WINTERY CONDITIONS GREET THE 2008 EURO CHALLENGE IN
FRANCE
03.04.2008
The opening round of the Rotax event
has been given a chilly, wet welcome back to the magnificent
1495m Sologne Karting Circuit at Salbris, France over
the weekend with rain no doubt changing the possible outcome
of the first meeting of the championship. However, it
didn’t stop almost 190 very keen competitors coming
from more than 30 nations to contest the ever-popular
Euro Challenge, now beginning its fifth year as the most
competitive international Rotax series in the World.
With 90 entries filling the Senior Max
class, official timed practice on Friday saw championship
newcomer Chris Lock of Great Britain steal the show, having
the definite advantage of being in the third group to
go out on a drying track. The regulations in such a situation
fairly distribute the fastest to the slowest drivers in
each session per class, taking into account that the circuit
is both wet and dry during qualifying.
Lock has been racing in Great Britain
for 8 years and was runner-up to the 2007 British champion
Benjy Russell, who went on to win the Rotax Grand Finals
in the UAE. The young Tony Kart driver of RL Race Team
Ltd had also raced at the finals event last year in the
Rotax DD2 class and says he’s happy with the start
to the series in France, looking to consistently gain
good points. “We came to the Euro Challenge for
the prestige of the European Rotax Championship, the high
quality of the drivers in the competition and because
it’s also a good championship to have on your CV.”
From the beginning of Wednesday’s practice through
to qualifying Friday afternoon, Lock was one of the pacesetters.
With 25 races over four categories being
contested on Saturday’s program, defending Max Champ
Ben Cooper racing for HRS Motorsport was the only driver
to win all four of his 10-lap qualifying heats in seniors.
This was the only day of competition without rain and
notably the warmest. Race 20 will be remembered as probably
the best of the French event, with the front-runners turning-on
some of the most impressive, closest racing from start
to finish. Cooper took the honours but it was not unchallenged
and he had much of the field close behind.
Following the morning warm-up Sunday,
the second chance race and the recently introduced MOJO
Cup were run, giving every driver in the Max class the
opportunity to race on Finals day for the first time.
The German manufacturers of the Rotax tyre - Heidenau,
presented the podium winners with an impressive trophy
and set of the new regulation D2 tyre.
The Senior Max pre-final was bordering
on being a wet track from the rain showers that had moved
across Salbris, although it appeared to be drying out.
Additional time was given for drivers to swap tyres or
make adjustments prior to the race. With only minutes
remaining, around one-third of the field opted for wets,
including last year’s Euro vice champion Mike Joossens.
“My team wanted me to run slicks but I took the
chance as I really thought it was going to rain.”
Cooper led the opening stages from pole
but within three laps, he was being passed by some of
the karts fitted with wet tyres, as the rain began to
fall. Joossens came through from 8th and the Dutch Kombikart
driver eventually overtook basically everyone who wasn’t
equipped for the wet conditions, taking the flag for the
win by nearly 13 seconds. Slovenia’s Urban Stare
was 2nd ahead of last year’s final Euro round winner
Britain’s Stephen Tyldesley. Team TKP team-mates
Bart Van Os and Jack Swinkels who qualified through the
repecharge, also gambled on wets to finish 7th and 9th
from the back of the grid.
The rain continued and got heavier for
the final, so Joossens had the best visibility when the
lights changed, pulling a good lead as he set the fastest
lap of the race and never looking back. He claimed afterwards
that it’s time to make the championship his, after
twice coming 2nd in the past. “The final was great!
It’s a good win for me and it was a good choice
to go for wets in the pre-final.”
All was not so easy for the others battling
for places, as Chris Lock fought his way up to take 2nd
from P8 with Cooper closing in for a close 3rd from just
over half-race distance. Lock’s team partner Harry
Tinknell held his position for 4th, unable to be beaten
by Wildkart factory driver Martin Pierce. Joey van Splunteren
had featured well in the early stages of the event but
lost out against Pierce, also copping the driving standards
flag then dropping down the order. In 10th, Stare was
the only one in the top 10 not to be from either the Netherlands
or the UK.
Junior Max had more than half of the
42-kart field racing for the first time at the Euro Challenge,
many of the youngsters making the shift from Rotax Mini
Max. In his session for timed practice, the winner of
the 2007 Rotax Grand Finals and Euro Challenge vice champion
Kevin Korjus, was quick enough to seal the overall best
lap in Juniors. The talented Estonian was the ’06
Euro ‘Rookie of the Year’ and this was his
first ever pole position in the championship. “The
other group had a slightly slower track ’cause of
the rain earlier and I think they could have been faster
if they didn’t have the lack of grip. It was good
for me though.”
The qualifying heats again saw the new
Intrepid driver top the sheets, as Korjus drove well to
win all three races. The competition was still tough,
as several of the other junior hot-shots, including some
unfamiliar names to the series, drove hard vying for the
lead throughout the 7-lap races.
