Euro Touring Series

February 9, 2019

Super close Q2 sees Hagberg top Sudhoff

Following a close opening qualifier last night at ETS Daun, Q2 threw up another super close battle for the TQ with Alexander Hagberg coming out on top by just 0.039 of a second ahead of Freddy Sudhoff. Having conceded Q1 to Bruno Coelho, Sudhoff was again the main challenger to the Xray team but just the slightest of errors on the penultimate lap cost the on-form Awesomatix driver 2/10th and although he finished with his fastest lap of the qualifier such is the pace at the front he would again end up second. Getting his car up on 2-wheels with three laps to go Coelho would complete the Top 3 with almost a 2 second advantage over the rest of the field. Best of the rest would go to Yannic Prumper who was 4th fastest ahead of Christopher Krapp and Thimo Weissbauer.

After a slow start to Q1 due to his tyres taking time to come-in leaving him to recover for a P5 for the round, Hagberg had no such problems today saying, ‘the car was better today. From lap 1 I had traction’. The Swede continued, ‘I reverted back to my set-up from practice and that gave me more front traction which meant more steering’. Looking to the third of the four qualifiers, the former ETS race winner said, ‘I will try to repeat my performance and do a clean run. I will probably stick with the same set of tyres’.

‘Same story just a different driver beat me’, was Sudhoff’s reaction. The German continued, ‘the car was on point but maybe had a little understeer compared to yesterday. I had a bad lap and lost 2/10th but this caused me to be only second. Maybe it will be third time lucky’. Asked if he planned to change his set-up for Q3, he replied, ‘I need to discuss with Max (Machler). He said the car has less steering to yesterday so we need to think what we could change to improve this’.

Coelho said, ‘It was very difficult at the beginning because the car was loose in the rear. In the middle (of the qualifier) it was OK and I could fight with Alex and Sudhoff but then I hit a dot on the rear and the car went on to two wheels’. He added, ‘I lost 3/10ths but on this level it was like losing 3-seconds’. Asked if he knew why his car was loose at the start, the reigning ETS Champion replied, ‘we changed something to get more steering and maybe it was because of that. We need to check’.

‘A little better but we are still quite far off’, was how Prumper summed up Q2. The Infinity driver added, ‘In Q1 the gap was 4-seconds now it is 2-seconds but the problem is the car is still missing rotation in the 180 corners. We will now discuss what we can try for the next one. The change I made between Q1 & 2 was an improvement so I might go more in the same direction with this’.

Heading the Yokomo challenge in Q2, Krapp said, ‘the position was good but if you see the gap to the front it’s too slow’. The German continued, ‘Myself and Ronald (Volker) need to try something. The gap is just too much’. On his own BD8’s performance he said, ‘Personally my problem is that after 4-minutes it gets loose in the rear so I could push. I need to get it good over the full 5-minutes’.

In the Scorpion Power System Formula class, reigning champion Jan Ratheisky pulled of a TQ run having been beaten by Serpent’s David Ehrbar in Q1. The Xray driver completed the 5-minute qualifier a massive 4-seconds up on Herbert Weber, the former champion running in the second fastest heat group. After his Q1 TQ, Ehrbar would get a P3 ahead of Andreas Stiebler. In the Xray Pro Stock second qualifier, France’s Léo Arnold was fastest ahead of ETS Vienna winner Simon Lauter with champion Ratheisky, who took Q1, completing the Top 3.

The new 17.5 Stock class Torsten Baggendorf, bettered his opening round by one spot to register a TQ run. With Q1 pace setter Luis Moreno having a difficult run, the second fastest time would be set by Alojzij Osvald ahead of Alexander Müller. In the Infinity 40+ Masters class Alexander Stocker continued his reign over proceedings with a second TQ run this time ahead of Andreas Weyhoven and Toni Mateo with defending champion Thomas Oehler fourth.

View complete event results here.

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February 9, 2019

Chassis Focus – Viktor Wilck

Chassis – Infinity IF14
Motor – Dash Rtune V2 5.5T
ESC – Dash AI Pro
Batteries – Arrowmax 5200 Ultra Low Profile
Tires – Volante (handout)
Radio/Servo – Sanwa/Dash
Bodyshell – Protoform Type S

Remarks – Making his race debut for the Infinity team here at ETS Round 2 in Daun, Viktor is running an overall kit standard IF14 from the Japanese manufacturer. Enjoying the more conventional chassis design of the IF14 compared to his Serpent, which means using more traditional set-up theories, the car has been fitted with optional shock towers, a two piece motor mount and low friction belts. Pleased with the overall performance of the car, the Swede said the big influence on performance this weekend is bodyshell choice.

