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Sunday in Nogaro

18. June 2006Nogaro - In the early morning the sky was still overcast and it was not too hot. If the weather had stayed that way it would have been a pleasant day, but later on the clouds dispersed and it became hotter and hotter. There was no wind to speak of and the flags hung limply from the poles. And most of the 26,000 people who came to see the race certainly felt exhausted because it had become almost unbearably hot and humid. But that was not the most important topic in the paddock. Once again the teams were discussing the rolling starts. The way it is handled now, there will always be some drivers who think they are at a disadvantage.<br />
The first surprise of the day came from Markus Bösiger who marked fasted time (1:55.634) in the warm-up as well as the timed practice. Beside the Swiss MAN in the front row was Jochen Hahn. 3rd position took another Mercedes pilot, Markus Oestreich, and beside him Gerd Körber, his 'old pal' from SuperRaceTruck days. The start of the Qualification Race was a debatable one. Pole sitter Markus Bösiger claimed that Jochen Hahn had already passed him by half the length of his truck before the light turned green. Obviously the Buggyra team shared his opinion; they even raised an official protest. The stewards, however, were of a quite different opinion, and after long discussions Buggyra withdrew their protest. Jochen Hahn could put more and more distance between himself and the chasing pack, while Markus Bösiger had Gerd Körber hot on his heels who was closely followed by Markus Oestreich. In the end the Swiss could secure his 2nd position. Körber, however, could no longer hold off the advances of the battling Oestreich and had to let him overhaul 2 laps before the finish. 5th position gained another Mercedes pilot, Niko Pulic, in front of title holder Antonio Albacete. <br />
And the rolling start of the Cup Race gave reason for discussions, too. Bösiger and Oestreich claimed that they had observed the rules and waited for the light to turn green before stepping on the gas, but at the same moment both Hahn and Körber had already sped past them taking the lead. It seems there is some need for clarifications in future. The two leading trucks did not succeed in pulling away from the field. During the entire race the four leading pilots were never more than one second apart. Over and over one or the other was so close to the bumper of his opponent that the audience thought they would switch positions, but those four kept their positions until the last lap.<br />
Once more Antonio Albacete demonstrated his chasing skills. Already in the first bends the Spaniard took to the grass but rejoined the race far back of the grid. After a tough fight he managed to work his way back up to 5th position. <br />
For Jochen Hahn this was an absolute dream weekend. With 4 victories in four races he gained the maximum of points (60) and extended his lead in the overall standing, having now reached 183 points. Next come Gerd Körber (173), Antonio Albacete (145) and Markus Oestreich.