Ferrari: Campana and Lewis' test with the Ferrari F60

Driving a Ferrari Formula One is a dream that is normally kept inaccessible, but not for the winners of the Italian Formula Three Championship. Thanks to Scuderia Ferrari and CSAI, the Automobile Sports Commission of the Automobile Club of Italy, the protagonists of the Italian series powered by Fiat Powertrain Racing, as has been the case since 2008, had the privilege of completing an entire day of testing at steering wheel of the Ferrari F60.

A dream that has become reality, therefore, for Sergio Campana from Modena, Italian Formula Three Champion and for Californian Michael Lewis, Rookie champion, great protagonists of the prestigious national series which this year saw its 46th edition.

The work program followed yesterday by the two young talents in Vallelunga was intense, under the careful supervision of the engineer. Luca Baldisserri, head of the Ferrari Driver Academy. The first to take to the track at 9.00 sharp was Michael Lewis who had exclusive access to the 4.085 meters of the Roman track for a total of around 50 laps divided into around 6 stints of 7/8 each.

At 13.30pm it was Sergio Campana's turn, who took to the track when the highest temperatures were recorded with 10 degrees higher than the 8 measured in the early hours of the morning. Even for the Modena rider there were around 50 laps tackled for a distance, among other things, almost double compared to that covered by their predecessors last year.

The moments of discussion with the Scuderia Ferrari technicians continued every time they returned to the pits and the chronometric improvements were progressive as the laps completed by the two drivers followed one another. The record of the day goes to Campana who set the best time in 1'20.6, while his younger American colleague stopped the clocks at 1'21.0 when the track was under the coldest temperatures.

“I can't describe what I feel – commented Campana, visibly moved – feeling that engine that pushes, the aerodynamics that crush you, the brakes that allow you to brake almost inside the curve, the gear changes to the thousandth of a second... The Formula One is fantastic! Ferrari Formula One is awesome! For an Italian driver it is something unimaginable. I think that starting tomorrow I will wallpaper the house with the posters that I will have made with today's photos... I hope and believe I have made a good impression. I don't know what will happen in the future and maybe I don't even want to think about it, I prefer to enjoy this moment for a while. Continuing my career in single-seaters would be fantastic."

“Incredible, incredible, incredible ( – unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable – literally) – exclaimed Lewis as soon as he got out of the cockpit – I was sure I would feel a strong emotion, but I really didn't imagine that much! Compared to what I was used to managing in a Formula 3 car, here everything is multiplied. Really difficult to get close to the limit, but it's exciting to feel all that power and strength in fast corners and braking... It's all multiplied, but the dynamics of the car are the same. There is no doubt, Formula 3 is an extraordinary school that allowed me to arrive prepared. Then it's fantastic that he experienced all this at the wheel of a Ferrari Formula One. It's a dream for everyone, even for me as an American."

“I can only be grateful to Ferrari once again – commented Angelo Sticchi Damiani, CSAI President – ​​It is thanks to them that we are able to give a dream experience to the talents who have blossomed in our championships. This type of intervention, as well as the collaboration with the Ferrari Driver Academy which supports us throughout the chain established from Karting, to Formula AciCsai Abarth and then to Formula Three, I hope that they can soon fulfill our desire to see one of our drivers at the top absolute also in Formula One".

During the press conference that presented the 2012 racing season for Formula Three and Formula AciCsai Abarth, some highly anticipated news also arrived. Luca Baldisserri, head of the Ferrari Driver Academy, has in fact announced that the Ferrari F.1 Test Award will also be confirmed next year.

“We are happy to confirm that the test will also be held for next season and will be reserved like this year for the overall champion and the winner of the Rookie classification. The single-seater will be the 2010 one, i.e. the Ferrari that almost won the F.1 World Championship last year. Our commitment has every reason to be renewed. And I must say that the partnership with the Italian series is not only because we are an Italian manufacturer. Italian Formula Three is undoubtedly at the top of the national championships existing in the world in the category and seeing the guys who immediately performed well today behind the wheel of Formula One is proof of this. It also happened to their predecessors and it is no coincidence that Mirko Bortolotti and Daniel Zampieri, two of the last Italian Formula Three Champions, were also our students in the Ferrari Driver Academy. With this commitment of ours we really hope to find a future World Champion on Ferrari."