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February 8, 2019

Close Q1 sees Coelho just take it from Sudhoff

A close opening qualifier at the Yokomo Euro Touring Series second round in German has seen the first strike of the weekend go to Bruno Coelho with the Xray driver just seeing off the charge of a very on-form Freddy Sudhoff. Top seed in practice, Coelho had the advantage of starting out front while Sudhoff had to contend with finding a way passed a slow starting No.2 seed Alexander Hagberg. Setting the fastest lap of the race with two laps to go it looked like Sudhoff was on target for the TQ but Coelho responded with his fastest lap of the race which together with a moment from Freddy on the last lap gave Bruno the first TQ run of the weekend. With the Top 2 having a distinct advantage over the rest of the field being, the only drivers to make 21-laps, it was Ronald Volker who came through to post the third fastest time with 3rd to 6th separated by only half a second. Behind, Elliot Harper got a 4th from the first of the four qualifiers ahead of Xray team-mate Alexander Hagberg with the Top 6 completed by Christopher Krapp.

‘It was very close with Freddy’, was Coelho reaction with the reigning champion adding, ‘his car looks very good. It was very close between us all the run and it was all decided in the last laps’. Looking to repeat the win he took on the Daun event’s debut on the ETS calendar last year, the World Champion said, ‘Our cars are working good but mine is still not 100%. It’s missing steering but now that we have one safe qualification we can try something for tomorrow. We will decide tonight what we will do’.

A very pleased looking Sudhoff said, ‘that was a close one. The car was on point from the first lap on’. The Awesomatix driver continued, ‘Once I passed Alex I found my rhythm. It was just some super small mistakes that cost me the TQ. It was super close with Bruno’. Posting a 14.712 fastest lap time, for tomorrow morning’s second qualifying encounter the Worlds Finalist concluded, ‘I will focus more on my driving tomorrow and just leave the car the same. It’s on point’.

Only managing P7 in seeding, Volker look relieved to kick off qualifying with a Top 3. The Yokomo driver said, ‘We improved the car so that was the best it has been all day. I can’t be unhappy with 3rd especially with how close the 5 guys were behind me’. Asked what his issue in practice was, the championship points leader replied, ‘The balance was off and the car was sliding too much. For qualifying we went to a set-up closer to Christopher’s (Krapp) and our ETS Round 1 set-up’. He continued, ‘In reality the Top 2 are far ahead so we need to make further changes tomorrow to close that gap’.

‘The car was really good but my first few laps didn’t go quite so well’, said Harper. The British driver explained, ‘I tried a different motor position in the warm-up and it didn’t work so I pulled in to get my mechanic to change it. He did it super quick but the other cars had already started going for it (to start their qualification)’. Looking to Q2 in the morning, he said, ‘I want to change the balance slightly so it is smooth in the high speed corners but still has rotation at low speed’.

Commenting on his run to the 5th fastest time, Hagberg said, ‘I had a slow start. The tyres I used were less broken in than my other set and they took time to come in so it was probably a wrong decision’. Having to open for Sudhoff, the Swede continued, ‘Once the tyres came in the car was on pace. I will run them again in the morning so hopefully I will be on the pace from the start’.

In the Scorpion Power System Formula class David Ehrbar came out with the first TQ run. The Serpent driver emerged with just 2/10ths of a second advantage over Olivier Bultynck with top seed Jan Ratheisky getting a P3 more than 2-seconds further back. Ratheisky would however take the top spot in the first of the Xray Pro Stock qualifiers leading a Xray 1-2 from practice pace setter Leo Arnold, the French driver’s time 3/10ths off the TQ.

Winner of the opening round of the Infinity 40+ Masters class, Alexander Stocker maintained his practice form to TQ the first qualifier. The Awesomatix driver had a comfortable advantage over class champion Thomas Oehler with Vice-Champion Christian Drießle 3rd quickest. In the new 17.5 Stock class it was also the Top seed who would take Q1 as Luis Moreno narrowly pipped long time pace setter Torsten Baggendorf. ETS Vienna winner & points lead Daniel Pöhlmann got a P3 for his efforts.

View complete event results here.

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February 8, 2019

Chassis Focus – Alexandre Duchet

Chassis – Associated TC7.2
Motor – Muchmore (Handout)
ESC –Muchmore (Handout)
Batteries – Reedy Zappers 6000mAh
Tires – Volante (handout)
Radio/Servo – Sanwa/Reedy
Bodyshell – Bittydesign M410

Remarks – Making his first ETS appearance here in Daun as a factory Team Associated driver, the former Pro Stock Champion is running a standard kit version of the American manufacturers TC7.2 Touring Car platform which has been slightly modified to try and get the car more suited to European tracks. Directly supported by AE and in collaboration with their two big European distributors, CML in the UK and German based Ruddog, Andreas Myrberg is working on Alexandre’s car. He has given the French driver a chassis which has had the main cut outs increased to induce more flex as the standard version is too stiff for European tracks. Myrberg has also done some modifications to the motor mount to add a ‘different flex characteristic’. Apart from the chassis and motor mount mods the only non standard parts on the car is a Hero Seiko screw set.

