Two-Time ETRC title-winner Norbert Kiss came out on top of the drama-filled race one of at Circuit Zolder.
Two-Time European Truck Racing Championship title-winner, Norbert Kiss, came out on top of a drama-filled race one at Circuit Zolder this afternoon.
Kiss, in his Team Tankpool24 Racing Mercedes-Benz truck, was eclipsed to pole position by championship leader Adam Lacko, but the Hungarian didn’t even consider coming out second best today.
As the race got underway, it initially seemed that Kiss was under threat from third-placed Jochen Hahn in his Team Hahn Racing Iveco, but the Hungarian found himself on the inside going into turn 2 and took the lead.
Things quickly went from bad to worse for the Championship-leading Buggyra International Racing System driver as gearbox issue in his Freightliner truck forced him to retire with third of the distance completed.
Jochen Hahn took an opportunistic second place, and the Team Hahn Racing Iveco driver brought home a fine result. Third place went to Sascha Lenz, who scored his third podium finish of the year on board his self-run SL Trucksport MAN. Lenz was pushed hard by Antonio Albacete (Truck Sport Lutz Bernau MAN), but the young German racer managed to keep his more experienced rival at bay. The top five was completed by the remaining Freightliner of Lacko’s team-mate David Vršecký.
Sixth place went to Promoter’s Cup winner André Kursim, who was determined to perform well following an engine failure suffered at Most that put him on a back foot in the Promoter’s Cup title-fight. The Team Tankpool24 Racing Mercedes-Benz driver finished directly ahead of his title-rival José Rodrigues, driving his Reboconorte MAN.
Gerd Körber, who lost several places after the start and at stages of the race ran as low as 13th, climbed back up to eighth and seal the reversed grid pole position. Ninth went to MAN racer Thomas Robineau, who is making his first FIA ETRC appearance since May’s round at Misano. VTR Renault driver, Jose Teodosio, came home for the final point.
Almost local, Dutchman Erwin Kleinnagelvoort (Scania), Jose de Sousa (VTR Renault), Dominique Orsini (Mercedes-Benz), José Eduardo Rodrigues (Reboconorte MAN), and Henry Tijhuis (DAF) took positions 11th to 15th respectively. Steffi Halm, crashed out in the closing stages of the race in her Reinert Racing MAN, as she hit the wall on the outside of Turn 11.mWith race number two of the day only an hour and a half away, it remains to be seen if the female racer will be able to continue racing this weekend.
Third generation racer, José Eduardo Rodrigues, is making his FIA ETRC debut this weekend, having taken over one of the Reboconorte MAN trucks from his grandfather, championship regular Eduardo Rodrigues.
Race two is due to get underway at 16:30 local time.
