Maurizio Mediani
Italian racing driver (born 1968)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Maurizio Mediani (born 21 September 1968) is an Italian racing driver who last competed in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup for AF Corse. A long-term Ferrari specialist and Michelotto test driver, he raced in the FIA World Endurance Championship from 2013 to 2016, primarily in LMP2 for SMP Racing. In 2023, he became the first man to drive Isotta Fraschini's Le Mans Hypercar.
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Italian
FIA Gold (until 2015)[N 1]
FIA Silver (2012–2014, 2016–2025)
FIA Bronze (2026–)| Maurizio Mediani | |
|---|---|
Mediani in 2013 | |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Born | 21 September 1968 Reggio Emilia, Italy |
| Categorisation | FIA Gold (until 2015)[N 1] FIA Silver (2012–2014, 2016–2025) FIA Bronze (2026–) |
| Championship titles | |
| 2010 2001 | Superstars GTSprint Series – GT2 Russian Formula Three Championship |
Career
Mediani made his single-seater debut in 1992, racing in the Italian Formula Three Championship. Racing until 1998 in the series, Mediani won five times and most notably finished third overall in his last season in the series for Venturini Racing.[6] After a brief escapade in the Japanese Formula 3 Championship for HKS Ralliart in 1999,[7] Mediani spent three years in Russian F3, winning the 2001 edition and finishing runner-up in the other two seasons.[8][9][10] In 2003, Mediani made his sportscar debut by racing part-time in the N-GT class of the FIA GT Championship for Porsche-fielding Autorlando Sport.[11] The following year, Mediani joined Ferrari customer team JMB Racing for part-time campaigns in the Rolex Sports Car Series, Italian GT and FIA GT Championships.[12] In his first year with the team, Mediani won on his Italian GT debut at Imola,[13] as well as scoring a lone GT podium in the Rolex Sports Car Series at Homestead–Miami.[14]
After a full season in Italian GT for JMB in 2005,[15] Mediani returned to the series the following year, primarily competing for Victory Engineering, and took four wins en route to fourth in the GT2 standings.[6] During 2006, Mediani also won on his International GT Open debut with the team at Valencia,[16] as well as scoring a pair of second-place finishes for Risi Competizione on a limited schedule in the American Le Mans Series.[17][18] Following part-time campaigns in the American Le Mans Series and FIA GT Championship in 2007,[19] which yielded a podium at Zolder in FIA GT,[20] Mediani returned to Italian GT for 2008 with Racing Team Edil Cris, taking three podiums to secure fifth in the GT2 standings.[21] Towards the end of the year, Mediani scored his only 6 Hours of Vallelunga win alongside Marco Cioci and Piergiuseppe Perazzini aboard Advanced Engineering's Ferrari F430 GTC.[22]
A one-off appearance in International GT Open for Vittoria Competizioni then ensued in 2009, before Mediani remained with the team to compete in the Superstars GTSprint Series in 2010 alongside Alessandro Bonetti.[23] Starting off the season with wins at Monza and Imola, Mediani then won again at the Hockenheimring, Le Castellet and Vallelunga to secure the GT2 title.[24][25] After a one-year hiatus, Mediani finished second at the 24 Hours of Barcelona for Russian Bears Motorsport,[26] as well as racing for Ferrari-affiliated AF Corse in a one-off appearance in the Blancpain Endurance Series and the Gulf 12 Hours.[27]
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In 2013, Mediani joined Krohn Racing to compete in the LMGTE Am class of the FIA World Endurance Championship, thus making his 24 Hours of Le Mans debut at 44 years old.[28] Mediani, Niclas Jönsson and team owner Tracy Krohn could only muster a best finish of fifth at Interlagos, as the No. 57 Ferrari 458 Italia GT2 finished last in the LMGTE Am standings.[29] In parallel, Mediani also raced with AF Corse–run SMP Racing on a part-time basis in the Blancpain Endurance Series,[30] and featured in both the GTC and LMP2 classes of the European Le Mans Series.[31][32]
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Continuing with SMP Racing for 2014, Mediani raced with them in the LMP2 class of the FIA World Endurance Championship and the GTC class of the European Le Mans Series.[33][34] Between the two campaigns, Mediani found more success in WEC, taking five podiums en route to a fifth-place points finish in points together with Nicolas Minassian.[35] During 2014, Mediani also raced in the first two rounds of the United SportsCar Championship in GTD for SMP-backed Extreme Speed Motorsports and AIM Autosport, most notably finishing second at the 12 Hours of Sebring with the latter.[36]
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Remaining with SMP for 2015, Mediani partnered David Markozov and Minassian in the LMP2 class of the European Le Mans Series and 24 Hours of Le Mans,[37][38] as the team transitioned from the Oreca 03R to the homebuilt BR Engineering BR01.[39] In 2016, Mediani and SMP made their full-season return to the FIA World Endurance Championship, placing tenth with a best result of fourth at the Circuit of the Americas.[40] Mediani also assisted the BR01's IMSA debut at the 24 Hours of Daytona,[41] which saw Mikhail Aleshin take a shock pole position in the rain.[42]
Scaling back to GT racing for 2017, Mediani began the year driving a Ferrari 488 GT3 for AF Corse–owned Spirit of Race at the 24 Hours of Daytona in GTD.[43] Continuing with the team for the rest of the year in the Le Mans Cup, Mediani finished third on his series debut at Monza in LMP3,[44] before competing in the next two rounds in GT3, in which he scored a pair of second-place finishes.[45]
In 2018, Mediani stayed with Spirit of Race for his first full season in the Le Mans Cup, winning the second race at Road to Le Mans and taking two other podiums to secure runner-up honours in GT3 with Christoph Ulrich.[46][47] Mediani and Ulrich stuck together in 2019, as they took three podiums en route to a fourth-place points finish.[48] After being out of a seat for much of 2020, Mediani made a brief racing return towards the end of the year, competing for AF Corse at the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup season finale at Le Castellet.[49]
In 2023, as part of his Michelotto Engineering test duties, Mediani became the first person to drive Isotta Fraschini's new Hypercar, the Isotta Fraschini Tipo 6 LMH-C, at the car's shakedown at Vallelunga in April.[50][51]
Karting record
Karting career summary
| Season | Series | Team | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Karting World Championship — Formula K | 3rd | |
| 1988 | Karting World Championship — Formula K | 3rd | |
| Sources:[6] | |||
Racing record
Racing career summary
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Italian Formula Three Championship | Passoli Racing | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC |
| 1993 | Italian Formula Three Championship | BVM Racing | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 9th |
| 1994 | Italian Formula Three Championship | Supercars CM | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 85 | 6th |
| Monaco Grand Prix Formula Three | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | 17th | ||
| 1995 | Italian Formula Three Championship | Team Ghinzani | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 74 | 9th |
| Masters of Formula 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | 23rd | ||
| 1996 | Italian Formula Three Championship | Cevenini Junior Team | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 80 | 5th |
| Masters of Formula 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | 7th | ||
| 1997 | Italian Formula Three Championship | Venturini Racing | 10 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 81 | 4th |
| Monaco Grand Prix Formula Three | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | 8th | ||
| Macau Grand Prix | EF Project | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | DNF | |
| 1998 | Italian Formula Three Championship | Venturini Racing | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 112 | 3rd |
| Masters of Formula 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | 12th | ||
| 1999 | Japanese Formula 3 Championship | HKS Ralliart | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10th |
| 2000 | Russian Formula Three Championship | Artline Engineering | 3 | 86 | 2nd | ||||
| 2001 | Russian Formula Three Championship | Artline Engineering | 5 | 7 | 134 | 1st | |||
| Open Telefónica by Nissan | Venturini Racing | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 25th | |
| 2002 | Russian Formula Three Championship | Artline Engineering | 4 | 3 | 4 | 75 | 2nd | ||
| 2003 | FIA GT Championship – N-GT | Autorlando Sport | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 42nd |
| 2004 | Rolex Sports Car Series – GT | JMB Racing USA | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 50 | 36th |
| Italian GT Championship | JMB Racing | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 19th | |
| FIA GT Championship – GT | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC | ||
| 2005 | Italian GT Championship – GT2 | JMB Racing | 14 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 91 | 8th |
| 2006 | Italian GT Championship – GT2 | Made in Italy | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 151 | 4th |
| Victory Engineering | 10 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 8 | ||||
| American Le Mans Series – GT2 | Risi Competizione | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 45 | 14th | |
| International GT Open – GTA | Victory Engineering | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 32 | 9th | |
| 2007 | American Le Mans Series – GT2 | Corsa/White Lightning | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 42nd |
| Corsa Motorsports | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| FIA GT Championship – GT2 | Racing Team Edil Cris | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 19th | |
| Advanced Engineering | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||
| 2008 | Italian GT Championship – GT2 | Racing Team Edil Cris | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 91 | 5th |
| FIA GT Championship – GT2 | Kessel Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 26th | |
| International GT Open – GTA | Advanced Engineering | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 18th | |
| 6 Hours of Vallelunga | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | N/a | 1st | ||
| 2009 | 500 km Interlagos – Class I | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | DNF | |
| International GT Open – Super GT | Vittoria Competizioni | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC | |
| 2010 | Superstars GTSprint Series – GT2 | Vittoria Competizioni | 12 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 204 | 1st |
| 2012 | Malaysia Merdeka Endurance Race | AF Corse | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | 4th |
| Blancpain Endurance Series – Pro-Am | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 38th | ||
| 24 Hours of Barcelona – A6 | Russian Bears Motorsport 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | N/a | 2nd | |
| Gulf 12 Hours | AF Waltrip | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | 4th | |
| 2013 | FIA World Endurance Championship – LMGTE Am | Krohn Racing | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 17th |
| 24 Hours of Le Mans – LMGTE Am | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | DNF | ||
| Blancpain Endurance Series – Pro-Am | SMP Racing | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 13th | |
| European Le Mans Series – GTC | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC | ||
| European Le Mans Series – LMP2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 12th | ||
| 2014 | United SportsCar Championship – GTD | SMP/ESM Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 62 | 39th |
| AIM Autosport | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||
| FIA World Endurance Championship – LMP2 | SMP Racing | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 96 | 5th | |
| 24 Hours of Le Mans – LMP2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | DNF | ||
| European Le Mans Series – GTC | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 28th | ||
| 2015 | European Le Mans Series – LMP2 | AF Corse | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 8th |
| SMP Racing | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| AF Racing | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 24 Hours of Le Mans – LMP2 | SMP Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | 6th | |
| 2016 | IMSA SportsCar Championship – Prototype | SMP Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 33rd |
| FIA World Endurance Championship – LMP2 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 59 | 10th | ||
| 24 Hours of Le Mans – LMP2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/a | 6th | ||
| 2017 | IMSA SportsCar Championship – GTD | Spirit of Race | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 81st |
| Le Mans Cup – LMP3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 13th | ||
| Le Mans Cup – GT3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 27.5 | 8th | ||
| European Le Mans Series – LMP3 | AT Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30th | |
| 2018 | Le Mans Cup – GT3 | Spirit of Race | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 83 | 2nd |
| 2019 | Le Mans Cup – GT3 | Spirit of Race | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 69 | 4th |
| 2020 | GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup – Pro-Am | AF Corse | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC |
| Sources:[52][6] | |||||||||
Complete FIA GT Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Car | Class | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Pos. | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Autorlando Sport | Porsche 911 GT3-RS | N-GT | CAT |
MAG |
PER |
BRN |
DON |
SPA 6H 11 |
SPA 12H 10 |
SPA 24H 6 |
AND |
OSC |
EST 8 |
MNZ |
42nd | 4 | |
| 2004 | JMB Racing | Ferrari 575 GTC | GT | MNZ |
VAL |
MAG |
HOC |
BRN |
DON |
SPA 6H |
SPA 12H |
SPA 24H |
IMO |
OSC |
DUB |
ZHU 9 |
NC | 0 |
| 2007 | Racing Team Edil Cris | Ferrari F430 GTC | GT2 | ZHU |
SIL |
BUC |
