Risi team still fuming after Petit Le Mans crash

Risi Ferrari

Temperatures within the Risi Competizione camp have only just begun to cool since the team was crashed out of the lead while leading Saturday's season finale at Road Atlanta.

The team's frustrating exit just three hours into the 10-hour event was one of many low points in a caution-filled and crash-marred 17th anniversary for Petit Le Mans, and in the wake of a non-call by IMSA on the competitor who authored the No. 62 GTLM Ferrari's demise, the team's anger has yet to subside.

Prior to closing the year at Petit Le Mans, Risi opened its 2014 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship account with a destroyed Ferrari F458 chassis at Round 1 in Daytona, suffered another heavy crash with its replacement at Round 2 in Sebring, and with the chance of a positive end to a trying year in sight, the Risi outfit was forced to retire last weekend when driver Pierre Kaffer was pummeled from behind by Porsche factory driver Patrick Pilet.

Pilet, who had just strapped in and was shown on camera looking down at his seat belts while driving down pit lane, eventually looked up and was clearly surprised to find Kaffer parked and obeying the red light that held cars at pit exit. With no time or space to avoid a crash, the Frenchman struck Kaffer's car in the right rear, and Pilet was then hit from behind by Corvette's Jan Magnussen. The net effect left Risi's Prancing Horse sitting with its hind quarters damaged beyond immediate repair.

The Porsche and Corvette would continue after their respective crews made repairs. Unfortunately, the innocent party in the melee was dealt the most severe blow, and if the race-ending damage wasn't enough to cause team owner Giuseppe Risi's blood to boil, the inaction by IMSA in regard to Pilet's negligence pushed the respected team owner over the edge.

A strongly-worded release was issued by Risi during the event, making his disappointment over the incident and officiating abundantly clear.

"We've had no response to our request to Race Control for review or action although, in the past, any misdeeds by our team or drivers have been punished severely and immediately," said Risi. "This leads me to question whether the series even cares if there is a full-season GTLM Ferrari in the race or not, and it must also color my opinion going forward as to whether I want to continue in this championship or not."

With a few days to bring to situation from a boil to a simmer, team manager Dave Sims says the ALMS championship-winning team is still fuming and struggles to understand how the crash resulted in a non-call.

"We just had a horrendous race getting taken out in the pits getting hit from behind," Sims told RACER. "It wasn't reviewed, and when I couldn't get a response, I walked all the way over to the tower and was refused access to Race Control because I didn't have a media pass! I went and asked the red light man, who said it was on and our car stopped properly. No apology from [IMSA]. We came in, beat everyone else on our pit stop, and came out No. 1. It drives you mad to see what happen take place, and then for the driver who caused the whole thing to get off without as much as a slap on the wrist is a whole other level of injustice piled on top of it."

One of the suspension mounts was pulled out from the subframe in the crash, and a host of other significant damage was done to the Ferrari. The lack of answers from IMSA added to the mounting frustration as the Risi crew found more significant damage than was initially expected. More at racer.com