FA EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP (3rd ROUND) – 100 ICA EUROPEAN FINAL AMPFING (GERMANIA), 18th/19th/20th AUGUST

WITTMANN – UNLUCKY PROTAGONIST

THE GERMAN DRIVER HAS A GREAT WEEKEND BUT, BECAUSE OF DIFFICULT TRACK CONDITIONS DUE TO THE RAIN, HE GOES OFF THE TRACK WHILE FIGHTING FOR VICTORY. IN FA, BOTH CESETTI AND LANCASTER GIVE GOOD INDICATIONS IN VIEW OF THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP.

Marco Wittmann was the super-favourite on the eve of the Euro Ica to be held on the track at Ampfing, in his native Germany. But the pressures and the unexpected events of a race held in a single test influenced the positive results the German driver would otherwise have fully deserved. The final day was characterised by incessant rain, both in the morning during the last leg, and in the afternoon during the pre-final and the Final. After having played a key role during the qualifying rounds and the preliminary heats on Saturday, Wittmann went off the track while in the lead during the last leg, which was raced on a wet track. Consequently he had to start the pre-final in 17th position and this seemed to jeopardize his race for the title. Mancinelli and Fontner were in the first row, followed by Bellanca, Beily, Laine and Nolè. The British driver, Millroy, and Maring, from Germany, respectively 9th and 10th, both with Birel chassis, achieved great results during the rounds raced in dry conditions but lost several positions when the weather turned wet. At the Pre-final start on the other hand, Marco Wittmann was the undisputed protagonist, as he climbed back up to 5th position, immediately behind the leaders (achieving in the meantime the fastest lap of the race). But when he was getting ready for the final attack, 5 laps from the end, the incredible happened: the accelerator cable snapped and Wittmann was obliged to withdraw. For the German driver this meant having to start the Final in 24th position. Nolè won the pre-final, and preceded Laine, Baily, Joniken and Abbasse. Millroy ended in 9th place, whereas among the potential protagonists of the Final, Mancinelli (23rd), Tambay (28th), Zipoli and Piccioni, respectively 30th and 31st, although Dreezen and Vanthoor (Birel-Gks), who did not even manage to complete the first lap, did not make it. The first unbelievable event of the final came from the referee who made the drivers start the race with slick tyres despite the track being thoroughly wet. Because the race is being broadcast live, they did not want to waste time, and thus mishandled the Final for one of the most important titles for both drivers and manufacturers. Once again however, the extreme conditions heightened Wittmann’s performance; within the first few laps the driver managed to climb from 24th to 3rd position, thus rejoining the race for the title. But conditions were extremely difficult and, after a series of incredible overtaking manoeuvres, the representative of Birel Motorsport found himself in a duel with the French driver, Lacaze who, after bumping into Wittmann at the downhill variant before the final part of the track, rams into the German driver once again and then overtakes him. These two manoeuvres, barely within the rules, made Wittmann nervous with the result that he attempted a new attack and collided with his opponent. As a result, both drivers were forced to withdraw 12 laps from the end, when the leaders were less than 3” away, a margin which could easily have been bridged. Abbasse crossed the finishing line first but the referee penalised him with 5” for having slightly cut the last variant during the final lap. Nolè therefore won over the French driver and Joniken came third. Dreezen managed to climb up to 4th position and Laurens Venthoort also managed to climb back from the last placings, concluding the race in 8th position. In Formula A on the other hand, the Birel’s official drivers (Cesetti, Lancaster and Ristano) were not able to compete to gain points in the tables and focussed on some technical developments in view of the World Championship of Angerville. Cesetti did very well during the various rounds but, because of an engine break-down that occurred during the last race, he was obliged to start Race 1 in 18th position. Lancaster on the other hand achieved 10th position but had to work harder than the Italian driver to give a constant performance, similarly to Risitano, who was also penalised by a technical problem. The British driver Jamie Croxford ( Birel –Pf International) on the other hand did quite well: thanks to a victory, a 5th and a 4th position in the legs, he achieved 4th position in the starting grid behind Bianchi, Christensen and Convers. Race 1 was held on a wet track, the rain starting to fall a few minutes before the start. The race’s outcome was therefore a gamble: many drivers decided for a certain set up in anticipation of the rain lasting throughout the race, whereas other drivers had bet on a dry finish to the race. The French driver Bianchi cleverly decides on a compromise between tyre pressure and set up and conquers a well-deserved success, followed by Christodoulou who, in difficulty with Ardigò and out of the reach of the scoring zone, gets back into the race for the title. Catt climbs on the third step of the podium, although the British driver’s race is tainted by a highly controversial manoeuvre (overtaking with contact) at the last turn, when he took the podium away from Lichtfield (Birel –Pf International), who therefore finished in 4th place. Forè ended in 5th place in front of Thonon, Christensen, Cesetti and Croxford. Lancaster on the other hand was K.O.’d by his engine, although he redeemed himself in Race 2, when he managed to climb up finishing in 7th place, the first Birel driver following the withdrawal of Cesetti due to engine problems. During the first stages of the race, the Italian driver was in 3rd position, then he was betrayed by his engine. Lichfield had the same fate; having opted for wet weather gear, the driver ended up breaking down towards the end, when the track was virtually dry. To be fair the Referee decided the race should start with rain tyres although the track was progressively drying up; once again TV requirements prevailed over sports requirements. The hybrid set up also penalised Croxford who finished 12th. Victory (his 1st in Formula A) went to Christensen, who preceded Iglesias and Bianchi. Christodolulou could have pinched the title from Ardigò (still in the shadows, finishing only in 10th position), but a spin put an end to his chances. Having concluded the European Championship, Formula A is now beginning to turn to the World Championship, which will be held on the first weekend of October in France. The Motorsport team has been working in view of this event and will get back on the track for a series of tests with all its drivers on the same French track. The next international event will be the World Cup of 125 Sicc, which will be held at Mariembourg on 3rd September. This important race will be broadcast live by Eurosport 2; among the drivers who will be competing for success are the reigning champion Francesco Laudato, of Birel, and Manuel Cozzaglio who, for this occasion, will also be supported by Cesetti.