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February 8, 2019

Xray 1-2 in seeding as Coelho tops final practice at ETS

Xray has claimed a 1-2 in seeding at the second round of the Yokomo Euro Touring Series in Germany this evening, with Bruno Coelho setting the fastest 3-consecutive laps in the second & final controlled practice ahead of team-mate Alexander Hagberg. The reigning champion bettered the opening time set by Freddy Sudhoff by more than 2/10th while Hagberg also found 2/10ths to move ahead of Sudhoff who wasn’t able to better his time. One of the big improvers between rounds, Yannic Prumper would end up the top Infinity driver ending up fourth fastest ahead of team-mate Marc Rheinard who failed to better his CP1 pace. Again it was Christopher Krapp who would round out the Top 6 with a slight improvement in his time to remain in front of Yokomo team-mate Ronald Volker.

‘We made quite a lot of set-up changes and they were very good. We followed what set-up Alex had and now the car is working well’, was Coelho reaction after CP2. The World Champion added, ‘I am still missing a little steering but it’s super easy and safe to drive. If I force a little more I can’t go faster and all the time I am on full lock but our 1-2 in practice shows the car is working well’. Looking to tonight’s Q1, which will conclude the first day of action in Daun, the Portuguese driver said, ‘we need to discuss if we take the risk to change sometime on the car or not but I think what we have now looks good for 5-minutes’.

Hagberg summed up CP2 by saying, ‘the car is on pace so its going not too bad. I’ll try to keep it like this for qualifying and go for a clean run’. The multiple ETS race winner added, ‘I changed the roll centre and it was a bit better that time. Myself and Bruno are running identical set-ups. I will stay with what I am running for Q1 and see where it takes us’.

Explaining his failure to improve his opening time, Sudhoff said, ‘I tried a set-up change on the speedo and didn’t like the feeling. I adjusted the feeling and didn’t like it so I will go back’. The Awesomatix driver, who despite being a regular front runner has yet to register an ETS win, added, ‘My 5-minute rhythm is pretty good and it’s also good compared to the the others. I will keep the same car set-up for the first qualifier and just focus on getting a clean run in’.

‘Much better than before. It was pushing like hell in first two practices’, was Prumper’s response to how CP2 had gone. The former ETS race winner explain, ‘we changed to a geardiff, changed the ackermann and switched to a (Protoform) Type S body. The body feels fast but the (Zoo Racing) Preopard was easier to drive so I will use this for the first round (of qualifying)’.

Also switching to a Type S body for the final practice having earlier ran Zoo Racing’s Preopard, Rheinard said, ‘It was not what I had hoped for. They had similar speed but I prefer the feel of the shell I used before’. He continued, ‘I see Bruno ran the (ZooRacing) DXB in the last practice and he improved so I will try it for Q1’. A lower design profile than the Preopard, the former World Champion said, ‘The DXB should be a little more aggressive, the Preopard is a little lazy’.

On his performance in the final practice, Krapp said, ‘It felt slower than it was. I made some changes on the front end and it didn’t make the improvement I expected. I will go back to how it was before and just push in qualifying’. The former ETS race winner concluded, ‘I’m enjoying the track layout’.

In Pro Stock and Formula it was also to be Xrays that topped seeding. Nitro racer Léo Arnold was fastest of the biggest class of the ETS from DHI Cup winner Tim Benson. Winner of the opening round in Vienna Simon Lauter was third fastest ahead of his Awesomatix team-manager Max Machler. In Formula, defending champion & one of the busiest racers on the planet Jan Ratheisky set the pace from Vienna winner David Ehrbar and Matej Dobnikar. In the Masters, former Pro Stock champion Alexander Stocker was the benchmark ahead of Toni Mateo while the new 17.5 Stock Touring Car class top seed is Spanish driver Luis Moreno from championship leader Daniel Pöhlmann.

View complete event results here.

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February 8, 2019

Sudhoff tops CP1 at ETS Daun

Freddy Sudhoff has topped the first round of controlled practice at the Euro Touring Series in Daun, Germany. After an almost 4-month break in ETS action, Sudhoff opened the second round of the championship by taking his Awesomatix to the fastest 3-consecutive laps ahead of reigning champion Bruno Coelho. Behind, Marc Rheinard almost matched Coelho on pace, his arch rival quicker by just 2/1000ths of a second. It was a strong start to the weekend for Xray with Alexander Hagberg and Elliot Harper making it three of their cars in the Top 5. Completing the Top 6 would be Yokomo’s Christopher Krapp with team-mate and winner of the season opener Ronald Volker 8th behind Infinity new recruit Viktor Wilck.

