Rheinard is Dutch ETS Top Qualifier
Marc Rheinard has secured overall TQ honours at the fourth round of the Yokomo Euro Touring Series in the Netherlands after he backed up yesterday’s Q1 performance with a new fastest time in Q2, outpacing defending champion Ronald Volker by 3.8-seconds. Andy Moore completed the Top 3 for the opening round of action on Day 2 of the Apeldoorn event which due to overnight rain only got underway at lunchtime as race organisers waited until racing could resume on a fully dry track.
Rheinard’s first TQ in the series since he claimed his only pole position start & win of last season here 12 months ago, the German ace has never appeared so happy with his Muchmore powered TRF417. Describing the car, which is using a Raceberry chassis plate, as really easy to drive the former World Champion added he didn’t actually drive a great second qualifier. Missing his braking point at the end of the straight a number of times, he said he was still able to get the car to easily turn in and despite how forgiving it is to drive it can produce good lap times. Setting the fastest lap of both qualifiers, Rheinard has used his two sets of allocated controlled Ride tyres and said the final qualifier will be a test as to how his car runs on used tyres. Team-mate Viktor Wilck, who set the second fastest time in Q1, ran on used tyres and could only manage the 14th fastest time saying the difference between new and used is ‘pretty significant’. One of the few drivers with a new set of tyres for Q3, the Swede, who won Round 3 of the championship, is hopeful he can capitalise and TQ the last qualifier to give Tamiya a 1-2 on the grid.
Volker said while the track conditions were similar if not better than in Q1 despite the overnight rain, his car was slower. Changing the set-up on his BD7 along with how he prepped his tyres, the German said they went the wrong direction on both accounts. Adding that ‘luckily’ he still got second for the round he said that if he can secure a top three starting position on the grid he should be OK for the final. Team-mate Yanic Prumper set the fourth fastest time saying his car was much better than yesterday but ‘still too slow’. Running a Kimi Raikkonen/Lotus F1 paint scheme this weekend, a change of bodyshell made the biggest different to improved performance in Q2 after he was only 7th in Q1. With the body also painted on the outside to get a matt finish on the black sections of the colour scheme they found last night that the body less the wing weighed the same as a standard painted body with a wing and so the change to a white shell was made for today. Fifth fastest in Q1, a mistake meant Eric Dankel would only record 9th in the second qualifier but switching to a shorter wheelbase for today the German said his BD7 felt as if it was tweaked.
HB’s Moore said he over drove the last few laps and that cost him second for the round. Still pleased to claim third, the former World Champion said having used both his new sets of tyres he will have to rethink a few things for Q3 in terms of set-up to try and get the most from running on used tyres.
Having had tyre gluing dramas in Q1 resulting in him failing to start, Kyosho’s Christopher Krapp had a heart stopping moment as his transponder would not register but thankfully time keeping manually registered the German’s laps with him claiming the fifth fastest time. The German said it was a ‘solid run’ and he hopes with another good run in Q3 it will be enough to make the A-Main. Starting last of the 10 cars in the top heat, Krapp said after seeing how tight and fast Rheinard’s car can corner its clear he needs more steering and so he will shorten the camber rods for the last qualifier.
Completing the Top 6, Team Xray’s Alexander Hagberg said his set-up for Q2 was a ‘big step forward from yesterday’. The Swede was happy with the performance of his T4 for the beginning of the run but said it then started to overheat the front tyres. Despite this he added that they are headed in the right direction and he hopes further set-up improvements for Q3 will allow him to book a spot in tomorrow’s main event.
Behind Hagberg, TOP Racing’s Steven Weiss put in a great run to claim the 7th fastest time. Having run both practice runs on used tyres left over from Round 3 in Gran Canaria and then forgetting the spacers on his body posts for Q1 which left the bodyshell scrapping on the grid, the German said this was his first proper run on the Apeldoorn track. Delighted with the result he said he plans to leave his Photon EX exactly the same for Q3 and just hopes he can put in a repeat performance. Behind Weiss, reigning Pro Stock Champion Zdenko Kunák, who is running in the same heat, completed the Top 8.
Sixth fastest in Q1, Team Serpent’s Marc Fischer was running a similar pace to Prumper until his S411 suffered a bearing failure on the spur gear carrier. A podium finisher at Round 2 in the Czech Republic, the German said he knew something was wrong early on in the run with the car eventually coming to a stop just before the loop as he was about to complete his 18th lap of a potential 20.
Also retiring from Q2 was Team Durango’s Elliott Harper. Making the international debut for the company’s first touring car creation this weekend, the British driver lasted only half a lap with his car shutting down just as he came onto the straight. Afterwards he said the car didn’t feel right on the warm-up lap but he is not sure what actually caused the shutdown and as a precaution he will change both his motor and speedo for Q3 although the fault has cost him any chance of putting the prototype DETC410 in the main event.
In the Xray Pro Stock Class, Team Yokomo’s Kunák topped Q2 ahead of the Kyosho of last year’s race winner Vasco Christiaanse. For Q1 pace setter, and championship standings leader, Marek Cerny the run last less than two minutes as he retired with a broken drift shaft on his Xray. Austrian Awesomatix driver Dominic Vogl completed the Top 3 in Q2. In the Speed Passion Formula class, Roman Pichler made it two from two as he improved on his Q1 time with defending champion Herbert Weber second fastest.
Ride Modified Q2 times
1. Marc Rheinard – Tamiya – 20/5:05.268
2. Ronald Volker – Yokomo – 20/5:09.060
3. Andy Moore – HB – 20/5:09.140
4. Yannic Prumper – Yokomo – 20/5:12.803
5. Christopher Krapp – Kyosho – 20/5:09.839
6. Alexander Hagberg – Xray – 20/5:12.328
7. Steven Weiss – Top Racing – 20/5:12.616
8. Zdenko Kunák – Yokomo – 20/5:12.909
9. Eric Dankel – Yokomo – 20/5:13.539
10.Thomas Pumpler – Tamiya – 20/5:13.577
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