Christopher Ruud went into the Finali Mondiali leading the North American F430 Challenge series by a scant 16 points. After two tremendous races, he emerged from the battles victorious, crowned the new champion.After two years in Spain, Ferrari chose to return home to Italy for the World Finals that would close out the 2011 season.
The event brought drivers from all continents to the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello in the Tuscany region.
There, they competed to see who was truly the best Challenge driver of the world.


From the left, Rudy Courtade, Giacomo Mattioli, Harry Cheung and Ryan Negri.

Ferrari purchased the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello many years ago, and in 1974 transformed the track into a world-class facility that welcomes series such as MotoGP and DTM. It is located in Scarperia, home of some of the best knife makers in the world, between the beautiful cities of Florence and Bologna in northern Italy. Visitors travelling to the track pass by world-class vineyards and gorgeous traditional villas.

Mugello also has the distinction of being located close to the Ferrari factory in Maranello.Luca di Montezemolo knows how to throw a party better than anybody outside of the Kardashian family. To honor the return of the Finali Mondiali to its homeland, the factory killed the fattened calf, pig, and prawn to serve with every other delicacy the Italian chefs sauteed, steamed, and fried. The entire paddock was a sea of red and white, with a showroom at one end, and a helipad at the other. The crown jewel this year was the spectacular 458 Spider. With a hard top that is as much art as it is engineering masterpiece, its drivers will have a direct connection with Ra as they cruise around Placa de Catalunya.The rest of the paddock was devoted to the over fifty Ferrari Challenge vehicles that represented the European, Italian, Asian, and North American series.

These series all race individually in their respective corners of the world through the year, but co-mingle during this final event. There was a special reason for celebration during the event this season, as fans bid adieu to the F430 Challenge cars. On Sunday, November 6, 2011, the F430s spent their final 35 minutes on the track before entering retirement.

Impending retirement also means that one last F430 champion would be anointed. Entering the weekend, the point spread was extremely close for North America, with only 36 points separating Christopher Ruud (Ferrari of Silicon Valley), Juan Hinestrosa (Ferrari of Fort Lauderdale), and Damon Ockey (Ferrari of Ontario). Each had a chance to win, and after Ruud's disappointing fourth-place finish during the first race, it looked like either of the other two might sneak in like a hungry jackal and snatch the trofeo away. During the second race, though, Ruud put all the instruction from his coach, crew chief, and mechanics together, and was the second North American F430 to cross the finish line, trumped only by Scott Tucker (Boardwalk Ferrari).

The second-place finish was good enough to keep Ruud atop the standings as the season came to a close. This is Ruud's first championship in the Ferrari Challenge series. Hinestrosa placed second for 2011 and Damon Ockey took third.There was also the inaugural 458 Ferrari Challenge series that played out during the weekend, and Enzo Potolicchio (Ferrari of Fort Lauderdale) sealed the deal with second and fourth place finishes overall in the first and second races, respectively. Not only did this give Potolicchio first place North America finishes in both races, but it also showed that drivers from the New World would not be pushed around.

Potolicchio also won the North American Ferrari Challenge series in 2010.Harry Cheung (Ferrari of Silicon Valley) capped off a season of learning and improvement as a driver by coming in second in series points. He was followed by Mark McKenzie (Ferrari of Houston) in third place.

The Finali Mondiali concludes the 2011 Ferrari Challenge season. Drivers and spectators are already looking forward to a competitive 2012 season, when the Challenge will visit another set of world class tracks.