Monte Erice hillclimb preview: Fazzino and Cassibba lead star-studded field

Sicily's Monte Erice hillclimb returns this weekend for its 68th edition, with a competitive entry list across multiple categories competing over the 5-kilometre course. Although the event will not carry the highest status within the Italian hillclimb championship this year, organisers report that sections of the track have been resurfaced ahead of the race.

In the top E2-SC Sportprototype class, Luigi Fazzino is among the leading contenders, piloting an Osella PA30 Zytek Evo. The young Sicilian has impressed throughout the season with this machine. His main rival appears to be fellow islander Samuele Cassibba, who has delivered strong performances in his Nova NP 01-2 C Judd. Also in contention are Francesco Conticelli (Nova NP 01-2 Zytek), Franco Caruso (Nova NP 01-2 C Zytek), Achille Lombardi (Osella PA30 Judd), and Vincenzo Conticelli (Osella PA30 Zytek Evo), making for a closely matched field.

In the 2-litre E2-SC category, Francesco Leogrande is a strong favourite with his Osella PA21 4C LRM Turbo, though he faces competition from Salvatore Micciche (Osella PA2000 LRM Turbo), Salvatore Castellano (Nova NP 01-2 Synergy), and Andrea Pezzani (Osella PA2000 Evo Honda). The smallest E2-SC class up to 1.6 litres features Michele Puglisi (Nova NP 03 C Aprilia) and Gerardo Rosa (Osella PA21 JrB Aprilia) as leading contenders.

In the touring car and GT categories, Alessandro Gabrielli leads the field in a Ferrari 296 Challenge, with strong opposition from Giacomo Ferrazzano (Lamborghini Gallardo GT3), Erosse Petrucci (Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo), Gabriele Lanzillotti (Ferrari 458 Challenge Evo), and Sebastian Frijo (Lamborghini Huracan ST Evo 2). The historic classes feature drivers including Giovanni Cassibba (Osella PA 20/S BMW), Harald Mössler (Daren MK3 Cosworth), and Tiberio Nocentini (Chevron B19 Cosworth).