Prumper ends 3-year winning hiatus in Italy
Yannic Prumper ended a 3-year winning hiatus today when he headed a Yokomo 1-2 on the return of the Euro Touring Series to Italy. Last winning an ETS encounter in 2012 when he took victory at the season finale in Traiskirchen, the German claimed his third ever ETS win today in Riccione thanks to his A1 winning race time. Going into the third A-Main as one of three drivers who could take the overall win, second would secure him the top step in the podium, his A1 time giving him the tie break over A2 winner Meen Vejrak. Vejrak’s ETS first podium finish, the first asphalt race of Season #8 would also see Xray’s Bruno Coelho claim his first podium of the championship, the exciting Portuguese driver gaining a lot of new supporters with his efforts over the weekend. For defending champion Ronald Volker the event would end a 15-race, 3-year, run of podium finishes for the Yokomo driver as he finished 4th overall. Top Qualifier in Italy, the bonus point for pole position means with half the season complete Volker still maintains his lead in the points standings.
‘Finally after 3-years of being so close its worked out’, said a very happy Prumper. Starting from third on the grid behind Volker and Coelho, the 21-year-old said while he had no idea why his Muchmore powered BD7 was better than the previous two mains he also ‘got lucky when Bruno had a slide at the beginning (of the race)’. Allowing him through to second on the opening lap, Prumper would hold position until a recovering Coelho attempted a pass on the penultimate lap but contact would result in a body tuck yet again scuppering an exciting climax to the race. With a body tuck also ruining the prospect of a great battle between Volker and Coelho in A1 maybe its time the structure of bodyshells needs to be looked at. On the final lap Coelho would let Prumper resume position, the winner complimenting his competitor afterwards for showing ‘great sportsmanship’. Putting him right in the championship hunt as he sits just one point off Volker, Prumper said he is already looking forward to Round 4 in Mattsee in three weeks time pointing out it was a strong track for him last year as he made Volker work hard for the win there.
Happy to claim his first ETS podium finish and be part of a Yokomo 1-2, Vejrak was at the same time a little frustrated he never got the chance to race with his team-mate for the overall win in A3. Starting fourth behind Prumper, an out of shape Coehlo would make contact with his BD7 sending him off the track and back to last. Setting the fastest lap of A3 he said while his car was ‘really good’ the time lost on the first lap was too much to make up. His first ETS outing of the 2014/15 season, the 2012 Nitro Touring Car World Champion said the weekend has shown he has made a big step forward with driving the Yokomo. With the result putting him in the mix in terms of the overall championship he confirmed he will now contest the rest of the ETS season.
Struggling in A3, having had one of the strongest cars over the opening laps of the previous two mains, Coelho said his T4 was ‘super strange’ for the closing race adding that the crash with Volker on the last lap of A2 must have broken broken something as he ran the same set-up. Although the weekend still marked the championship newcomer’s first podium finish, he said ‘it is disappointing to know you have the best car and when all is perfect others prevent you from doing your job’. While the 21-year-old said he doesn’t really know what to expect at the next round in Austria, the event run on rather unique track, he will prepare the best he can and see what happens.
With ‘nothing to win or lose’, Volker switched cars for A3 saying they decided after struggling in the early laps of A1 & 2 to go with his second BD7 and ‘just give it a shot’. The 11-time ETS race winner said the car was better with it have ‘good rear traction’ from the start adding the set of tyres & weather, it much hotter for A3, may have contributed to the improvement. Describing his 4th overall as ‘lucky’, given the previous mains, he said the result was a copy of his arch rival Rheinard’s when the Tamiya driver TQ’d but ended up fourth in the final. Happy for his two team-mate’s success, the four time back to back champion said today’s result throws the championship wide open. He continued with ‘Yannic as well as Bruno and Vejrak now contenders I think its going to create a lot of interest in the rest of the season’. Having come to Italy joint leader of the championship Marc Rheinard would finish 5th overall a result that drops the Tamiya driver to third in the standings 2-points behind Prumper.
Also decided in A3 was the Formula A-Main. Having messed up the start in A1, recovering to finish 2nd and then having a bad A2, Top Qualifier David Ehrbar would win A3 to give Serpent’s F110 SF2 its first overall ETS victory. Behind the German, A2 winner Martin Hofer would claim 2nd overall for Yokomo while Italy’s Michele Romagnoli, who took A1, would complete the podium. With defending champion Marek Cerny wrapping up the Pro Stock win in A2, the third final would see Hofer win to finish runner-up. Surprising everyone when he TQ’d the opening qualifier Team C’s Johannes Sperr capped off a great weekend as he completed the podium at Road Race Riccione RC Circuit Marco Simoncelli.
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