Euro Touring Series

May 14, 2016

Coelho puts it up to ETS rivals with convincing Italian asphalt win

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Bruno Coelho has put it up to his title rivals by taking a convincing win today at the first asphalt round of the Yokomo Euro Touring Series in Italy. Handed an easy win in A1, the Top Qualifier would wrap up an extra early win in Riccione with another unchallenged win in A2. With the finals run early due to the impending threat of rain at the first outdoor race of ETS Season #9, completing the perfect weekend gives the Xray driver an extended lead in the championship standings as he becomes the season’s first double winner. With Marc Rheinard ending up with a 3rd for Round 4 behind A3 winner Viljami Kutvonen, the Tamiya driver is now 5 points behind Coelho with two races remaining in which to reverse that deficit. With reigning champion Ronald Volker only fifth in Italy, his quest for a 6th consecutive title is looking increasingly difficult as he leaves 7-points behind Coelho.

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‘For sure to TQ and win today is super important for the championship’, was Coelho’s reaction to his fourth ETS win in just 10 races. Commenting on the importance of winning the first asphalt race, the Portuguese ace said, ‘normally on asphalt I am stronger than carpet. I am more confident on it as I started my racing on asphalt but Luxembourg is next and it is a difficult track and the traction is very low so we will see what happens’. Last year the 22-year-old claimed his first ETS win in Luxembourg before going onto win the season finale at the Hudy Arena. Having to work a little harder for the win in A2, Coelho said ‘I made a push at the beginning to get space between myself and Viljami. This allowed me to drive smooth at the end to avoid any mistakes which worked out as he made a mistake so it was all perfect’. Describing his Hobbywing powered T4 as ‘very good’ he pointed out that a contributing factor was his new Montech IS200 body with this the first time he has raced it, a previous attempt blocked by the ETS due to the body having not being commercially available.

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Claiming his first Modified podium finish of the ETS, former Pro Stock race winner Kutvonen said, ‘I’m happy with the result. Not many thought I would make the podium on asphalt’. The Finn continued, ‘I’m super happy for the team. Our new car was so good this weekend on asphalt and it looks really good for the future’. Commenting on A2 when he closed on Coelho at the end before crashing his A800 on the straight he said, ‘I was pushing like crazy. I knew I needed to be super close to Bruno if I was to have a chance. I knew the others had finished so I had a Top 3 for the round but I went over the limit and got on the curbs. The tyres were bad after that’ his car flipping on full throttle.

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‘Lets say it looks like I am fighting for second in the championship once again’, was Rheinard’s summary of the weekend. Runner-up to Volker for the passed five seasons, the former ETS Champion continued, ‘last year I finished 8th so to end up with my fourth podium in a row is an improvement on a track which is not my favourite to drive on’. His first asphalt race with Tamiya’s latest release, the TRF419X, the winner of the season opener said 3rd today ‘was a good start for the first rollout of the new car’. In contention for second overall going into A3, the 4-time World Champion said, ‘At the beginning I was a little faster (than Kutvonen) but I didn’t want to take any risks because of my P9 in A1, then as the race went on we both had the same speed’.

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Missing out on the podium for a third time this season, Alexander Hagberg said, ‘I finished in my usual position. Fourth for a third time this season isn’t too bad but I would prefer to finish on the podium’. Summing up the weekend, the Swede said ‘the problem was to find consistency between runs. Sometimes it was fast, sometimes it was slow, and we need to work on that for the remainder of the season’.

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Reflecting on a disappointing transition to asphalt after the high of his first win of his title defence at the last carpet round, Volker said, ‘Of course we came here with high expectations. I wanted to win’. He continued, ‘basically we have to work harder. Everything is in Bruno’s hands now but it’s not decided yet so we will come back better and our hard work will pay off’.

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While the premiere title is still far from decided, the Serpent Formula class would be the first title of the 2015/16 ETS season to be decided as Jan Ratheisky completed the perfect championship score with his fourth TQ and win of the season. The Xray driver would have to wait until A3 to seal the deal after finishing 3rd in A2, the popular German leaving Italy with a fourth consecutive Formula title.

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In the Xray Pro Stock A-Main, the racing would produce a first time winner in Italian driver Mattia Collina after P2 qualifier won the opening two encounters. Top Qualifier Max Mächler would finally get a win in A3 to secure second overall with the Schumacher of Nicolai Lindegaard completing the podium.