Topping the times by almost 2/10ths, the same margin covering 2nd through 6th, Sudhoff summed up his early pace with, ‘it’s very good so far’. Fourth fastest in the single round of free practice, the German continued, ‘I was just running in my second set of tyres that and both sets have the same pace which is a good thing. I think we just need to fine tune the car now to get a good rhythm for the track’. Asked what he thought of the layout he replied, ‘I think it’s flowing. The only bad thing is the timing loop at the end of the straight. I think they need to make a rule that you cannot make full power on your last lap. I know its hard to control but the times are close and it could make a big difference’. Running the Russian manufacturers mid motor car, Sudhoff said, ‘the base is very good so for the last practice I just want to make some minor set-up tweaks’.

While summing up the first controlled practice as having gone ‘good’, Coelho added, ‘we made some changes to the car and they weren’t the best’. With Sudhoff’s outright fastest lap 3/10th quicker than his, the World Champion continued, ‘the car was still good but we were a little slower than Freddy. We have something to change for the last practice which we think will be better. We will see how it goes’.

‘It’s pretty close up the front’, was Rheinard’s reaction after CP1. The Infinity driver continued, ‘the car felt pretty easy to drive. I was using the Zoo Racing Preopard body. It is good to drive and its stable in the rear but I think I will go to the Protoform Type S for the next one. I will keep the car the same as is and play with the bodyshell’. On the track layout, the German said, ‘It fast and nice to drive but it could be a bit more technical’.

Fresh from winning another Snowbirds National title in Florida last weekend, Hagberg said, ‘It’s always though when you have little track time. Three rounds (of practice) is little time to fine tune your set-up so you hope it works well. This time it was on pace’. The Swede continued, ‘I have broke in both sets of tyres now so I can fine tune the set-up for the last practice’. Asked what he was looking for from his T4, he replied, ‘the track is very technical and the average speed his higher than last year so it is important to have good steering for the 180 corners’.

Summing up his P5 pace with ‘Good so far’, Harper added, ‘I think the track has a nice flowing layout and my car is pretty balance. 3 Xrays in the Top 5 shows the car works well here’. Looking to make a few set-up changes to his LRP powered T4 for the final practice he explained, ‘I want to make the car more consistent over the run. If I can make it a bit easier to drive I can push harder over the 5-minutes of the qualifiers. I just need to make small tweaks’.

Best of the Yokomo team with his P6, Krapp said, ‘I am still kind of getting used to the layout and to finding my rhythm. The shape of the hall makes things a bit different’. On his car the German said, ‘The car is pretty good to drive but there are a lot 180 corners so I need to get it to turn in more for them. I think I will change something on the front end for the last practice because the rear of the car is solid’.

View complete event results here.

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February 8, 2019

Track Focus – Daun

Venue – Sporthotel & Resort Grafenwald
Race Hosts – ETS
Country – Germany
Location – Daun (180km West of Frankfurt)
Direction – Anti-Clockwise
Surface – Carpet
No. of ETS Races hosted – 1

For the second weekend running the small German town of Daun is under an RC Racing invasion. Last weekend the Sporthotel & Resort Grafenwalds was host to a record entry Euro Offroad Series encounter and now this weekend it is the turn of the world’s best touring car drivers to battle it out at Round 2 of the ETS. After a lengthy break of almost four months since the opening race of Season #12 in Vienna, the championship returns to Daun for a second time after the venue successfully debuted on last season’s calendar. Attracting over 320 entries this weekend, drivers get to race on the largest indoor carpet track of the season thanks to the unique shape of the tennis hall in which it is built. Covering an area of 830 square metres, the track which has switched sides in terms of its location in the symmetrical building making it now anti-clockwise in direction, is the work of racers Tobias Baumback and Marvin Gutting who started the build on Tuesday, the EOS track having been cleared away Sunday night. 45m wide and 30m deep in the centre section, a quick modified lap is taking 15-seconds which is a second quicker than last year.

A winner here at the EOS last weekend, taking the 4WD victory, reigning ETS Champion Bruno Coelho described the layout as ‘different’. Winner of the event 12-months ago he added, ‘I can’t say I don’t like the track but the flow is only OK. It has many 180 corners. You can’t really call it technical. You race it point to point where are normal layout you are combining everything together’. He concluded, ‘It’s something different and we need to work on the car for this’.

Taking the top prize at the season opener back in October, Ronald Volker’s initial thoughts on the track layout were, ‘It’s different to last year’s layout. Now it has a lot of hairpins and we are running the opposite direction’. He added, ‘It lacks a bit of flow. It’s more point and shoot. Unfortunately we have only 3 rounds of practice which makes it tough to be on point for the first qualifier’.

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