Vilander Completes Risi Lineup for Petit Le Mans

Toni Vilander will round out the lineup in the No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari F458 Italia for Petit Le Mans Powered by Mazda, the team confirmed late Monday, alongside full-season drivers Giancarlo Fisichella and Pierre Kaffer.

Vilander hasn’t raced in a TUDOR United SportsCar Championship event since the Rolex 24 at Daytona, when he was in AF Corse’s Ferrari F458 Italia.

But he’ll return to a familiar team in Risi, with which he competed at Petit Le Mans in both 2010 and 2011.

The 2010 race was a heartbreaker for Vilander and Gianmaria Bruni; in the team’s last race with its Ferrari F430 GT, they fell victim to late-race fuel issues, and ended third.

In his third and most recent appearance at Road Atlanta, Vilander won with Johannes van Overbook and Scott Sharp in the Extreme Speed Ferrari F458 Italia in 2012.

“I’m happy to be back with Risi. It’s going to be a tough week and tough race as well,” Vilander said.

“I haven’t raced in TUDOR since Daytona. I cannot wait to get back in the car. That’s when the real work starts.

“We can talk about it before but it’s more important for the first impression when I get in the car and drive it. I’m happy to be racing again with Risi and will try to score as many points as we can towards the championship.”