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May 14, 2016

Coelho handed easy A1 win

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Bruno Coelho has taken an easy win in the opening A-Main at Round 4 of the Yokomo Euro Touring Series in Italy. The Top Qualifier was effectively handed the race early on when second place starter Viljami Kutvonen got out of shape, collecting Marc Rheinard and putting both drivers on the grass. Allowing Alexander Hagberg through to second the Swede would stay there for the remainder of an otherwise relatively uneventful race with Ronald Volker completing the podium. The key pass of the race would be pulled off by Capricorn’s Kyle Branson, the British driver getting a run on Serpent’s Viktor Wilck onto the straight to secure 4th.

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‘It was a perfect race for me’, was Coelho’s reaction to A1, his winning margin over team-mate Hagberg almost 1-second. He added, ‘Viljami pushed hard at the start but then had some problem with Rheinard giving me space. It really put the race in my hand’.

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Commenting on his coming together with Rheinard, Vijami said, ‘I lost the back end. The steering is so good its on the limit and it was really no more than that’. Setting the fastest lap of the race as he tried to recover after being caught out by Kutvonen’s error, Rheinard said ‘there was nothing I could do’ adding ‘it was a racing accident, there was nothing Viljami could do either’.

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‘I was lucky other guys crashed and that moved me up to second. It was straight forward from there’, was Hagberg’s view of the race. Happier with his T4, despite making no changes after the final qualifier, the multiple ETS race winner continued, ‘the car was fast enough to keep Ronald behind’.

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Commenting on his race, Volker said ‘I followed Alex for the whole race’. He continued, ‘I tried to catch up but could drive any better as the balance of my car is still not perfect’. The German said while they are ‘improving (the car) step by step basically even if (he) can go faster than the guys in front (he) needs to hope for problems like in A1’ in order to get a good result.

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While the Volante Modified A-Main didn’t provide much action, the Xray Pro Stock runners would put on a great race. With Top Qualifier Max Mächler rolling his Awesomatix on lap 4 handing Mattia Collina a popular lead that despite the efforts of Xray team-mate Jan Ratheisky he would hold until the finish. ARC driver Helge Johannessen would complete the Top 3 ahead Nikolai Håheim and a recovering Mächler. In the Serpent Formula class just one race now stands between Ratheisky and a fourth consecutive title as he dominated A1 to win ahead of David Ehrbar and Jacques Libar.

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May 14, 2016

Coelho TQs in Italy as Rheinard takes final qualifier

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Bruno Coelho is Top Qualifier for Round 4 of the Yokomo Euro Touring Series, the Xray driver bagging pole position for the first asphalt race of the season in a reduced qualifying at the Road Race Riccione track in Italy. With overnight rain having delayed the start of the second day’s action, qualifying would be cut to three rounds meaning only Q1 winner Viljami Kutvonen could deny championship leader Coelho his second TQ start of the season. With both drivers having to do the qualifier on used tyres having ran both allocated sets yesterday when Coelho took Q2, it would be Marc Rheinard who would top the third round. Gambling on saving his second set of tyres for today in the hope it would be dry, the Tamiya driver would take a sunny Q3 ahead of Alexander Hagberg, who was also on new tyres, with Coelho the best on used rubber in third. With 2 from 3 to count Coelho’s 19 lap Q2 time would give him pole over Kutvonen with Rheinard set to line-up 3rd. For reigning champion and last year’s race Top Qualifier Ronald Volker a P4 in Q3 would secure the Yokomo driver 5th on the grid.

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Doubling his lead in the standings with the TQ bonus point, Coelho said, ‘we need all the points we can get so to get the TQ is very good’. Going into the deciding qualifier, he said ‘I already knew some guys had new tyres and I was only watching Viljami to ensure he didn’t TQ’. Describing his Hobbywing powered T4 as ‘really good on used tyres’, he just tried to build a gap on the Awesomatix driver but early on it was clear his rival was lacking any decent pace on his used tyres. Looking to the final, all three A-Mains scheduled for tonight due to rain being forecast for tomorrow, the 22-year-old said ‘I will try to drive safe without mistakes. My car is really good but you never know and Viljami is also very fast’.

