by Robert E. Kozak (Advanced Biofuels USA)  During Friday’s qualifying, the E-85 powered number 61 and 62 Ferraris fielded by Risi Competizione of Houston, Texas, stormed to the 1^st and 2^nd positions in qualifying. 

Ferraris are known for their great balance and handling but when it comes to pure power, the big Corvettes, for years powered by E-85, had the upper hand.

But, this year it’s different. Over the winter the Risi team switched to E-85 and the F340s are showing real muscle coming out of corners and blasting down long straightaways like the ¾ mile back stretch at Mid-Ohio. 

Just before racetime while the team was putting the finishing touches on the cars and getting ready to practice pit stops one last time, Rick Myer, the team’s competition director, took some time to meet with us. 

Why did they switch to E-85 from racing gasoline?  He was blunt and clear: Performance. He said he recycles at home and has rain barrels for the garden, but when it comes to racing, he said he needs the most performance, no matter the source. That ethanol is green is great, but it wouldn’t be in the Ferraris if it didn’t provide top performance. 

Here’s what E-85 does for the racing F340s. More power and better fuel economy. 

The back story.  Rick knew that a stock-based engine could utilize the higher octane and other characteristics of ethanol to increase the (torque) power while also increasing the thermal efficiency, leading to better fuel economy. In racing terms this meant the Risi cars could go longer between pit stops than their competition and also have more power for accelerating out of corners which is important at a track like Mid-Ohio where there are at least twelve corners (depending on how you count). 

As so many in the biofuel game have learned, getting upper management to understand the performance advantages of ethanol and other biofuels is not easy. Rick said it took two years to convince the decision makers at the Ferrari factory in Maranello, Italy to develop an E-85 engine. Once engineers saw the dynamometer results with valve and ignition timing parameters and compression ratios set to optimize ethanol benefits, this venerable Italian car company that has won more races than probably anyone else, put together a formidable engine. 

How did it do? Gianmaria Bruni quickly took the #62 past his team’s #61 car driven by Toni Vilander for the lead. For the first hour everything went smoothly and they pitted from 1^st place under a yellow caution flag. Unfortunately for them they lost some places in the pits, but once the green flag waved the Ferrari power kicked in but, uh oh, the #62 Ferrari slowed dramatically. 

A quick call from the engineers in the pit to Jaime Melo, who was now driving the car (two drivers are required), had him switch to the backup fuel pump; electronic data showed the primary pump had quit. He switched pumps and started his charge from 6^th place. Jaime carved his way past traffic to get near the front. 

Another yellow flag came out with less than fifty minutes to go. The two BMWs had pitted earlier and stayed out. The #4 E-85 Corvette pitted as did Melo’s Ferrari. The Corvette changed four tires the Ferrari team opted for just two left side tires enabling Jaime to exit the pits in front of Oliver Gavin in the Corvette. But, because of the pit strategy of the BMWs, both were in front of the Ferrari.     Watch Video of crucial pit stop tire-change practice.

One lap after the green flag waved, Jaime decided he could pass both BMWs at the same time, at the same corner. Spectators held their breath watching the BMW brake lights come on while the Ferrari’s were still off. From the inside of the corner, through a cloud of dust, rocketing ahead was the very red Ferrari. The two BMW coupes looked almost confused as they followed at a respectful distance. Somehow he did it! Somehow Jamie made what everyone is now calling the “move of the year.” I wonder if he held his breath? 

No celebrating yet. There’s still time on the race clock.

The Gavin #4 Corvette eventually also got past the BMWs and after the last yellow flag, was right behind the Ferrari. From there it was a good old fashion Ferrari versus Corvette battle.  Jamie Melo kept the accelerator pedal down, the E-85 got pushed by the back-up pump to the engine, and the Ferrari V-8 howled. 

Jamie held on.  It was the first time a Risi Ferrari took the checkered flag at Mid-Ohio.  And the folks back in Maranello and those at Mid-Ohio got to see what a performance an E-85 Ferrari can put on! 

For those who couldn’t make it to Lexington, Ohio for the race (and for those who can’t wait to see it again), CBS will be rebroadcasting the race Sunday, August 15^th at 12:30 pm EDT. (Check listings for your local time.)

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