Bertolini shakes down Villeneuve's 312T4

17/04/2012

Andrea Bertolini, who works with Ferrari on car development and as a GT racer, today shook down the 312T4 that Jacques Villeneuve will drive next month to mark the thirtieth anniversary of his father's death.

For Bertolini, whose role with the Maranello outfit also involves shaking down the historic single seaters run by the F1 Clienti department, it was the realisation of a boyhood dream.

For his 283rd shake down, he settled into the cockpit of the only car he had yet to drive: the 312T4 used by Gilles Villeneuve the year that saw him and Jody Scheckter give the Scuderia the Constructors' Championship and the South African the drivers' title.

The car, chassis number 41, is part of Jonathan Giacobazzi's Donelli Vini collection and on May 8, it will be driven by Jacques Villeneuve to commemorate the thirtieth anniversary of the death of his father.

Bertolini did a few laps on the short version of the Fiorano track to check the car was working properly, experiencing the special excitement that comes with knowing you are driving a car that was raced by a driver who will always have a special place in the history of Ferrari and indeed Formula One.