Maserati Quattroporte Race Car Heading to Superstars Series

What we have here is the newly-designed Maserati Quattroporte race car, a four-door model especially designed to compete in the Superstars Series 2009 championship. For those of you who haven't heard of this championship, the Superstar Series is a touring car series that includes lots of other popular models, old and new generations, featuring almost the same engine configurations. For example, today's Maserati Quattroporte will have to challenge BMW 5 Series and Jaguar S-type R.

The Quattroporte race car will be driven by Andrea Chieso, a former driver in F1 and in Sport and GT categories, who will compete for the first time in his career in a Touring car.

The car will come with a rear-drive system with a front V8 4.2-liter engine generating 450 horsepower and weighing 1,430 kg. Shoed with Pirelli tires and featuring a sequential gearbox, the Swiss team is expected to undergo the first testing session next week on April 19 on Imola.

"Ours is a triennial program, mainly supported by E-Light sponsor. The choice to take part in Superstars Series championship originates also from the fact that in this category the public is directly involved, because it is induced to identify its own every day car with those on track," chief mechanic Giovanni Albertin explained.

"The idea, after first races, is to line up a second car too. We favoured the Quattroporte pushed by Maserati blazon, also if we will have to work at once on weight distribution and reduction. Sadev is developing expressly for us a sequential gearbox and we expect to carry out first tests at the beginning of April."