsche Trento alongside Klein (Porsche Center Bolzano), and two Italian rookies: the Roman Flavio Olivieri (Raptor Engineering – Porsche Center Catania) and Nicholas from Pordenone Pujattithe youngest of all and who will compete in the Villorba Corse – Centro Porsche Treviso colors like the 20 year old from Padua Steven Giaconcoming from the Tourism categories but also making his debut in GT.

In addition to Ten Voorde, Klein e Mastersthe 24-year-old South African who returns on a permanent basis with the Q8 Hi Perform team after being the best young player in 2022, among the Italians the aforementioned ones have signed up to chase the absolute laurel Iaquinta (Prima Ghinzani – Porsche Centers in Milan), Quaresminireturned to Tsunami RT – Porsche Center Brescia, and Look for itin his second season with BeDriver – Centro Porsche Piacenza, to which is added the already vice-champion Diego Bertonelliregistered with TDE – Porsche Centers of Rome.

Two young players born in 2005 such as the German Daniel also line up with the same team Gregor (Centro Porsche Parma) and the Austrian Horst Felix Felbermayr (Centro Porsche Bari), while the second tip of BeDriver arrives from Australia, the 20 year old Bayley Hallalready highlighted yesterday in testing with the new entry Centro Porsche Napoli.

The 18-year-old Pietro from Brescia therefore completes the ranks of the Scholarship Programme Armanniin his second season in the series, this time with Prima Ghinzani – Centro Porsche Firenze, and the 19-year-old Catholic rookie of Dinamic Motorsport Francesco Braschi (Centro Porsche Verona), who is joined by Aldo in the reigning champion team Celebrant (Porsche Center Bologna).

Completing the grid of Pro drivers is Team Malucelli – Centro Porsche Pesaro Filippo Infanta driver from Belluno making his debut in the single-brand championship, and the duo fielded by Ombra Racing: the 33-year-old American Anthony Imperato (Centro Porsche Torino) already took part in some races last year, while the 24-year-old German Lirim Zendeli he is a prospect of certain interest given his past in Formula 2 and Formula 3 and his first season in GT and in the Carrera Cup Italia, factors that make him one of the most anticipated contenders in the chase at least for the Rookie title.

However, British rookie Oliver “Ollie” Gray will not be able to line up with Ombra at the start of Misano, as he postpones his debut in the single-brand series to the Imola round in June because he is busy in the concurrent ELMS test at Le Castellet

Michelin Cup.

Misano will therefore be an already very indicative testing ground for the ten protagonists at the start in the Michelin Cup, starting with Alberto De Amicisengaged in the defense of the 2023 title together with Ebimotors – Centro Porsche Varese, a team in which the driver from Guidonia finds his teammate Paolo Gnemmi.

Already twice titled and second last year, Alex will be hunting for revenge De Giacomi (Tsunami RT – Centro Porsche Latina), as well as Francesco Maria Phoeniciansthird in 2023 and new representative of Raptor Engineering – Porsche Centers in Rome.

Among the confirmations are those of Gianluca Giorgi (BeDriver – Centro Porsche Piacenza) and Max Montagnese (Team Malucelli), while his teammate Stefano returns to the Carrera Cup after 6 years Stefanelli (Porsche Center Mantua).

Another return is that of Luca Shepherds (Centro Porsche Modena) with the third 911 GT3 Cup of Dinamic Motorsport, with the Romanian Horia-Traian Chirigut (Villorba Corse – Porsche Center Treviso) and the new standard bearer of Prima Ghinzani – Porsche Center Padova Cesare Brusa which instead represent the new names in a dispute that is also looming even more “tightened”.

Complete program.

First appointment on the track today with the lights and reflectors on with the free practice session scheduled from 8.45pm to 9.45pm. Qualifying on Saturday will take place from 10.20 to 11.00 and both starting grids will decide. Also on Saturday, the start of the first race of the season is therefore set for the evening at 9.00 pm and on Sunday that of race 2 at the more traditional time of 12.00. Both will be broadcast live on Dazn also in free mode and live streaming always in HD on the official website www.carreracupitalia.it.

Those registered in Misano