Sunday in Le Mans

29. October 2006Le Mans - When the truck racers looked out the window in the morning, they could hardly believe their eyes. Although the sky was overcast, there was almost clear sight. Because of the switch to standard time there was the “gift” of an extra hour; so everything was to begin “an hour later” compared to the summer time. This additional hour to get more sleep was highly welcomed not only by the some 46,000 spectators, who celebrated in the paddock and on the surrounding camping sites on Saturday night long after the obligatory fireworks were over, but also by the team of Markus Bösiger who were happy about every minute they could relax. Because it was shortly before midnight when the Swiss finally had repaired the damages caused by the accident in the Cup race. Obviously they did a good job, because at the warm-up Bösiger marked third fastest times. And then, right on time for the timed practice it started to rain.
The pilots were all in a hurry to mark their best times, because the weather conditions got worse and worse. In the end Jochen Hahn was on pole, followed by Antonio Albacete and the two Euroliners, Niko Pulic and Markus Oestreich. Next were David Vrsecky and Markus Bösiger, and on 7th position only was Gerd Körber, the only driver who could still compete with Albacete for the title.
There was a continuous drizzle, increasing the risks of collisions, however, at the start of the Qualification race there were no problems at all. Albacete got the better of Hahn and took the lead, but Hahn was following very close behind, keeping a distance of not more than some millimetres to the Spaniard’s truck. When the rainfall became heavier, Hahn turned out to be a real “rain man” and left Albacete behind who offered almost no resistance. On the other hand, the Spaniard knew that under the actual circumstances the title was a sure thing for him. Körber managed to gain some positions and finished 4th behind Pulic, but the outcome of the championship had been certain for some time, anyway, and the German assured his title of Vice Champion.
Afterwards in the paddock the crew of Lutz Bernau and the Cepsa team – everyone wearing huge red sunglasses and red bow ties – ebulliently celebrated the old and new European Champion.
Although the die was cast now, the truck racers were no less ambitious at the Cup race. Now the surface was even wetter, causing Pulic’s truck to slide across the Dunlop chicane and from there he went to the pit at a crawl. Hahn pulled away from the rest of the field and crossed the finish line unchallenged. Much to the delight of the audience on the crowded grandstands, Albacete and Körber put up a great fight for the second position. Over and over again the German launched an attack; the Buggyra pilot seemed to be a wee bit faster. But as Albacete was the one lying in front, he parried every action of the German. In the end the European Champion crossed the line lying on 2nd position, with an advantage on Körber of less than two tenths of a second. They were followed closely by Oestreich coming in 4th, and next came David Vrsecky, Adam Lacko and Markus Bösiger.
With the last round of this season there arose the question about the outlook for next year’s season. The official Mercedes statement, released on June, still says that next year they won’t engage in truck racing anymore. But considering the run of this season, with the Stuttgart company having two pilots, Hahn and Oestreich, who were promising candidates for the title, plus the fact that, towards the end of the season, Mercedes came up with several innovations regarding the technical equipment, many people could imagine that there could be a reversal of opinion at the corporate head office. MAN obviously plans to engage in RaceTrucks more than ever before, and will possibly present a new truck racing pilot – Hans-Joachim Stuck. If Heinz-Werner Lenz’ ideas come true, there will probably be a change of generation next year. His son Sascha plans to take part in the entire FIA series. Although in Le Mans Sascha had to contend with a position behind his father in the ranking, his fastest lap time was more than a second below the one of his “old man”.