Maserati congratulates Marco Bortolami and Gloucester Rugby
1 May 2007
Maserati GB congratulates Captain Marco Bortolami (who also skippers Italy’s National Rugby Team) and Gloucester Rugby on finishing 1st in the Guinness Premiership.
Gloucester secured a home Premiership play-off semi-final against Saracens after brushing aside Bristol at Ashton Gate on Saturday: the match finished 35 to 13 for Gloucester.
We catch up with Marco as he climbs out of a brand new Maserati Quattroporte Automatic, at Hartpury training ground.
MASERATI – First of all congratulations on winning your last match of the regular season. How’s your first season in the UK been, and what’s next?
M.BORTOLAMI – “It’s been such an amazing first season in the UK for me: I bonded with my team mates from day one, also thanks to our Head Coach Dean Ryan, who has been able to create a really friendly and at the same time professional atmosphere. After just over a month here, I was made captain: it made me really proud and it felt like I had been playing here for ages! I am now going to give my all in the play-offs: we are very close to the title, but we have the toughest matches ahead of us. Then I will be off to Italy to train for the Rugby World Cup: our first match will be on September 8th, against New Zealand’s All Blacks. It could not have been a tougher start, but of course we’ll fight until the end!”
MASERATI – Let’s talk about cars: a passion that drives you or just something you drive?
M.BORTOLAMI – “Definitely a passion: I study mechanical engineering at the University of Padua, in Italy, and one of my dreams – totally unconnected to the rugby world – is to work for a Formula 1 Team: Ferrari, of course, would be my first choice, being Italian!
“With the Maserati Quattroporte Automatic, I felt totally at ease and I love the understated elegance of its Pininfarina design. I also find it amazing how it shrinks around you, despite its dimensions. The driving position was perfect even for me (I’m 6ft 6” tall)! It also made all my team-mates very jealous, in the nicest possible way…”
