[Wrecked944]

One more and then I've gotta go....I have a bunch more on my C: drive...but here is Jodie Kidd...



British supermodel and official Maserati Trofeo driver Jodie Kidd won her first motor race, the Trofeo Vodafone Maserati, on Saturday, December 4th 2004 at the Motorshow in Bologna, Italy. The competition saw the debut of the 2005 Maserati Trofeo GranSport, the race car derived from the Maserati GranSport. The car will be used next year and derives from the road-going Gransport, which has been in dealerships since September. Both versions were on display at the Maserati stand at the Bologna fair (paddock 33), together with the road-spec MC12. The new Trofeo Gransport proved to perform extremely well, so much so that Lapo Elkann - Fiat Auto Brand Promotion Manager - could not resist trying it out on the motorshow track. He took advantage of a break in the race programme and his commitments at the Fiat stand to take a drive.

Jodie Kidd - now nicknamed "Queen of the Rain" for her ability to drive very quickly even in unfavourable weather conditions - was just at her third race and together with her team mate Fabio Babini, FIA GT and official Pirelli driver, managed to beat the other participants, including Italian TV presenters Daniele Bossari and Fabrizio Frizzi.

In the duel for third spot, the Massimo Torre and Umberto Scandalo duo prevailed. The two youngsters are the best of the crop of ACI/CSAI Supercorso drivers in the "Speed" and "Rally" sectors. The pair adapted well to the 425 bhp of the Gransport and beat off Fabrizio Frizzi/Andrea Palma - though the team included the continental champion, they were not helped by the rain.

"It's great to finally see women get into motorsport, and Jodie is so passionate about cars that she could become a perfect ambassador for it" declared Lapo Elkann congratulating Jodie Kidd on her victory.

The 26 year-old supermodel is the second woman that stepped out onto the top spot of the podium in a Maserati race. The first one was "5th Gear" TV presenter Vicki Butler-Henderson, who won the third round of the Trofeo Maserati Vodafone at Silverstone, on July 11th 2004.

In the Fifties, another great woman raced for the Trident Marque: Maria Teresa De Filippis drove a Maserati 250F in the Formula One Championship. During her career, she collected numerous successes, including a record at the Catania-Enna hill-climb that remained unbeaten for three years. Maria Teresa De Filippis is now the Maserati Club President.