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‘My car wasn’t so good on old tyres’, was Kutvonen’s reaction after Q3 with the Finn quick to add, ‘but the final should be OK as we are good on new tyres’. With team-mate Freddy Sudhoff also putting his A800 in the final in P8, when asked if he had a plan for the final, the 23-year-old was quick to reply, ‘Push Bruno and overtake him. I want to win this’.

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Rheinard said his TQ of the final qualifier, was the ‘maximum I could do in terms of getting the best starting position’. Describing the run as being ‘pretty close with Alex’, the ETS’ most winning driver continued ‘at the beginning I pulled away but he caught up again’. Looking to the final, the German said ‘the track is completely different to yesterday so it will be interesting to see how everyone is on new tyres. Also one time Air Force 1 and its done’. His Air Force 1 a reference to the bump on the quick entry onto the main straight.

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Finishing 3/10th off Rheinard for his best qualifier of the weekend, Hagberg was happy with his Xray. The Swede said his Xray was the ‘same as yesterday’ with him having ‘no traction at the start of the run’ despite being on new tyres. With his driving style requiring a different set-up to that of Coelho, he said, ‘we still need to work on a set-up’ to make him competitive for the final.

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His lowest starting position of the season, Volker took some consolation from the fact ‘the gap to Bruno was less than yesterday’. He added, ‘obviously I was on used tyres but we improved the car from yesterday’. While happier with his BD7, he said it is ‘still not as (he) would like it’ and so he will make further small changes for A1. While he would ‘have to see how it works on new tyres’ he would ‘ try to fight to a podium finish’. Behind Volker, Serpent’s Viktor Wilck will line-up for his first A-Main appearance in quite some time the Swede saying, ‘finally I make the A-Main this year’.

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In the Xray Pro Stock class, Awesomatix driver Max Mächler claimed the overall TQ ahead of Italy’s Mattia Collina, the Xray driver TQ’ing the final qualifier. Schumacher’s Nicolai Lindegaard completes the Top 3 ahead of current championship leader Jan Ratheisky. In Formula the reigning champion Ratheisky is on target to wrap up another title as he starts from pole ahead of Roche’s Olivier Bultynck and Serpent’s David Ehrbar.

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May 13, 2016

Coelho tops Q2 at Italian ETS

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Bruno Coelho put in what could turn out to be an important TQ run when he topped the second round of qualifying at the Italian round of the Euro Touring Series. With the threat of rain tomorrow at the Riccione track, Q2 would see the Xray driver post the only 19-lap run as he headed the times from Q1 pace Viljami Kutvonen, the Finn 3/10th shy of making the extra lap. Making it a very good first day for the A800 on its asphalt debut, Kutvonen ‘s team-mate Freddy Sudhoff having been 11th in both practice & Q1 would find form to complete the Top 3. Adding to the Russian manufacturer’s joys, Max Machler would take the second Pro Stock qualifier leaving him as the provisional overnight TQ holder.

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Having made a mistake on the opening lap of Q1 when he got a P2 behind Kutvonen, Coelho said, ‘it was all good this time, there was no mistake’. Starting the second qualifier behind the Awesomatix driver, the championship leader ‘pushed hard at the beginning to catch Viljami’ and once he was close to him he ‘just drove safe to the end’. Making changes to his Hobbywing T4, the newly crowned Euro Offroad Series Champion said this was ‘a big improvement’. With ‘more forward traction’ and the car ‘more stable than before’ this gave the 22-year-old ‘more confidence’ to drive the car on. Describing the car as ‘not perfect but super close’ for tomorrow he plans some further ‘small changes’.

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Improving his Q1 time by half a second Kutvonen said the second round ‘was ok but not as good as (the) first one’. He continued his car ‘didn’t have so good rear traction’ adding ‘I don’t know why’. Describing Q2 as a ‘super good result for the team’ referring to Sudhoff’s improvement and Machler’s TQ, he said ‘I hope its dry tomorrow so I can fight for the TQ’. One of many drivers to use their second allocated set of Volante tyres, he said the A800 ‘on used tyres is OK’.

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Asked about his new found pace, Sudhoff replied, ‘honestly it was just myself’. He continued ‘Viljami showed the car is good’ and once I set the car to myself I was able to get back into the Awesomatix rhythm’. Asked if he would change his car for Q3, the German said, ‘it is up to the weather tomorrow and some drivers still have new tyres but I know our car is good on used tyres’.

