Valencia preliminary report
23. April 2015Valencia - The 2015 season of the FIA European Truck Racing Championship finally kicks off in bright sunshine on Circuit Ricardo Tomo in Valencia, Spain. There are 18 entries for this round.
One is tempted to say that everything’s just as it always has been. But the fact is, much has changed for the MAN teams. In recent years they’ve been assured of running a rather unbeatable package overall, but following the exit of the truckmaker from Munich they are now left to their own devices... Just like it once used to be.
Renault pulled out the year before, a withdrawal that hit the teams that raced the trucks from France, particularly when it came to service.
But the truck industry continues to suffer the aftermath of the recession of the last few years, and sponsorship is just not as forthcoming. And so everybody was left guessing at the beginning of the year who would eventually take to the track in 2015. As it turns out, some teams that have been around forever will only selectively participate this season — it’s all about good housekeeping now.
For the particularly cost-intensive events the benefits of participation will be very carefully weighed against likely expenses, because not every country is equally attractive for every sponsor.
Such considerations will be alien to the teams and drivers that have set their sights on the title; for them it’s about racking up the points, and so racing at every round is vital. The title aspirants include the Top 5 of the previous season — Norbert Kiss (HUN), Jochen Hahn (GER), and Antonio Albacete (ESP) – all MAN – plus David Vršecký and Adam Lacko (both CZE) in Buggyra Freightliners.
At the season-opener in Valencia everyone will strive to finish in the points, given that this is the first season in which each day’s second race with the (partially) reversed grid is good for as many points for the top 10 finishers as the first.
The 18 entrants include a couple of Spanish pilots, who will be also chasing points for their own national championship. They have long been part and parcel of every ETRC race on Spanish soil.
The weather forecast is optimistic — light clouds and temperatures of around 25°. On Saturday and Sunday it could get somewhat stormy, with the odd shower thrown in. But then the truck racers have survived much worse storms — both literally and figuratively speaking.
And so nothing really stands in the way of a wonderful start to the new season.
Impressions:
