Commanding victory in the second race at the NürburgringPepper succeeds fellow countryman Kelvin van der LindeKremer finishes second, ahead of Fahnauer
Early bird Jordan Lee Pepper won his fifth race of the season in glorious sunshine, which saw him crowned champion in the Volkswagen Scirocco R-Cup before the end of the season. The 18-year-old South African was victorious in the race that started at 08:55 am at the Nürburgring, finishing with a 1.9 second lead over his arch rival Jason Kremer (D). This gives Pepper a 50-point advantage over second in the table Kremer in the overall standings ahead of the final race on 18 October at the Hockenheimring, and means that Kremer can no longer catch him due to the high number of victories this season.
The first to congratulate Pepper at the finish line was his father, then the new champion in the environmentally sound one-make cup climbed on top of his Cup-Scirocco holding a pit board with the words “P1 2014”. This sees Pepper take over from Kelvin van der Linde, who personally congratulated his fellow countryman on the winners' podium at the Nürburgring.
In perfect track conditions in the early hours of the morning, the second race of the weekend turned out to be an exciting one at the top right from the start. Pepper temporarily forfeited his leading position to Kremer on the second lap, but regained it promptly and, with nerves of steel, drove to an unchallenged victory.
Sweden's Victor Bouveng, who was in second place in the overall standings before the race, performed some spectacular overtaking manoeuvres to move up into third after starting from tenth on the grid. To keep things exciting in the championship he would have had to finish in at least second place, but he conceded his third place to Germany's Manuel Fahnauer. Bouveng finished fourth.
In the first race at the Nürburgring on Saturday, Kremer was victorious with a 0.4 second advantage over Jordan Lee Pepper in a dramatic race on a wet track. Victor Bouveng took third place on the final lap, to finish ahead of Junior Cup front runner Nicolaj Møller-Madsen (DK).
Quotes from the ninth race of the season at the Nürburgring
#17 Jordan Lee Pepper Qualifying 1 – Race 1: “A fantastic day, I'm over the moon. The race definitely felt like the longest of my life. It seemed like 14 laps on the Nordschleife. I was a bit nervous before the start. Then when Jason Kremer was suddenly ahead of me I knew that I had to regain the lead straight away. From that point on I didn't look in my rear-view mirror and then went wild at the checkered flag. The championship in the Volkswagen Scirocco R-Cup means so much to me, I can't put it into words. But this success wouldn't have been possible without my team, my dad and my sponsor Blue Label telecoms.”
Kelvin van der Linde, last year's champion in the Volkswagen Scirocco R-Cup: “A superb result for motorsport in my home country of South Africa. Jordan has performed terrifically all season and truly earned the title. It would be great if our successes paved the way for more young talent in South Africa to make it to Europe.”
#16 Jason Kremer Qualifying 2 – Race 2: “Of course I would have loved to win just like I did on Saturday, but you can't set your expectations too high either. Jordan Lee Pepper really is a great driver. I was able to take the lead briefly, but then he countered and overtook me. Now I'd like to congratulate him on his championship title. At the season finale in Hockenheim I would like to win again and be runner-up.”
#23 Victor Bouveng Qualifying 10 – Race 4: “I made up a few places at the start and was in third place. But then my tyres started to wear quite a bit and I had to reduce my speed slightly. Congratulations to Jordan Lee Pepper on his championship victory, we've had a great battle this year. At the final race in Hockenheim I want to do my best to finish second in the overall standings.”
#20 Manuel Fahnauer Qualifying 6 – Race 3: “I had a very good start from sixth on the grid, I was able to make up two places instantly. I asserted myself in exciting battles for position with Nicolaj Møller-Madsen and Victor Bouveng. But I wasn't able to do much about Jason, he had much more push-to-pass than me. The weekend wasn't easy for me. There is such a high level of ability here that if you make a minor error you are out of the running instantly.”