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Improving on his Q1 performance by setting the fourth fastest time, Ronald Volker said, ‘I was hoping at least for a Top 3 run’. Making changes to the set-up of his Yokomo for Q2, the reigning champion said, the ‘car was completely different to the previous run. This time it had a lot of understeer’. With the ‘balance & grip not good’ he said he didn’t have enough to battle for a Top 3. Sitting fifth overnight, he said ‘we need to work on set-up again for Q3 if it happens’.

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Deciding to run tyres for a second time, Alexander Hagberg was pleased with his P5 run calling it ‘decent’. The best placed driver on used tyres, the Xray driver also made a set-up change to his T4 declaring he ‘thought it was better’. With a new set of tyres at his disposal, the Swede said depending on the weather ‘he could be in a positive position tomorrow’. Behind Hagberg, Kyle Branson would complete the Top 6 with his Capricorn despite momentarily stopping on the track after his transponder missed a lap that was later awarded back by time keeping.

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Seventh fastest Marc Rheinard was another on used tyres. The Tamiya driver said ‘I took the risk to run old when everyone else was on new’ adding ‘I hope there is plenty of sunshine tomorrow’. Highlighting he was only 9/10th off long standing rival Volker, he was happy that on the used tyres his ‘pace was ok’. Behind the 4-time World Champion his former team-mate Viktor Wilck would take his Serpent to P8. Told to allow both Viljami and Coelho through, the Swede was not happy with Scott Ernst’s call, feeling it cost him a Top 4 run.

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In the Pro Stock class, it was Jan Ratheisky who would be closest to Mächler with the Schumacher of Nicolai Lindegaard completing the Top 3. In Formula, having retired in the first qualifier, Ratheisky would TQ ahead of Q1 pace setter Olivier Bultynck. Fenix driver Matteo Berlincioni would post the 3rd fastest time in front of Serpent designer David Ehrbar.

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May 13, 2016

Kutvonen TQs opening qualifier in Riccione

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Viljami Kutvonen has TQ’d the opening round of qualifying at the Yokomo Euro Touring Series in Riccione. Creating somewhat of a surprise earlier in the day when he was fastest in practice, the Awesomatix driver showed his pace was genuine, topping the qualifier from current championship leader Bruno Coelho. Second fastest in practice Marc Rheinard would complete the Top 3 with a bit of gap to Alexander Hagberg in 4th but things couldn’t be much closer over the remainder of the Top 10 which was covered by less than 1-second.

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In keeping with the tradition of successful Finnish racers Kutvonen reaction’s to his TQ run was brief, the 23-year-old saying it was ‘Perfect, I mean what else can I say’. Asked about his LRP powered A800 which posted the fastest lap he replied, ‘I think I will keep it the same for the next one. It’s going to be a close battle with Bruno again but I will do my best’.

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A little over 3/10ths off Kutvonen, Coelho said his Xray was ‘for sure better’ than final practice after a set-up change but a bad first lap cost him a shot at the TQ. The Portuguese driver would ‘almost flip’ his T4, the 4WD Offroad World Champion joking ‘my offroad experience came in useful’ in stopping the car from rolling. Losing over half a second as a result of the moment he said ‘it cost me a win’. Planning, like Kutvonen, to leave his car unchanged for Q2, he will ‘try to do a better first lap’.

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‘For the first qualifier it was pretty OK actually, it was a safe run’, was how Rheinard summed up his performance. In terms of his car however the Tamiya driver said it was ‘looser than before’ and he ‘could see Viljami pulling a gap from the start’. Adding ‘but in the end Bruno and me had the same lap times’. Happy to make ‘no crash’ over the 5-minutes as ‘with one (crash) your done’, he said he needs to improve his set-up but with it set to be a lot colder for tonight’s Q2 he doesn’t know what to change as conditions will be completely different. Hoping for good weather tomorrow, rain looking likely though, he said he must also decide whether or not to risk his second set of tyres or run his first set for a second time in the hope conditions are better for the scheduled remaining two qualifiers tomorrow.

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Over two & a half seconds adrift of Rheinard, Hagberg still wasn’t happy with his Xray, saying his ‘car was very hard to drive and I don’t know why’. The Swede added, ‘I cant use the throttle and somehow we need to find more traction’.

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Running in the second fastest heat after being only 19th fastest in controlled practice, Yannic Prumper would set the fifth fastest time. A little surprised but please with the result, the VBC driver ‘couldn’t push at all’ adding the car ‘car felt weird’. Almost traction rolling early on, the German was having to drive on 20-30% lock and said ‘somehow we need to find something’ to make the car more drivable. Only his second ETS outing as a lead driver for a manufacturer, Prumper’s manager said while his driver wants to win as always, this is a development period with a view to having a title contending package for next season’s ETS.

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One of the sport’s most down to earth racers who seems to enjoy every minute he is at the track, Jan Ratheisky completed the Top 6 for the first qualifier. Reacting to his time, the German who is better know as a force in both Formula and Pro-Stock, said it was ‘awesome’. He added ‘Modified is the have fun class for me but maybe not in the future if this continues’. Asked about car set-up the Xray driver replied, ‘I don’t touch car since last race, just recharge the battery’. Looking to Q2, the Formula Champion continued he would ‘just charge battery and have fun’.

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Fourth in practice Kyle Branson posted the 7th fastest time. The Capricorn team driver described his TE03 as being ‘loose one way’ adding ‘maybe I had a bad tyre’. The British driver would also suffer with a slowing car over the last few laps as his electrics lost power. Ask what caused this he replied ‘I don’t know why yet’.

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Traction rolling his Yokomo on the opening lap, reigning champion Ronald Volker would end up with a P8. Losing 4-seconds as his LRP powered BD7 ended up on the grass, the German said with the forecast uncertain, rather than pull off to save the tyres he pushed for the best result possible incase it does rain. He said his ‘car didn’t feel like yesterday or this morning’ when he was fastest adding they need to look at making a set-up and tyre prep change for Q2. Behind the 6-time undefeated champion, Elliott Haper would take his Schumacher to 9th with Yokomo’s Loic Jasmin rounding out the Top 10.

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In the Xray Pro Stock class, the opening qualifier would go the way of ARC’s Lars Hoppe. The former ETS race winner would be 1.8-seconds faster than Awesomatix’s Max Mächler who in turn was just 0.042 up on Italian Xray driver Mattia Collina with Ratheisky 4th. In the Serpent Formula class, Roche team driver Olivier Bultynck took the first round ahead of Serpent’s David Ehrbar and Bultynck’s team-mate Jacques Libar. For reigning champion Ratheisky a crash would see him retire.

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May 13, 2016

Kutvonen top seed at ETS Italy

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Viljami Kutvonen is the top seed for qualifying at Round 4 of the Yokomo Euro Touring Series in Italy. The first asphalt race of the season, the Awesomatix driver set the fastest 3-consecutive laps around Road Race Riccione RC Circuit Marco Simoncelli from Marc Rheinard by a considerable 4/10ths of a second. Initially credited with the fastest time but having his best lap disallowed for a track cut, championship leader Bruno Coelho would complete the Top 3 followed by Kyle Branson and reigning champion Ronald Volker.

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‘Pretty good I guess’, was how Kutvonen summed up his performance in practice. The Finn continued, ‘I struggled yesterday but found some problems with the car last night and now it’s pretty good’. Commenting on the track he added, ‘I like the track but actually last year I hated it as I finished somewhere like 36th’. Racing the shaft drive A700 then, this is his first time to race the belt drive A800 on asphalt which is ‘a big step forward’ adding ‘lets hope it stays the same for qualifying’. Looking to the first qualifier, 2 scheduled for this evening due to the threat of rain tomorrow, he said ‘I will leave the car unchanged and just focus on making a clean 5-minute run’.

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Running two cars in practice, the key difference being the flex of the chassis, Rheinard found today it was his second car that was quicker with it having been the other way round in open practice yesterday. Describing his ‘better car’ as ‘still difficult to drive’ he said the track is also proving difficult due to the ‘bumps, low traction and wind’ adding ‘many people are just flying off the track’. Set to run the 2nd of his two TRF419X cars in Q1, he said with conditions making it ‘kind of a lottery’ in terms of getting a good run he was planning to leave the car unchanged and instead ‘just try to get a clean run in’.

