Andrea De Megni and Alessandra Merluzzi, in the Pakelo-sponsored VIP Maserati GranSport Trofeo, won the third Trofeo Vodafone Maserati 'knock-out' series held in the Lonsdale Motorsport Arena at the Bologna Motor Show on Saturday.

In the final stages, the two got the better of the 2004 winners in Bologna, Fabio Babini and Jodie Kidd, who were driving the Toora-sponsored VIP car. The winning margin, over two rounds that saw Babini up against De Megni and Kidd against Merluzzi, was only 73 hundredths (2'44"83 to 2'45"56). Babini's win against De Megni was not enough as Meluzzi beat Kidd by a bigger margin. For Andrea De Megni the result rounds off a fine season in the Trofeo Vodafone Maserati Europa, one in which he performed well in the Sponsor drivers' classification. Matteo Gamba and Simona De Silvestro (24 Self Video VIP Car) also displayed good form.
 

The victors of the 'Speed' and 'Rally' sections in the Supercorso della Scuola Federale ACI/CSAI, finished third, one up on Dario Marchetti and Alexandra Gallo (in the Trofeo GranSport bearing the Autosprint and 'Processo al Gran Premio' colours). In the run offs, Gamba beat Marchetti and De Silvestro, the seventeen year old Swiss, got the better of Alexandra Gallo.

In the elimination heats that determined the final crews, Babini and Kidd triumphed over Marchetti and Gallo, while De Megni and Merluzzi defeated Gamba and De Silvestro. Once more the number of female drivers in the Trofeo Maserati was high; this time there were four. Merluzzi was making a return after a few months' absence. It was also her first time at the wheel of a GT car. Simona De Silvestro also coped superbly with the tight Bolognese circuit.