Rheinard opens new ETS season with Czech win
Marc Rheinard has won the opening round of the Yokomo Euro Touring Series in the Czech Republic. The Tamiya driver claimed the victory with a win in the third A-Main over Ronald Volker and Bruno Coelho, that also being the final order they would step on the podium in Hrotovice. After the thrilling last lap finish to A1, in which reigning champion Volker snatched the win from the Top Qualifier, A2 & 3 would be more straight forward for Rheinard despite Volker’s best efforts. An event that has been won each season by the champion elect, the win is a major boost for Rheinard and Tamiya in their ongoing quest to win back the title. Last winning the race in 2009/10, the race has since been the reign of Volker & Yokomo in their run of five consecutive championship titles. With the bonus point for TQ and his 14th ETS win, Rheinard travels to Round 2 in German in February, where he took his only win last year, with maximum Championship points.
‘Last year I TQ’d but only finished 4th, this year got the TQ & win so it couldn’t be a better start to the season’, was Rheinard’s reaction to his first big win since winning last year’s Reedy Race. Asked about the importance of the race in terms of it always having been won by that season’s champion he replied with a smile ‘so we need to keep it going’. Commenting on A3, he said ‘it started good and (he) got small gap again, then when Ronald had a small crash I hoped Bruno would hold onto second but Ronald pushed even harder. Then I had one silly lap and he was able to close but luckily he crashed again’. Commenting on the performance of his Much More powered TRF419 which set the fastest lap of A3, the 4-time World Champion said, ‘It looks like we are going in the right direction but we still have more work to do to’.
‘One of the better second place finishes I have had’, that was how Volker summed up his weekend. He continued ‘it was clear I always lose time at the beginning to Marc and always have to fight back. I was catching him but then lost it in the chicane. While I was still not out of the win this was probably the moment that cost us the win’. Falling behind Coelho as a result of a roll over coming onto the straight as the race reached the final minute, he again complimented his rival’s ‘great sportmanship’ as the Portuguese ace didn’t force a block on his pass to retake position on the next lap. The debut for the BD7 2016, Volker said ‘the car was always fast over the weekend but the balance and rear end traction hurt us in terms of getting the TQ and win and is something we need to work on but overall it is a step up on the old car and there is a lot more to come from all the team’.
Making his ETS debut at this event last year when he qualified 8th and finished 6th, Coelho was happy to claim his first podium finish on carpet. The Offroad World Champion’s goal going into A3 was to secure 3rd overall. He said ‘that is why I opened up for Volker and let him retake me as it would have made no difference to my final position but if we crashed Alex (Hagberg) could have passed us and finish third (overall).’ Admitting asphalt is a surface he is stronger on, backed up by the fact he won the final two races of Season #8 on that surface, he said he needs to make the best result possible on carpet. With it ‘super hard to overtake on such a (carpet) track’ the 22-year-old said ‘you need to make a good job in qualifying and that is something I must work on’. Outside the podium, the Top 6 would finish as they qualified with Hagberg fourth ahead of Yannic Prumper and Dionys Stadler. Starting 9th, Olly Jefferies would be the biggest mover finishing up his first ETS A-Main appearance in 7th.
With Jan Ratheisky wrapping up the Pro Stock and Formula wins in A2, the third finals were about deciding who would join the popular German on the podiums. In the Xray Pro Stock class, reigning champion Marek Cerny took a tone to tone win over Tom Krägefski, and that is how they would line up behind Ratheisky to make it an all Xray podium. In the Serpent formula class joining the champion on the podium would be Christian Donath, winner of A3 with his Tamiya, and Belgian VBC team driver Olivier Bultynck.
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