Scuderia Forieri: The Speed Hunter

1 February 2021 Redazione Lifestyle, News, Stories

How many times have you been told that facts are worth a thousand words? This sacred truth is even more important in today’s world, where an increasingly digital life has literally demolished the substantial differences that until a few years ago made possible to distinguish the truth from simple ambition. Salvatore Forieri is one of those dreamers who have dedicated his body and soul to his great love, that of high speed. During his intense experience in the automotive world, he has created sports cars that were able to satisfy that insatiable hunger for kilometers per hour and now makes his know-how available to everyone sharing his vision thanks to the Scuderia Forieri. Ther’s more, in fact this Italian with a big heart and a brilliant mind holds a special place out there with his Porsche 997 GT2 Turbo by 9ff, a nuclear power plant on wheels that, thanks to the over 1,800 horsepower at disposal, reaches 352 kph, accelerates from 0 to 100 in about 3 seconds, reaches 200 in 5.8 seconds and reaches ½ mile in 13.63 seconds, an all-Italian world record. We met him and after a few minutes, he was able to convey that great passion and professionalism that earned him this well-deserved success.

Hi Salvatore. Introduce yourself and tell our readers what you do.

First of all, with great emotion, I briefly introduce myself, Salvatore Forieri, as to give the right space to the description of the realization of my dream. In my life I love to be everything and nothing at the same time, the only bond I have is to follow my heart and instinct, all perfected by a globalized mental approach, constantly carrying the Tricolor (the Italian flag, ed) in my heart, thus making my soul proud. I can certainly say that I am an entrepreneur and I love to dive entirely in what I do and overcome the limits.

Tell us how the Scuderia Forieri is born.

Precisely for this reason that, in addition to the companies founded in the past, I wanted to create – even if we live in an unfavorable historical period – a small Scuderia currently in expansion and construction in the true sense of the word, which is basically concerned with making my dreams and those of my clients come true, donating the experience I have gained in the world of racing both as a pilot and co-developer of my own projects. Not forgetting that inside the Scuderia you can also find a small selection of special, collector’s or competition cars for sale.

Who is your Scuderia for? Who is your typical customer then?

Obviously the Scuderia’s customers are passionate, winning, intelligent people with an evolved mental approach, also because if this were not the case I would not accept their requests, but not out of pride, but because they would not chase a dream but only an insignificant result.

Now it’s time to talk about your baby, your 9ff.

Coming back to the protagonist, that is the expression of my deeper-self in the form of a car, the Porsche 9ff “Salvatore Monster” is a concentrate of passion, sacrifices and evolutions that began 12 years ago, but which has found its maximum expression thanks to the collaboration with 9ff Engineering during the past 6 years.

What kind of setup have you developed to achieve such results?

The donor car is a manual 997 Turbo with a 3.6-liter capable of 480 hp, which has now become a monster and hence the “Monster” name given by 9ff. The displacement has been increased to 4.1-liters especially by working on the stroke, in addition special pistons were used with materials used on top fuels capable of withstanding 500 hp per cylinder, with matching connecting rods capable of withstanding a torque of over 2,000 Nm. All this bearing in mind that the crankcase and the heads used, with the necessary processing, are on the Porsche Motorsport price list, demonstrating how the same manufacturer is among the most advanced in the world.

Finally we have a custom Holinger sequential gearbox, where in sixth gear you can reach 411 kph, or touch 200 per hour with a standing start in 5 seconds and if you continue to accelerate you can reach 300 kph in 9 seconds. All this coupled with Syvecs racing electronics with 12 mapping strategies configurable in real time.

Why this visceral passion for speed?

Surely all of this is crazy, but I want to emphasize that I do not simply love the acceleration it produces or the speed it reaches but the emotion, the anxiety, the satisfaction, the fear and the adrenaline that the final product coming from your own idea is able to generate.

How would you explain this to someone out of this world?

It would be nice to let those who live out of this world understand and experience this mixed feeling and emotions, but how to explain love to someone who has never loved before?!

And then, without boundless and dispassionate love, certain goals cannot be achieved. In these long years I have found a thousand obstacles on my path. Family dramas such as the loss of parents and health problems that would have made anyone give up but certainly not me, obviously constantly supported and helped by the most important person in my life, my wife Serena without whom nothing would have been possible. Then, in addition to this, there have been and still are global economic crises, which have put businesses in difficulty and consequently the ability to invest in such a demanding project.

At the same time, I initially faced major limitations on Italian territory as far as engineering my ideas applied to the car, which I then gradually solved with 9ff, world leader in the construction and customization of the Porsche brand through engineer Fatthauer – owner of the company – which in the light of the facts expressly thanked me and confided that without the vision and a pinch of Italian madness, he would never have thought of adopting such extreme solutions never used before for his conception of extreme Porsches. So I reiterate between the lines that we Italians could potentially be the best in the world, but objectively I can confirm that we will not be able to do that as long as we have the pride and prejudices of not collaborating without borders or preconceptions. As an entrepreneur, I believe in specialization in various sectors: everyone who intend and want to do everything is just the first step towards failure or mediocrity.

How did you deal with difficult moments during your journey?

The secret is to never lose the route and your vision, even in front of adverse winds or roads that appear simpler, to the detriment of the right path that seems impassable. Today, holding a world record probably leads me to be the only Italian who has succeeded in this field, but at the same time it brings me to the end of a road. So I will put my beloved Porsche to rest forever and think of another challenge to pursue in the coming years.

Have you already thought about what your next venture will be?

I can tell you that at the moment the Scuderia has a partnership with the Olimpieri workshop, a historic reality in my city – Viterbo – which also involves bodywork and restoration. Maybe it might occur to us to take a little leap and build some specimens from scratch and level up. In concrete terms, we have a great little result that I hope will positively illuminate a nation made up of enthusiasts and patriots, which due to the virus is experiencing terrible moments, for me this is enough and it totally satisfies me.

I close briefly by saying that success – the real one, the inner one – according to my point of view is the currency with which one is repaid after having completely given everything and without reserve, and all this leads us towards serenity which allows us to think without stereotypes imposed by society. That’s the way for being able to shed light and discover what makes us happy and what we can do for being able to be happy.

Thanks for your time Salvatore, we wish you to continue running fast and carrying high the Tricolore with other great successes.

Thanks again for the opportunity and I hope my story can be an inspiration and a hope for those who have lost the path of their dreams.

Interview edited by Alessandro Marrone / Photos courtesy of Scuderia Forieri