Misano Preliminary Report

23. May 2018Following the British truck racers in Brands Hatch a few weeks ago and the French in Le Castellet, the FIA European Truck Racing Championship is set to kick off at the Misano World Circuit on Italy’s scenic Adriatic coast this weekend.
A field of 21 trucks promises competitive racing – in the leading group, down in midfield, and even between the racers in the trailing groups after 10th place. Even if there are no points to be won back there, nobody wants to come in last. Besides, some of those drivers will be chasing points in the Grammer Truck Cup, the separate classification known last year as the Promoter’s Cup.
The paddock area in Misano has been enlarged considerably, but it will still be a squeeze because there are so many teams. By virtue of the sheer size of the machines they race, truck teams need a tad more space than touring cars, and certainly much more than motorcycles. The far end of the paddock has long been the preserve of the decorated trucks, a permanent and wildly popular part of the Misano weekend. There’ll be lots to look at and admire in the paddock, but the racing will naturally be the biggest draw.
Defending champ Adam Lacko (CZE) in his Buggyra Freightliner and four-times champion Jochen Hahn (GER) in a newly built Iveco are the most obvious favourites for the title.
Iveco is very strongly represented in the country it’s headquartered in. The Schwabentruck team from Ulm will field the only lady in the field, Steffi Halm. Gerd Körber, the man she replaces as Schwabentruck’s regular pilot, features here as a guest driver, and the two together should make a formidable force. André Kursim will be the fourth German in an Iveco.
Kursim’s former team, tankpool24 Racing, will be led into battle by twice-champ Norbert Kiss for the third consecutive season. The Hungarian has made a significant contribution to the team’s quantum leap in performance over the last two seasons.
The second Merc-in-black will be raced by German Steffen Faas. As a guest driver with Schwabentruck last season, the Swabian scored FIA points on both his outings.
The biggest fleet continues to be the motley MAN crew, a good 12 trucks bearing the roaring lion emblem atop their grills. The pairing of Germans René Reinert and Sascha Lenz, together with Antonio Albacete (ESP), form an MAN trident. All three drivers are scrappy race-winners. Of the remaining MAN men, expect Brits Ryan Smith and Shane Brereton on the podium on at least a few occasions.
The racers from the Isles are very strongly represented in Misano this year – after the seven Germans, the five Brits make up the second-largest national contingent. There are two Czechs, Frenchmen, and Spaniards each, one Hungarian, one Dutchman, and one Portuguese.
Every bit as international as the entry list are the tourists that throng Rimini and Misano. There are any number of attractions for anyone seeking an escape from the thunder on the track, and at end-May these aren’t overrun yet. A trip to Misano is, as you can see, more than worth it – and, don’t forget, even San Marino is just round the corner.