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‘I think it was good’ was Coelho’s reaction after the second practice in which all the top drivers improved on their opening time. Declaring his flip after contact with the curbing ‘my mistake’, the 2015 Riccione podium finisher was confident that without this he would have posted the fastest time as his previous two laps of the three where quicker than the three that ended up being counted. Making a change to his Hobbywing powered T4 between the two controlled practices he said the track also changed and so his car was not right for the conditions and he will change it again for Q1. Asked about the track, where he shot into title contention last year, he said ‘its super difficult. With the bump (on the entry to the main straight) you close your eyes every time as the car jumps but you never know how it will land or if it will fly off the track’.

fri_kyle Setting the fourth fastest time with an updated Capricorn car he is running for the first time this weekend, Branson said it ‘feels pretty good after the changes’. Featuring a new chassis that has a different weave and carbon brace that replaces the tradition top deck, the British driver said the TE03 now has ‘more overall traction’. Changing the car after CP1 to a harder diff and adding weight to the front of the car to stop it lifting on power he said these changes ‘helped a little bit’. The 22-year-old plans to ‘just (the) leave car as is’ for Q1 adding ‘hopefully it will be dry’.

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Having set the pace in first controlled practice, Volker said while conditions were better for CP2 his Yokomo ‘lacked a lot of traction’. Ending up P5 he would be 1-second off Kutvonen’s pace. A track the German rates as one of the best in the World, he put his drop off in performance down to tyres. With the final practice the first time he’s had a problem with the car since arriving at the track the Round 3 winner will not the change his BD7 set-up adding ‘I hope it was just a bad set of tyres’.

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Completing the Top 6, Alexander Hagberg said his Xray was ‘not as good as yesterday’. The Swede said his ORCA powered T4 had ‘less traction’ and they ‘need to figure out why’. Just 0.056 behind the multiple ETS race winner, team-mate Alessio Menicucci said his car was ‘working very well’. The Italian described the track as ‘beautiful’ but added ‘it is difficult to be consistent because of the bumps and low traction’. Formula Champion Jan Ratheisky, who is racing all three classes this weekend, would make it four Xray’s in the Top 10 with the 8th fastest time.

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Having claimed his first ETS podium finish last year at the track, Yokomo’s Meen Vejrak would post the 9th fastest time followed by the Serpent of Viktor Wilck. Just outside the Top 10, Kutvonen’s Awesomatix team-mate Freddy Sudhoff would post the P11 time ahead of the Schumacher of reigning British Champion Elliot Harper.

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May 13, 2016

Track Focus – Road Race Riccione

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Name – Road Race Riccione RC Circuit Marco Simoncelli
Country – Italy
Location – Riccione
Host Club – Road Race Riccione
Surface – Asphalt
Direction – Anti-clockwise
Key previous races hosted – ETS 2015

With Italy returning to the ETS calendar last season after many years of attempting to get a race back in a country so passionate about racing, a new gem in tracks was discovered by drivers from around the world when Road Race Riccione RC Circuit Marco Simoncelli hosted the race in April. Located in the touristic seaside city of Riccione on the east coast of Italy, this time round the track hosts the race one round later marking it as the official start of the outdoor half of the season. The race is also one month later than last year however Europe’s current uncharacteristic weather means the shorts packed by racers are looking likely to spend the weekend left in the suitcase.

Winner on the first visit to the circuit last year, then heading a Yokomo 1-2, VBC Racing’s Yannic Prumper is, like many drivers, a fan of the track saying, ‘I like the layout a lot’. Asking what was the key to a good lap the German said ‘risking a lot going on to the straight’. Covering an area 70 metres wide by 60 metres deep, a good entry onto the 56 metre long straight is made more challenging by a bump which last year caught out many drivers resulting in some spectacular crashes. Commenting on the bump, Prumper said, ‘I thought they fixed the bump onto the straight but they didn’t’, adding his only complaint of the place was ‘it’s too bumpy’. With it possible to avoid the bump by taking an outside line he added you have ‘to get it absolutely right as its a small gap, otherwise your done’. Asked about the winds, which overnight managed to rip many of the Yokomo banners from the fencing along the straight, he said ‘the wind is making it even more dangerous’ with it greatly increase the risks needed to get a quick lap.