Korjus looked like he had the lead from
the start of the pre-final, but in the wet he was forced
wide on the outside as Ryuya Fujie surged through on turn
2. This left Axcil Jefferies in a prime position to take
advantage of the scuffle behind, but was soon overcome
by Grand Finals vice champ Fujie. Josh Webster from grid
14 joined in the exciting battle for places with Korjus
and Jefferies, as did Mads Thomsen who started just behind
him. Spanish driver Toni Alarcon was clearly too fast
for his rivals in his Euro debut, assuming the lead and
setting the pace for the wet session. Fujie dropped a
chain on lap 7, so he was out of contention. The win went
to Alarcon by more than 6 seconds, followed by an extremely
close dice for 2nd won by Jefferies from Webster across
the line.
The final was run in some drenching rain
as Alcaron led out of pole position. 13-year-old South
African Jefferies managed to squeeze his way past, as
Alarcon ran off-track through the muddy puddles and Webster
saw the chance to steal the lead on the inside. The Spaniard
unfortunately dropped back appearing to have a problem,
as Jefferies and Webster diced at the front. Tiny Dutch
driver Peter Hoevenaars slotted up to 3rd and fought off
a challenge from Vera Paauw, who tailed him closely for
the remainder of the race.
With 4 laps to go out of 12, Jefferies
finally secured the lead, passing Webster who was hitting
the curbs hard and lifting the wheels. It was Jefferies’
first ever victory in the championship, taking the chequered
flag 2 seconds ahead of Webster then Hoevenaars 3rd. Paauw
became the best-placed lady driver in the history of the
Junior Max at the Euro Challenge finishing 4th and Korjus
reclaimed 5 positions over the race duration to end up
5th. The round 1 winner was pleasantly surprised by the
result; “In the dry I was quick but wasn’t
so good in the rain during practice. A top 3 for the pre-final
was my plan and I had a good start in the final then got
caught up with Josh Webster. I was able to get a break
once I overtook him, so it’s a great start to the
season for me to win. I hope to do the same at the next
round in Wackersdorf.”
The Rotax Max Masters is the smallest
of the four classes on the program, which may change as
a result of the entry age limit being dropped to 26 years
in 2008. Current World number 1 and defending European
champ Colin Davis clocked the best lap of the official
timed practice Friday, just edging out his closest rival
Christophe Adams. They were the only two drivers to break
1 minute 17. It was the first time Davis had driven the
Sodi Kart and he was happy with the times. “The
kart was great in the wet and just got better and better.
Tomorrow we’ll see who’s fast in the racing
and how I compare, as we didn’t have a good chance
to go out on new tyres in the dry.”
Saturday’s qualifying heats on
a dry track gave former Grand Finals Max winner Cristiano
Morgado ideal conditions to run away with three wins on
his Euro return after three years racing Formula cars.
Pole position was where the Korridas Intrepid driver wanted
to be going into the finals Sunday.
As the temperature dropped and the clouds
closed-in, Morgado held onto first place from Rui Viera
of Portugal, who raced the DD2 class last year. Davis
drove wide and was back in 6th, followed by Jerome Bourquard
out of P4 who ended up in the gravel on turn 1. Nobody
could catch the South African pacesetter leading, as he
stretched the gap to over 12 seconds by the end of the
13 laps. Just 1 lap remaining and Viera underestimated
the sprinkle of rain mid-track, braking too late and hitting
the tyre barrier. He rejoined but could only salvage 12th
and lost his front row grid as a result for the pre-final.
Colin Davis came through for 3rd.
Morgado led Adams following him on the
inside at the start, then came Davis, Bourquard and Czech
driver Radim Feber as the 15-lap final got underway. On
lap 3, Adams relegated the leader back a place only to
see Bourquard pass momentarily and Davis also join in
the fantastic 3-way dice for the minor podium positions,
giving Adams a clear run ahead. Davis claimed 2nd with
4 laps remaining but Morgado posting the quickest lap
next time around passed him to chase the leader. Adams
held on for a clear win just under 2 seconds to Morgado
and Davis. Bourquard ran off at turn 2 so he lost ground
in the late stages but saved 4th from fellow Frenchman
Georges Popoff.
Adams who is also driving in the DD2
category and won the 2-speed gearbox class at the ’07
Rotax Grand Finals, was happy with the win in Max Masters.
“We found some pace that I was missing in the heats,
which made the difference. It’s a good beginning
for the year to be on top in the championship. I only
race to win and knew I could be fast here in Salbris.”
38 drivers gave the Rotax DD2 class its
biggest field to-date with some new names and some past
champions in the line-up. Danish driver Dennis Ladefoged
was 3rd in 2007 and returned to be the fastest qualifier
in France at round 1. “I didn’t expect to
be fastest after being 3/10th off Orr and Poulter at the
front in the practice. I think I had the advantage of
being in the last group when the track was drying so it’s
good for me for the racing now.”
