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Sunday in Spielberg Part 3 – Kiss makes it a clean sweep

Sunday in Spielberg Part 3 – Kiss makes it a clean sweep

17. May 2015Spielberg - Promptly at the start of the final race summer finally decided to make its warmth felt at the Red Bull Ring, the sun bathing the 24,000 spectators in its radiance and the temperature climbing as high as 22°. But more radiant than everything and everyone was the Oxxo team, which has now crossed a second truck racing milestone. Two years ago Benedek Major became the youngest winner of a race in the FIA ETRC at 17; today Norbert Kiss became the first driver to collect 80 points at a race weekend.
For sure, the 2014 champ had to drive a cleverly opportunistic race to set that record, but then Kiss has always excelled on the Red Bull Ring anyway.
Polesitter Janiec wasn’t quick enough off his mark, allowing Reinert to take the lead, followed by Körber and Albacete — with Kiss right at their rear, the Hungarian having shown his fierce rivals Hahn, Lacko, and Vršecký a clean pair of heels after starting from eighth on the grid. The septet soon settled into formation and was lapping like a train, each driver watching for the one ahead of him to make the slightest mistake.
In the fourth lap Körber was overtaken by first Albacete and then Kiss, who then proceeded to swarm Reinert. But the Lusatian continued to drive in calculated fashion, making no error his pursuers could exploit.
The trio set a gap between themselves and the rest; the four trucks in their wake seeming to be doing their best to hold one another up. Kiss was conspicuously holding himself back, as if studying the two men in front of him. Then, in the 13th lap the Hungarian seized his chance. Albacete had left an opening that Kiss straightway squeezed into, landing himself alongside the Spaniard and pulling ahead shortly thereafter.
One lap later he dispatched Reinert in similar fashion and went on to take his fourth win of the weekend. Reinert, meanwhile, effortlessly blocked Albacete’s attacks from the rear, crossing the finish line three-tenths ahead. Albacete was followed home by the two Buggyras of Vršecký and Lacko, who had also managed to overtake Körber, then Körber himself, and then Hahn, all taking the flag a second apart.
Körber was eventually disqualified because of several overspeeding infringements, which promoted Hahn to sixth. Lohr, Janiec, Smith, and Altenstrasser also finished in the points.
One of the most visually impressive scenes was surely Sascha Lenz’s 360° spin that dropped the MAN driver to 11th ahead of Kursim, the other youngster in the field. Kursim for his part ended up as the only standard-bearer for the star from Stuttgart against the predominance of nine MANs, two Ivecos, and two Buggyra Freightliners. (His teammate Roland Rehfeld did not start.)
Team Oxxo-Lion (Kiss / Janiec) once again hogged the top step of the team podium, Reinert Adventure (Hahn / Reinert) and Buggyra (Vršecký / Lacko) second and third best.
Kiss has now stretched his lead in the championship standings to 145 points. Hahn in second is at 96, followed by Lacko (93), Vršecký (82), Albacete (74), and Reinert (58).

Impressions:

Sunday in Spielberg Part 3 – Kiss makes it a clean sweep
Sunday in Spielberg Part 3 – Kiss makes it a clean sweep