Sunshine and almost summer-like temperatures marked the first day of the ninth and penultimate round of the season for the ACI Racing Weekend, currently taking place at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza. The weather forecast promises fine conditions for both Saturday and Sunday, much to the delight of motorsport fans who, in addition to enjoying an exciting programme of races, will have the opportunity to get up close to the cars and drivers by accessing Paddocks 1 and 2.

Friday delivered the first results in the E4 Championship, with pole positions for the three races going respectively to Frenchman Andy Consani (R-Ace GP), Indian driver Bansal Arya (US Racing) and Brazilian Augustus Toniolo (Trident Motorsport).

All the other categories took to the track for free practice sessions. In GT Sprint, the fastest time in the morning was set by the Tresor Attempto Racing Audi R8 LMS driven by Andrea Frassineti and German driver Alex Aka. In the afternoon, the fastest car was the Ceccato Racing BMW GT3 Evo, driven by Germany’s Jens Klingmann and Belgium’s Ugo De Wilde.

In GT Cup, the morning session was topped by the SF Squadra Corse Lamborghini Huracán EVO2, driven by Matteo Roccadelli and Federico Danova, while the afternoon’s fastest time went to the Best Lap Ferrari 296, driven by Vito Postiglione and Stefano Comandini.

Free practice sessions were also held for GT4, with Swiss driver Christian Canonica and Italy’s Matthias Lodi setting the pace in the opening session aboard the Lema Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4. In the afternoon, Filippo Fant and Filippo Donanzan topped the timesheets in an identical car entered by Trivellato Racing.

In the Italian Sport Prototypes Championship, featuring the single-make Wolf Raiden series, the fastest times were set in the morning by newly crowned Italian champion Andrea Dell’Edera (Avelon Formula) and in the afternoon by five-time Italian champion Davide Uboldi (Uboldi Pata Corse).

Finally, in the Italian Historic Circuit Racing Championship, the free practice sessions were topped by Enrico Gerardi and Maurizio Sardellitti in the Lento Team Ford Sierra Cosworth, and by Massimo Ronconi and Giovanni Gulinelli in the Club 91 Porsche 935 T.

Tomorrow’s programme will get underway at 8:30 a.m. with the official qualifying sessions for the various categories, which will continue until 12:05 p.m. The first races of the weekend will then begin at 12:30 p.m.

Admission will be free, with paid parking available. The Fan Zone will also be open, featuring a Kids’ Area, a Relaxation Area and food trucks.