Weather conditions for Saturday were markedly better than set-up day, with plenty of sunshine and blue sky. The track has also settled in very nicely.
The going is hard pack but with a clay surface in many parts, so if it is wet, it is very slippery on top, but with the sun now out, I would say the surface is at its best. This was borne out by a conversation with Tim Leferink who told me exactly that. “It rides well, and the jumps are perfect” he said with a smile on his face. Sadly, the numbers are down, with only twenty-three teams lining up across the two groups. Nonetheless, this will only affect the television viewing spectacle in qualifying, when only ten or eleven teams will be out at one time across the two groups. When it comes to the Grand Prix races, the quality will be there by the bucket load.
The timed practice sessions and practice starts showed us what to expect as the teams got to grips with the track and were able to establish some clear lines. With plenty of width, there were several line options available
Timed Practice –
The thirty-second window is plenty of time in which to find a fast lap, particularly when there is very little traffic. At half-distance of the Group “A” session, Killian and Evan Prunier showed why they were double winners here last year going almost two seconds faster than Koen Hermans/Dion Rietman in second place. Tim Prummer/Patrick Schneider were almost identical with Hermans, recording a 1.44.222 time, just two thousandths down on the defending champion. Shortly after, Prummer edged ahead of Hermans to move second fastest. Two laps later he improved still further to get within one second of the red plate holders. Prunier meanwhile, had banged in a 1.42.458 on lap four to stake his claim to first gate choice. Tim and Sem Leferink were best of the rest, with Koen Grondman/Ross Vincent a fine sixth fastest behind Veldman/Lebreton in fifth.
Group “B” was shortly underway with Davy Sanders/Jens Vincent setting the benchmark early on, followed by the Wilkinson/Millard left-handed outfit. Lap three and Marvin Vanluchene/Ben van den Bogaart had jumped to the top, but more than two seconds down on Prunier.
At half-distance, there was obviously more to come, but from whom?
Lap eight gave an idea, Marvin was 1.42.908, so he was getting closer to the Prunier Group ”A” time, setting up what was bound to be fascinating qualifying races. Just four-tenths of a second split Wilkinson, Sanders and Adrian Peter in the battle for second fastest. Stephan Wijers and Gwendal Carcreff were scrapping for fifth place. At the final turn of the wheels, Davy Sanders went second fastest, nudging Brett Wilkinson down one place.
Group “A” Qualification –
When the gate dropped, there was only going to be one winner, and it was the red plate of Killian/Evan Prunier which hit the front. The French champions were revelling here, and it showed.
They were pressured in the early stages by Tim Prummer/Patrick Schneider who held second for half race distance ahead of Tim/Sem Leferink and an impressive Koen Grondman/Ross Vincent. The youngsters had a good ride but eventually succumbed to both Julian Veldman/Rodolphe Lebreton and Koen Hermans/Dion Rietman. This pair of outfits finished fourth and fifth, with Grondman holding sixth ahead of van de Lagemaat/van Hal.
Prunier’s speed at the front was such that he opened an eighteen-second gap from the Leferinks and never looked troubled. This was a stunning display from the French champions who must feel very confident for tomorrow.
With such a small grid, there was no close fighting once the race had settled down, but that did not detract from the result and the points earned. All eyes are now on tomorrow and the Grand Prix races proper.
Result –
1/Prunier/Prunier, 2/Leferink/Leferink, 3/Prummer/Schneider, 4/Veldman/Lebreton, 5/Hermans/Rietman, 6/Grondman/Vincent, 7/Van de Lagemaat/van Hal
Group “B” Qualification –
Marvin Vanluchene/Ben van den Bogaart did a carbon copy of Prunier’s hole shot from the very same gate position to grab the lead in this one. Davy Sanders/Jens Vincent and Brett Wilkinson/Joe Millard went with them and immediately set after Vanluchene. His speed was a bit special, and he actually did his fastest lap on the opener, tripping the timing beam just after turn one and never looking back.
Adrian Peter/Julian Zimmermann were in a great fourth place, and held the pace very well, stretching a gap from the chasing Stephan Wijers/Joel Hoffmann and the Chanteloup brothers. These Frenchmen rode a good race and were able to capitalise on lap seven when Brett Wilkinson stopped out of second place having battled past Sanders on lap three. He spent agonising seconds trying to fire the thing up, and eventually he did, getting going, but dropping to fifth. Battling back, he caught and passed the Chanteloups, with Adrian Peter just a bridge too far.
Vanluchene meanwhile had opened a twenty-second lead and looked totally in command.
Result –
1/Vanluchene/van den Bogaart, 2/Sanders/Vincent, 3/Peter/Zimmermann, 4/Wilkinson/Millard, 5/Chanteloup/Chanteloup, 6/Wijers/Hoffmann, 7/Carcreff/Gouin
Two Grand Prix races on this fantastic track take place tomorrow along with an action-packed Quad line-up in their two GP races. Check out all the latest on www.fimsidecarcross.com along with all our social media outlets.
From Barry Nutley
