Sunday in Donington – part 2

01. July 2012Donington - Shortly before the first race on Sunday was about to begin, a big rainstorm hit Donington Park again. In order to dry the concrete there were two formation laps. After the start the race trucks came out of a huge cloud of spray and raced toward the first curve (“Redgate”). The ones that had started into the race from the back could not see where they were driving and could only guess where they were at. Still, the whole incident went smoothly. Ellen Lohr, on the other hand, had some major problems. The engine on her truck did not move into gear again and then she also had problems with the front axle of her Mercedes. Only after two laps she drove back into the pit lane, being rather disappointed. Pole setter Hahn had taken on the lead up front and Albacete and Oestreich were following him. And then it started to rain again. Albacete seemed less distracted by this fact than Hahn and thus, the Spaniard easily passed the German. Then, even Oestreich gave his compatriot a hard time – while Albacete pulled clear and drove toward a clear victory. The fight over the second place aroused enthusiasm in more than 18.000 spectators.
After the 7th lap, they were both driving at same pace, while passing the finish line, before they would take the 90°-Redgate-Curve at the end of the race. In this case Oestreich was definitely better. Afterward Hahn was practically sticking to the bumper of Oestreich’s Renault truck, but the man from the south of Germany did not really have a chance to pass him. Totally unchallenged, Bösiger drove over the finish line and placed 4th. At the beginning he had to give in on Vrsecky, but when the race track became a little bit wetter, the Renault driver was easily able to pass the Czech again. Vrsecky suddenly had to defend his positions against constant attacks from Janiec. At the end even Lacko joined the group and put the Frenchman under pressure himself. This gave Vrsecky, who was able to drive off, some breathing space, so that Lacko was not able to put his 5th place at risk, after he had eventually passed Janiec. In the end, Kiss had also caught up who was only 8 tenths behind Janiec when he crossed the finish line.
Because of the fact that he placed 8th, the Hungarian won the Pole for the final race. The last two scoring points eventually went to the two MAN drivers Mika Mäkinen (FIN) and Lacheze.
Kiss also started into the second race on Saturday as the Pole setter and in the end he managed to place 7th. This time the MAN driver vehemently defended his lead, while being chased by Lacko and Janiec and the other chasers. And while one was wondering when the nominally faster trucks would take over the lead, Kiss even increased his advantage. Unchallenged, the Hungarian drove toward a start-finish-victory that was frenetically cheered on by Frankie OXXO Truck Racing Team. The more exciting scene was behind him. Vrsecky first overpowered Janiec and then Lacko clearly placed 2nd. Oestreich, who had already passed his teammate Bösiger during the 2nd lap, caught up and placed 3rd on the podium. Bösiger, Albacete and Hahn formed a little group that was close to each other for several laps. Then the Swiss was pushed to the side and Albacete and Hahn passed him, but Bösiger lost ground. Soon after, Hahn nailed his brand mate Albacete. Then, both of them chased after Janiec and also Lacko. Finally, the two favorites for the Championship behind Oestreich placed 4th and 5th.Lacko and Janiec followed on the next places. Bösiger placed 8th and the list of the top ten was completed by the Englishman Matthew Summerfield (MAN) and Mäkinen.
Then the stewards started discussing again. It is said that there had been a protest about Kiss’s truck, because it allegedly does not comply with the current regulations, which it had already been accused of in Jamara, just like the truck of his Czech teammate Frankie Vojtisek. They did not disqualify him immediately, but told the team to change it as soon as possible. As long as no one’s points were deducted, it seemed that it did not bother anyone that the changes had not yet been fully carried out. However, this time Kiss won the race and that bothered the rivalry. But it did not stop right then. They examined the collision between Mäkinen and Blaise as well as the one between Hahn and Lacheze, in which the Frenchman fell by the wayside. Additionally, there was the fact that Albacete had attacked Bösiger. Several hours after the end of the race there was a final result. Mäkinen was the only one who was punished in this race. He received a penalty of 30 seconds that put him back on the 15th place. The French MAN driver Jeremy Robineau placed 10th. In the starting grid, Hahn will be set back by 3 places in the next race, which will be the TGP at Nürburgring. In the drivers ranking, Hahn is still having the lead with 234 points ahead of Albacete (232), Oestreich (163), Lacko (148), Vrsecky (128) and Bösiger (120).

Impressions: