JImage: Image: Jakub Przygonski and Manuel Vacca perform during the fourth round of the Drift Masters European Championship in Riga, Latvia on July 29, 2023.
Jack Shanahan triumphs at wet and wild DMEC fourth round in Riga - Irishman defeats Nikolas Bertans in an exciting final showdown.
Jack Shanahan overcame extreme weather and the rest of a talented field of competitors as he emerged victorious during Round 4 of the Drift Masters European Championship (DMEC) at the Bikernieku Trase in Riga, Latvia. Here is all you need to know:
- With the weather causing havoc across the weekend, drivers were forced to compete in the persistant rain and deal with extremely slippery conditions, making it almost impossible for the competitors to remain in control of their cars.
- Despite the challenges, Irish driver Shanahan managed to weather the storm as he secured victories over Felix Lindvall, Marco Zakouril, his brother Conor Shanahan and Juha Rintanen to reach the final.
- In a thrilling finale that had spectators on the edge of their seats, the older Shanahan brother was able to master the testing conditions as he secured victory over Latvian young-gun Nikolas “Nik Nak” Bertans.
- Finnish driver Rintanen took the final place on the podium, with Irishman Duane McKeever finished fourth after suffering a gearbox failure in his Top 8 battle and being unable to compete in either his Top 4 of Play-Off battle.
- That was far from the only dramatic moment of the weekend as defending champion Piotr Wiecek was knocked out in the Top 32 stage by local driver Bertans in a stunning upset, which will make it incredibly difficult for him to retain his title.
- Former champion Adam Zalewski also fell at the Top 32 stage after losing to McKeever, while Finnish driver Lauri Heinonen, who came into this weekend in second place overall in the standings, fell at the Top 8 stage.
- The 2023 Drift Masters European Championship season now moves to Germany for Round 5 running from August 17-19, before the grand finale in Poland on September 15-16.
2023 Drift Masters European Championship driver standings (After four of six rounds)
1. Jack Shanahan IRL 296 pts
2. Conor Shanahan 265
3. Juha Rintanen FIN 260
4. Lauri Heinonen FIN 251
5. Duane McKeever IRL 245