Former twice Rotax DD2 Champion along
with Euro Max and DD2 winner Wesleigh Orr won two heats
Saturday, together with countryman Leeroy Poulter. Some
on-track issues between the pair resulted in Poulter being
disqualified from the final qualifying race, leaving Orr
to take pole position for the pre-final.
However, it made little difference to
Poulter coming from grid 11, as he miraculously overtook
race leader Maik Barten within a short time after the
pre-final began. The Kalman Motorsport driver appeared
from nowhere and took control immediately. Morgado started
on row 2 but struggled to stay there, while Dennis Thum
challenged Barten as well for a top 3 place. Dutch driver
Danny Brand drove hard for a comfortable 2nd place, as
last year’s vice champion/Masters winner in the
Euro DD2 Dennis Kroes also from the Netherlands, made
his way through from P13, eventually taking 3rd across
the finish line by a narrow margin to Thum. Pacesetter
Barten was 5th and Orr continually fell down the order
just inside the first 10. Poulter won the 13-lap race
by 6 seconds.
The final race of the first 2008 round
was held in the worst conditions, as the rain persisted.
Poulter was the early leader and remained at the front,
although without the dominance he had in the previous
race. Bad luck for podium hopefuls Ladefoged and local
driver Damien Vuillaume who only saw 2 laps of the race
before they retired. It was Kroes into 2nd chased by Brand,
who ran wide in the early laps and found himself behind
in 9th. Barten and Thum also disappeared into the spray
further back in the field. Morgado was then 3rd until
Orr passed him, obviously having made some changes to
be more competitive this race.
As the laps unfolded, Poulter was watching
over his shoulder as Kroes and Orr came past a backmarker,
still keeping the leader in sight. The racing was close
in the next pack, with positions changing many times as
drivers pushed their karts to the limit amidst the soaking
rain. Taking an alternative race line, Orr passed Kroes,
who instantly made an unsuccessful attempt to regain the
position with only 2 laps to go. Morgado was no threat,
now quite a way back in 4th with a gap to Christophe Adams.
Poulter took the DD2 honours by one second and in good
sporting spirit, shook hands with Orr as they rounded
turn 2 following.
As winner of round 1 at Salbris two years
running, Poulter was all smiles when he took off his helmet.
“The final worked out well from the beginning and
you know we’re not really used to this much rain
in South Africa. Throughout the week we were quite strong
and even in the rain, it worked out okay. My plan wasn’t
what I’d expected, as I was aiming for at least
a 5th in the pre-final starting back in the order…
but I won! It’s also a good win for the team.”
Special guests and management from the
owners of the event ‘BRP-Rotax’ awarded the
trophies at the prizegiving ceremony, assisted by Gunther
Prokoph of Heidenau and RGMMC’s Roland Geidel as
the organisers and promoters. Due to the weather, the
presentation was made inside the Sologne Karting restaurant.
Rotax had an information and merchandise stand for the
competitors and spectators to visit over the weekend,
which seemed to be very popular. The drivers also had
the chance to pick-up some Rotax goodies from the lottery
held at the awards ceremony Sunday.
Round two of the Rotax Euro Challenge
will be hosted by the ProKart Raceland complex at Wackersdorf,
Germany from May 287 – June 1, 2008.
Complete race results can be found at Kart Data Live Timing
www.kart-data.com
and finals action online with streaming videos at RaceWorld
TV www.raceworld.tv.
The championship points table as well as future rounds
information will be available at the RGMMC homepage at
www.rgmmc.com.
Results – Round 1: Salbris, France
Rotax Senior Max
1 – Mike Joossens The Netherlands Kombikart Hug
Motorsport
2 – Christopher Lock Great Britain Tonykart RL Race
Team Ltd
3 – Ben Cooper Great Britain CRG HRS Motorsport
Rotax Junior Max
1 – Axcil Jefferies South Africa Birel Kalman Motorsport
2 – Josh Webster Great Britain Tonykart RL Race
Team Ltd
3 – Peter Hoevenaars The Netherlands Intrepid Team
TKP
Rotax Max Masters
1 – Christophe Adams Belgium Birel Gem Sport
2 – Cristiano Morgado South Africa Intrepid Korridas
3 – Colin Davis Great Britain Sodikart Mira Motorsport
Rotax DD2
1 – Leeroy Poulter South Africa Birel Kalman Motorsport
2 – Wesleigh Orr South Africa PCR Wesleigh Orr Racing
3 – Dennis Kroes The Netherlands Haase Euro Indoor
Kart RT
2008 ROTAX EURO CHALLENGE
May 28 – June 1 Wackersdorf, Germany
July 23 – 27 Sosnova, Czech Republic
September 24 – 28 Genk, Belgium* (*subject to FIA
agreement)
Please note: All dates listed include the days allocated
for official free practice, qualifying and finals.
Additional information regarding the
2008 ROTAX Euro Challenge including event details, entry
forms, regulations, race schedules, results, news updates,
purchase of 2007 DVDs from each round, etc is available
online at the homepage of RGMMC Establishment –
www.rgmmc.com
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