Located not too far from the full size Mugello MotoGP circuit, the rc track was built in 1999 and is run by the Road Race Riccione club which has a membership of 50. Originally a club for onroad nitro racers in recent years has seen electric become the main class. With MotoGP legends such as Valentio Rossi, Loris Capirossi and the late Marco Simoncelli from the area it is not surprising that rc bike racing is also popular, the track having hosted the 2012 1:5 Bike World Championships. The club is rather proud of the fact that Rossi has driven the track with a photo in the main building of the 9-time World Champion driving a 1:8 nitro car. The club has an association with Marco Simoncelli Foundation after raising money for the charity during the 1:5 World Championships and remembers the #58 rider by officially incorporating his name in the track title and placing a tribute to him on the top of the drivers stand.

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May 12, 2016

Italy marks ETS switch to asphalt

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Following one of it’s most competitive season openings, the first three rounds all producing different winners, the Yokomo Euro Touring Series switches to asphalt this weekend May 13-15) with a trip to Italy. With the country’s long awaited return to the ETS calendar finally made a reality last year, once again it is the beautiful Road Race Riccione RC Circuit Marco Simoncelli track that will host the close on 290 entries that make up the fourth round of the championship. While last year’s race would result in the end of a 15-race, 3-year run of podium finishes for reigning champion Ronald Volker, the Yokomo driver rates the track as one of the best in the world. Having finally registered his first win of Season #9 at Round 3 in Austria, last year’s Italian encounter would see the German finish only fourth despite being Top Qualifier as himself and Bruno Coelho had the first of a number of clashes that created tension between the rival factory drivers. With relations since improved, the tension now between Coelho and Marc Rheinard after an exchange of words in Austria last month, Volker will be looking to carry the momentum of his first ETS win in 5-races and make amends for his 2015 result by kicking off outdoor proceedings with a victory.

With second ahead of Rheinard giving him the lead in the Volante Modified class standings leaving Wels, Coelho is relishing the switch to asphalt. Winner of 2 of the 3 outdoor races last year, Riccione marked a major turning point for the Portuguese driver after a disappointing showing at the indoor races. Having struggled on carpet in his debut season of ETS the championship’s arrival in Italy immediately marked him as a title contender. Claiming his first podium there, despite his clashes with Volker, the World Championship runner-up hasn’t looked back making the podium the last 5 races including taking a carpet win earlier this year at Round 2 in Germany. With a one point advantage over joint second placed Rheinard and Volker, Coelho wants to extend that by taking what will be an important psychological victory as the race will gauge the various teams competitiveness on asphalt.

Winner of the season opener in the Czech Republic, Rheinard struggled last year in Italy compared to his rivals but with a new car the Tamiya driver is more confident of improving on his 5th in qualifying and the race. Without his regular factory staff support from Japan this weekend, it will be interesting to see what effect, if any, this will have on the reduced TRF line-up with just Christopher Krapp joining him in Italy. Last year the race marked Krapp’s debut for TRF with the German qualifying & finishing 10th.

Ending a 3-year winning hiatus in Italy, 2015 Riccione winner Yannic Prumper returns to the site of his 3rd ever ETS win with a different package. Heading a Yokomo 1-2 last year ahead of Meen Vejrak, the 22-year-old is now leading up VBC Racing’s efforts to compete for success in the premiere class. Debuting the car on carpet in Austria but missing the cut for the A-Main due to errors in each of his qualifiers, the German has since been busy asphalt testing including doing a day at the Luxembourg track which will host the next round of the championship on June 24-26. Elsewhere Awesomatix team-mates Viljami Kutvonen and Freddy Sudhoff give the A800 it’s first asphalt ETS outing with high hopes for the now belt drive car. Kutvonen has had a solid start to the season on carpet with all A-Main results leaving him 5th in the standings behind Xray’s Alexander Hagberg.

In the biggest class of the ETS, Pro Stock, Xray’s Jan Ratheisky leads the standings after the indoor half of the season. Holding a 13-point lead over ARC’s Helge Johannessen, Ratheisky has the disadvantage of having not raced the event last year when team-mate and reigning champion Marek Cerny took the win. The reigning champion in the Serpent sponsored Formula class, which has attracted over 80 entries for the weekend, Ratheisky could once again become the first ETS champion of the season. Winner & Top Qualifier of the opening three races another win this weekend would see him claim a fourth consecutive title.