Roe Aims for Sportscar Glory in Italy

Irish racer James Roe Jr takes on a new challenge this weekend as he travels to Vallelunga in Italy to compete in the third round of the Italian GT Endurance 2022 Championship.

The Indy Lights driver will join Imperiale Racing, driving a Lamborghini Huracàn GT3 Evo alongside Sebastian Balthasar (GER) and Riccardo Ponzio (ITA) in the #9 car. Roe tested with the team recently and showed great pace and the Naas man is confident ahead of this weekend’s action.

The 4.085 meters of the circuit of Vallelunga is a technical layout and will be a stimulating challenge for team and drivers alike The circuit is often used by the Federation ACI Sport for tutoring sessions for young talents due to its challenging nature.  After the start, a short straight leads into the Curva Grande and into a very fast part including the two Cimini and Campagnano corners. The layout gets more technical towards the Soratte and the mid part before the Roma right-hander finally rejoins the pit straight.

James Roe Jr:
“I am looking forward to the weekend. For sure it’s something different but the test went well and the team have already achieved a podium this year. All of my racing in recent times has been stateside so it’s great to be back in Europe, and nobody is more passionate about motorsport than the Italians! This weekend I race in memory of Jamie Williamson, Topcon executive VP, who passed away suddenly last week.”

Luca Del Grosso (Team Manager):
“At Mugello, we intensified our presence in the Italian GT Endurance Championship with two young lineups that are part of our mid-long term junior program. We are working hard inside and outside the circuits to constantly improve devoting special care to data analysis and preparation of drivers. The tests run last week gave great results, the drivers found a good performance on the circuit of Vallelunga since the beginning but a lot of commitment will be needed over the weekend. We got several podiums here, we have a solid knowledgebase and we refined the preparation through some intense sessions at the simulator. We are highly motivated and we will work hard to get the best possible result as this round will define the standings. My expectations are high”.

Weekend Timetable:
Friday, September 16 > Free Practice 16:05
Saturday, September 17 > Free Practice 8:30; Qualifying 14:55
Sunday, September 18 > Race 15:00