Federica Levy and Laura Villars endure luckless Mugello weekend in Italian GT

Federica Levy and Laura Villars endured an extremely frustrating weekend at Mugello as mechanical problems and a race-ending incident prevented the all-female MRNC12 pairing from completing a single race during the third round of the 2026 Italian GT Sprint Championship.

Photo credits: ACI Sport

Federica Levy and Laura Villars endured an extremely frustrating weekend at Mugello as mechanical problems and race-ending contact prevented the all-female MRNC12 pairing from completing a single race during the third round of the 2026 Italian GT Sprint Championship.

Continuing their first full Sprint campaign aboard the #221 Ferrari 296 Challenge in the GT Cup First Division AM class, Levy and Villars arrived at the technical Tuscan circuit looking to build on the encouraging progress shown over the opening half of the season.

After competing in the Italian GT Endurance Championship in 2025, Levy switched her focus to the Sprint championship for 2026, embracing a new challenge in one of Italy's most competitive GT series while also transitioning from Porsche to Ferrari machinery.

The Italian racer enjoyed a promising opening round at Imola alongside Laura Villars despite several setbacks, eventually securing a top-ten class finish in Race 2. When Villars was unavailable for the Vallelunga round, Levy partnered MRNC12 team owner Giammarco Marzialetti and continued her development with two solid top-ten finishes in First Division AM. She also arrived at Mugello with additional confidence after claiming her first overall podium in the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT Championship at Misano.

At Mugello, Villars returned to the cockpit, restoring the championship's only all-female pairing as the duo tackled one of the most technical and demanding circuits on the Italian calendar.

Friday's practice sessions provided encouraging signs. The pair recorded a best lap of 1:54.803 in the opening session, placing 29th overall and eighth in First Division AM, before improving slightly to a 1:54.697 in the afternoon despite finishing 35th overall and ninth in class.

Saturday morning's qualifying, however, quickly became complicated. Levy took over for the opening qualifying session and initially recorded a 1:54.9, placing ninth in class and 35th overall. A red flag prematurely ended the session before drivers could complete further improvements, and with no restart, the Italian eventually slipped to 38th overall, securing tenth in the First Division AM class for Race 1.

The second qualifying session proved even more dramatic. Laura Villars was due to set the team's Race 2 grid position, but disaster struck before she could even begin her flying laps. An engine failure in the pit lane sent a cloud of smoke from the Ferrari, bringing the session to an abrupt end for the MRNC12 crew. Villars was unable to complete a representative lap, with turbo-related issues preventing the all-female pairing from continuing qualifying.

The team's mechanics immediately began a major effort to replace the engine in time for Saturday's opening race. Despite working tirelessly, the repairs could not be completed before the start.

As a result, Levy was unable to take the green flag for Race 1, forcing the #221 Ferrari to remain in the garage while the rest of the 39-car GT Cup field contested the opening 50-minute race.

Photo credits: ACI Sport

After missing Saturday's contest, the team managed to prepare the Ferrari for Sunday's second race, giving Levy the opportunity to salvage something from a difficult weekend.

Starting 38th overall and tenth in the First Division AM class, the Turin-based driver made a clean getaway and immediately tucked in behind Ettore Carminati's Lamborghini while holding her class position through the opening corners.

Levy soon gained one position both overall and in class, climbing to 37th overall and ninth in AM before inheriting another place when Giacomo Ghermandi retired with engine problems. Her early pace also looked encouraging, with lap times in the 1:56.5 range proving quicker than several rivals ahead.

Unfortunately, just as the race appeared to be settling into a promising rhythm, another setback struck.

On lap five, Levy became involved in an incident with Christian Fischer's Porsche at Turn 1. Both cars sustained damage, forcing the Ferrari back to the pits and bringing the race to an early end.

The retirement meant Villars was once again denied the opportunity to take over the Ferrari, leaving the Swiss driver without completing a single competitive racing lap throughout the entire Mugello weekend.

It was an especially cruel outcome for the championship's only all-female pairing, whose weekend had shown encouraging signs before mechanical issues and misfortune ultimately overshadowed their efforts.

With Mugello yielding no championship reward, Levy remains on nine points in the GT Cup First Division AM standings heading into the season finale at Monza on 9-11 October, where both she and Villars will hope for far better fortunes and the opportunity to finally showcase their improvements.