Eurocup Mégane Trophy - Spa-Francorchamps - Race 1
Oregon Team's Stefano Comini continues to rack up the points. Having won both races at Motorland Aragon, the Swiss driver continued his winning streak at Spa-Francorchamps to build on an already comfortable lead.
His latest victory came at the end of a frantic race that saw TDS Racing's Bas Schothorst crash out at Eau Rouge. Comini was joined on the podium by Team Lompech Sport's Dimitri Enjalbert and Boutsen Energy Racing's Fabien Thuner.
By now an old hand in single-seater racing, Stefano Comini, made a perfect job of qualifying. The Swiss driver started his weekend with two pole positions, each time leading Bas Schothorst. The second row for the first race of the weekend consisted of Niccolo Nalio and David Dermont.
However, the Belgian driver stalled on the starting grid and was out of the running even before the warm-up lap. Comini made the perfect start, but under braking at Combes, Schothorst set about the race leader, the two Mganes trading paintwork. While Comini held onto first place, Nalio took advantage of the confusion to climb up to second. The three drivers finished the first lap in close formation, followed not far behind by TDS Racing's Wim Beelen, and Boutsen Energy Racing's Dimitri Enjalbert, Fabien Thuner and Michele Faccin. While Comini began to build up a lead, Enjalbert was the main mover and shaker in the chasing pack. The Frenchman began by getting the jump on Wim Beelen before setting about Bas Shothorst.
The two drivers remained glued to Nalio, and Schothorst tried to attack, once again under braking at Combes. The outcome was the same as on the previous lap when Schothorst braked late and ran wide. Dimitri Enjalbert took advantage to snatch third, while Beelen span out. One lap later, Bas Schothorst lost control of his car at Eau Rouge, after his right rear axel gave up the ghost after he made contact with Michele Faccin. The safety car was brought out, resulting in heavy traffic in the pit lane as every driver made their mandatory pit stop during before the restart.
With the safety car back in the pits Comini continued to hold off Enjalbert, while in third Nalio contained Fabien Thuner. The foursome bade farewell to the chasing pack, led by Andrea Cecchelero who was enjoying a brilliant drive in fifth place in only his first Eurocup Mgane Trophy race. The Italian defended his place fiercely against Michele Faccin who lost a number of places when he connected with his countryman. Shortly after, he could be seen limping back to the pits bearing a number of battle scars.
Up in front, Nalio risked it all trying to overtake Enjalbert on the penultimate lap. His efforts were rewarded with a spin, which effectively handed third to Fabien Thuner. Stefano Comini cruised to victory for the third time in as many races, his adversaries misfortune allowing him to make a clean break at the top of the Eurocup Mgane Trophy points table. Quotes
Stefano Comini: That wasn't an easy race. The Safety Car undid all my hard work at the start of the race. As a result I had to really attack hard for the second part. My rivals misfortune really worked in my favour today. I'm on a roll and I need to keep it going. It's really great to win at Spa.
Dimitri Enjalbert: I nearly didn't drive in collective testing thanks to gearbox trouble. Qualifying didn't go too well either, and I started from 8th place. It was a great race though. I made up a lot of ground, and it's a terrific result. This circuit is often kind to me like that.
Fabien Thuner: This is my first podium finish in Eurocup Mgane Trophy! Like Dimitri, I didn't drive much in collective testing as I crashed out. I really needed this result. It's done wonders for my confidence.
