Track Focus – Muelheim-Kaerlich
Host – ETS
Country – Germany
Location – Muelheim-Kaerlich
Venue – Philipp-Heift Halle
Track type – Temporary
Surface – Carpet
Direction – Anti-Clockwise
Previous ETS races hosted – 3
The fourth time that the 1344 sq meter Philipp-Heift sports hall in Muelheim-Kaerlich plays host to the Yokomo Euro Touring Series, the world’s biggest touring car race has got even larger with 360 individual drivers making up the 408 entries over the ETS’ three classes – Mod & Pro-Stock Touring Car and Formula 1. An event which last year saw the championship make the permanent switch to black carpet, which now wherever it is used by race organisers has become known as ETS carpet, the race is the only event on the 6-race calendar that is 100% organised by the ETS itself.
Using the same ATA track crew that prepared last weekend’s Euro Offroad Series Round 2 track in Berlin, this year’s 34m wide and 20m deep layout is a tweaked version of last year’s track. Constructed using the Azetx track system, the end of the straight now goes into a tighter radius while the chicane has been made less severe. Commenting on the layout, last year’s race winner Alexander Hagberg joked, ‘they accepted my bribe to keep the layout the same as last year’. Describing it as a ‘nice layout’ he added ‘it’s technical and compared to other tracks you are not on power as much with (it having) more low speed corners’. Defending champion Ronald Volker, who was left somewhat on the back foot at the event last year when he finished 3rd, said while ‘not (his) favourite, the layout is fine’. Describing the chicane as being much easier now that its ‘more open’, he said he would have liked to se a completely new layout more because of the challenge it would present.
Image Gallery
