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Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Norbert Kiss takes customary pole

Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Norbert Kiss takes customary pole

11. October 2014Le Mans - The misty morning reminded many of the sport’s old-timers of the Saturday of 25 October 2003, when the racing in Le Mans could only get started at 1 pm because of fog and an iced-over track. The temperatures today, the first day of the 9th round of the 2014 FIA European Truck Racing Championship, were in low single digits, necessitating warm clothing, but there was no fear of frost this time.
The truck racers were raring to go, but had to wait a bit for a clear signal from the track staff. That came after a 15 minute delay. At first the 5,5-tonners were sliding all over the circuit, but at the end they had a measure of control, lapping on average around five seconds faster — and the fastest of them all was, once again, Hungarian Norbert Kiss (MAN) in 2:25.630s. The lap times were all falling so rapidly that one couldn’t be sure if the drivers were really giving it all they’d got.
The picture was no different in the second free practice. Kiss again drove the fastest lap (2:24.284s), and we still weren’t certain whether everyone had played his or her hand. Come qualifying and the lap times now dropped precipitously, by around 15 seconds. Had the track conditions really improved so drastically? There was no telling yet.
Once again Kiss set the pace with a 2:10.334s, he and a few of the other top drivers returning to the pits after one flying lap to conserve their tyres. Others stayed out, and the lap times soon started to tumble again, particularly in midfield — but also at the front. The Czech Adam Lacko (Buggyra Freightliner) shot to the top of the timesheet with a lap of 2:09.400s. With their spots in the SuperPole looking less and less certain by the second, the leaders had little option but to take off again, some of them with changes to their setup. It wasn’t one of their number that topped the leaderboard, however, but Swiss veteran Markus Bösiger (MAN) with 2:08.676s.
The rest of the top 10 places for the shootout went in order to MAN pilot Jochen Hahn (GER), Lacko, Kiss, Anthony Janiec (FRA) and Antonio Albacete (ESP), both MAN, Buggyra pilot David Vršecký (CZE), and Germans René Reinert, Steffi Halm (both MAN), and Gerd Körber (Iveco).
In the SuperPole it was Norbert (now customarily) kissing his competitors off with his first flying lap of 2:06.661s. His rivals did close in somewhat towards the end of the session, but that was the best they could do. Hahn will start the race alongside the Hungarian on the front row, followed by Albacete, Lacko, Vršecký, Bösiger, Janiec, Reinert, Halm, and Körber.

Impressions:

Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Norbert Kiss takes customary pole
Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Norbert Kiss takes customary pole