MNZ |
OSC |
SPA 6H |
SPA 12H |
SPA 24H |
ADR 6 |
BRN DSQ |
NOG 5 |
19th | 13 | ||
| Advanced Engineering | ZOL 3 |
|||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Kessel Racing | Ferrari F430 GTC | GT2 | SIL |
MNZ |
ADR |
OSC |
SPA 6H |
SPA 12H |
SPA 24H |
BUC 1 |
BUC 2 |
BRN |
NOG 4 |
ZOL |
SAN |
26th | 5 |
Complete Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete American Le Mans Series results
| Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Risi Competizione | GT2 | Ferrari F430 GTC | Ferrari F136 GT 4.0 L V8 | SEB | REL | MOH | LIM | MIL | POR | RDA | MOS 2 |
PET 2 |
LGA 7 |
14th | 15 | ||
| 2007 | Corsa/White Lightning | GT2 | Ferrari F430 GTC | Ferrari F136 GT 4.0 L V8 | SEB Ret |
STP |
LBH |
REL |
42nd | 8 | ||||||||
| Corsa Motorsports | MIL 5 |
LIM |
MOH |
RDA |
MOS |
DET |
PET |
LGA | ||||||||||
Complete Superstars GTSprint Series results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete GT World Challenge Europe results
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Car | Class | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Pos. | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | AF Corse | Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 | Pro-Am | MNZ |
SIL 18 |
LEC |
SPA 6H |
SPA 12H |
SPA 24H |
NÜR |
NAV |
38th | 1 |
| 2013 | SMP Racing | Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 | Pro-Am | MNZ |
SIL 32 |
LEC 44 |
SPA 6H ? |
SPA 12H ? |
SPA 24H 6 |
NÜR |
13th | 30 | |
| 2020 | AF Corse | Ferrari 488 GT3 | Pro-Am | IMO |
NÜR |
SPA 6H |
SPA 12H |
SPA 24H |
LEC Ret |
NC | 0 | ||
Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | Car | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Pos. | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Krohn Racing | LMGTE Am | Ferrari 458 Italia GT2 | Ferrari F136 4.5 V8 | SIL 6 |
SPA 7 |
LMS Ret |
SÃO 5 |
COA 8 |
FUJ 6 |
SHA Ret |
BHR Ret |
17th | 32 | |
| 2014 | SMP Racing | LMP2 | Oreca 03 | Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 | SIL 3 |
SPA 4 |
5th | 96 | |||||||
| Oreca 03R | LMS Ret |
COA 2 |
FUJ 3 |
SHA 2 |
BHR Ret |
SÃO 2 |
|||||||||
| 2016 | SMP Racing | LMP2 | BR Engineering BR01 | Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 | SIL 10 |
SPA Ret |
LMS 5 |
NÜR 8 |
MEX 7 |
COA 4 |
FUJ 8 |
SHA 6 |
BHR 9 |
10th | 59 |
24 Hours of Le Mans results
| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 |  Krohn Racing |
Tracy Krohn Niclas Jönsson |
Ferrari 458 Italia GT2 | GTE Am |
111 | DNF | DNF |
| 2014 |  SMP Racing |
Kirill Ladygin Nicolas Minassian |
Oreca 03R-Nissan | LMP2 | 9 | DNF | DNF |
| 2015 | SMP Racing |
David Markozov Nicolas Minassian |
BR Engineering BR01-Nissan | LMP2 | 340 | 14th | 6th |
| 2016 | SMP Racing |
Mikhail Aleshin Nicolas Minassian |
BR Engineering BR01-Nissan | LMP2 | 347 | 11th | 7th |
Complete European Le Mans Series results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | SMP Racing | GTC | Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 | Ferrari F136 4.5 V8 | SIL | IMO 4 |
NC | 0 | ||||
| LMP2 | Oreca 03 | Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 | RBR 6 |
HUN 4 |
LEC 6 |
12th | 28 | |||||
| 2014 | SMP Racing | GTC | Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 | Ferrari F136 4.5 V8 | SIL | IMO 10 |
RBR 9 |
LEC 11 |
EST 11 |
28th | 4 | |
| 2015 | AF Corse | LMP2 | Oreca 03 | Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 | SIL 6 |
8th | 30 | |||||
| SMP Racing | BR Engineering BR01 | IMO Ret |
RBR Ret |
|||||||||
| AF Racing | LEC 4 |
EST 5 |
||||||||||
| 2017 | AT Racing | LMP3 | Ligier JS P3 | Nissan VK50VE 5.0 L V8 | SIL | MNZ Ret |
RBR | LEC | SPA | ALG | 30th | 0 |
Complete IMSA SportsCar Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | SMP/ESM Racing | GTD | Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 | Ferrari F136 4.5 V8 | DAY 4 |
39th | 62 | |||||||||||
| AIM Autosport | SEB 2 |
LGA |
DET |
WGL |
MOS |
IMS |
ELK |
VIR |
COA |
PET | ||||||||
| 2016 | SMP Racing | P | BR Engineering BR01 | Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 | DAY 9 |
SEB | LBH | LAG | DET | WGL | MOS | ROA | COA | PET | 33rd | 23 | ||
| 2017 | Spirit of Race | GTD | Ferrari 488 GT3 | Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8 | DAY 23 |
SEB | LBH | COA | DET | WGL | MOS | LIM | ELK | VIR | LGA | PET | 81st | 9 |
Complete Le Mans Cup results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Spirit of Race | LMP3 | Ligier JS P3 | MNZ 3 |
13th | 15 | ||||||
| GT3 | Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 | LMS 1 2 |
LMS 2 13 |
RBR 2 |
LEC | SPA | POR | 8th | 27.5 | |||
| 2018 | Spirit of Race | GT3 | Ferrari 488 GT3 | LEC 2 |
MNZ 4 |
LMS 1 5 |
LMS 2 1 |
RBR 3 |
SPA 4 |
POR 7 |
2nd | 83 |
| 2019 | Spirit of Race | GT3 | Ferrari 488 GT3 | LEC 7 |
MNZ 3 |
LMS 1 3 |
LMS 2 5 |
BAR 6 |
SPA 3 |
POR 5 |
4th | 69 |