Simon Pilate moves up in the overall standings, successful comeback for Gil Linster
The changing weather conditions during the third round of the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series at Most also had an impact on the races of the EuroNASCAR 2. Nevertheless, the weekend went pretty well for the DF1 Tigers.
Towards the end of the qualifying session, the track started to dry. Simon Pilate in his 66, sponsored by FUCHS AUSTRIA Schmierstoffe GmbH, was one of the last cars to chase the fastest lap. The patience of the young Belgian payed off and he secured himself P2 on the starting grid for the first race, which was the best qualifying result in his career in the EuroNASCAR. His teammates Leevi Lintukanto in the #23 and Justin Kunz in the Grapos Chevrolet Camaro #22 both placed themselves in the top 10 as well.
On Saturday it was supposed to rain. Especially Leevi Lintukanto was able to cope well in these conditions and was the best DF1 Tiger on P4, which also meant the victory in the Rookie Trophy. Simon Pilate finished the race right behind him on P5. Justin Kunz, Ian Eric Wadén and Gil Linster had been involved in the crashes in the beginning of the race. With the damage to their cars, they couldn't fight for better positions.
The second race was not as successful as the first one for Leevi Lintukanto and Simon Pilate. Both had been involved in a crash after the start. Instead, the unlucky Tigers from the first race had more luck on Sunday. Despite a damage from contact with another driver at the beginning of the race, Justin Kunz was able to gain a lot of positions and finish the race on P4. Gil Linster in the Lettner Trans Chevrolet Camaro #77 was able to show what he is capable of and finished on P5. With P7 Ian Eric Wadén not only achieved another win in the Legends Trophy but also his first top 10-finish in 2021.
Simon Pilate: "Our car was really fast, my team did a fantastic job and the setup was good. My qualifying was extremely good, I had the second fastest lap-time and I achieved the best result in my career. But it was also a bit frustrating, because I just missed P1 by 0.1 seconds. In the rain I only was on P5 and my lap-time wasn't fast enough, so I had to start in the middle of the grid. While trying to avoid contact with another car, I've been hit by a second one. With the damage to my car, I was only able to finish the race, but not to fight for positions. We had the pace to win the race. With regard to Grobnik, we should be able to fight for the first victory."
Leevi Lintukanto: "It was a good weekend. The track was new for me and the weather conditions had been challenging. But we had a fast car all weekend and I was able to bring home my first top 5-result in the EuroNASCAR. Unfortunately I was unlucky in the second race. I've been hit by another car and had a damage to my tire. I'm pretty confident for the upcoming race at Grobnik."
Justin Kunz: "I had a really good car and my expectations were high. Unfortunately the differential broke in the qualifying of the EN Pro. My mechanics did a fantastic job in fixing that and I was able to go on a fast lap 4 minutes before the end of the session. As I didn't know the conditions of the track, it was difficult to bring a really fast lap together. Concerning the circumstances, P9 was a good result. In the first race I was involved in a crash right at the start and had to pit. Towards the end of the race I took the risk and changed to slicks, in order to improve my fastest lap and my starting position for the second race. But the track was still too wet in some parts, so that didn't work out as planned. I tried to stay out of trouble in the second race, but again I was hit. With a damage to the front, my car wasn't running as fast as before and I wasn't able to catch up with the leading cars. P4 was the best we could achieve, although we could have raced for a win. My team did a fantastic job and I'm very confident for the next race at Grobnik."
Gil Linster: "The conditions have been tricky, it was difficult to learn the track. My qualifying was not the best, I didn't want to take too much risk on the wet track. In race 1 I was involved in a crash and my car needed to be repaired. My mechanics did a great job, working all night on the car and in the second race I could pay them back with a good P5. I'm happy that I'm able to fight for good results. We put a good basis on which we can work for the upcoming races, to be a source of pride for the team and move forward." Info! www.df1-nascar.com (Photo credits: Bart Dehaese )
