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Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Kiss takes his umpteenth pole

Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Kiss takes his umpteenth pole

10. October 2015Le Mans - It was bitterly cold overnight. Even as the racers rolled out onto the track for the first time at this 10th round of the FIA European Truck Racing Championship on Circuit Bugatti in Le Mans this morning, the thermometer was still stuck in single digits. Summer is long over in the middle of France in October, but it’s true the truck racers have seen worse weather in Le Mans.
A full 20 minutes past sunrise and there was still no sun to be seen, so thick were the clouds – and the mist. The asphalt was damp, and the truck racers were, as you might expect, rather cautious in free practice.
Jochen Hahn (GER) topped the timing monitor with a lap of 2:11.528s, followed by his Spanish MAN rival Antonio Albacete and Czech Adam Lacko (Buggyra Freightliner).
The sun continued to stay away during the second free practice session, but the track had dried out and the drivers were all lapping much quicker. Albacete was on top now with 2:07.308s, with newly crowned twice-champ Norbert Kiss (HUN) in an MAN a wee 22 thousandths slower.
It was only when the clock struck noon, time for qualifying, that the glowing orb finally deigned to make an appearance. The lap times duly dropped again by around a second.
Kiss recorded a 2:06.091s in his first lap out and then returned to the pits to conserve his tyres – after all, this was only about going quick enough to qualify for the SuperPole.
Hahn, Lacko, MAN pilot René Reinert (GER), Albacete, David Vršecký (CZE) in a Buggyra Freightliner, Frenchman Anthony Janiec (MAN), Iveco pilot Gerd Körber (GER), and Czech Frankie Vojtíšek (MAN) all did likewise, each one certain of a place in the Top 10. The rest stayed out on the track.
It was increasingly evident that the grip levels would continue to improve, and Vojtíšek was presently out of the Top 10, outdone by the two ladies in the field, his MAN colleagues Steffi Halm and Ellen Lohr (both GER).
Shortly before the close the Czech was back out, and all of a sudden Körber, now in 10th place, was in danger of being kicked out. In the final lap that’s just what happened. Vojtíšek went four-tenths quicker to deny the Iveco pilot any chance of improving his grid position.
After a 5 minute interval, the shootout that decides the first five rows of the grid.
Kiss promptly hammered home another declaration of his absolute domination of the FIA ETRC this season. The Hungarian’s first lap, timed at 2:05.459s, was simply beyond the reach of every driver else. Hahn captured the starting slot alongside. Albacete, whose first lap was struck off the record because he had deviated off the track, managed to secure third in the very closing seconds, followed by Lacko, Reinert, Vršecký, Janiec, Halm, Lohr, and Vojtíšek.

Impressions:

Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Kiss takes his umpteenth pole
Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Kiss takes his umpteenth pole
Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Kiss takes his umpteenth pole
Saturday in Le Mans Part 1 – Kiss takes his umpteenth pole