January 7, 2018

Neumann wins opening 4WD encounter

Joern Neumann was a surprise winner of the opening A-Main of 4WD at the DHI Cup, the new Schumacher signing benefiting from mistakes from both his team-mate Michal Orlowski and young Swedish star Elias Johansson.  Starting from the TQ, freshly crown 2WD champion Orlowski would make a mistake allowing Johansson to go to the front.  Chasing down the Associated driver, the Pole would touch wheels with the 2WD runner up with sending his car flying off the track with it getting caught up in the sponsor banners of the drivers stand.  Losing around 4-seconds Orlowski would rejoin behind Neumann, with Johansson looking good for the win but with little over a minute to run he would make a mistake in the centre section of the track rolling onto the straight with both Schumacher’s getting through.  Neumann would see off Orlowski while a second mistake would prevent Johansson from trying to retake the lead with him crossing the line 3rd.

‘I was a little lucky the others crashed and I could keep it on four wheels’, was how Neumann viewed his win.  The former Champion said, ‘My car was a little edgy to drive but it was better than in qualifying’. Looking to A2, he said, ‘I will put more glue on the tyres to make it easier to drive’.

Orlowski said, ‘It started of well but I made a driver error at the table top.  After that I had to push quite hard and I guess I was quite impatient and touched Elias’ tyre and lost a lot of time under the drivers stand. Then I just tried to run the best laps I can and he had a mistake which let me and Joern through and I’m pretty happy to finish 1-2 with Joern’.  Setting the fastest lap of the race, asked about his car, the 16-year-old said, ‘we will make a small change for the next one to try make it less responsive’.

Describing his car as ‘a little aggressive’, Johansson said of the race, ‘It was really good for the first half but then I made a mistake and Michal & Joern got by me.  Then I had one more mistake so third was the best I could do’.  Looking to run a less aggressive car for A2 he will leave the car set-up unchanged but switch to his other set of tyres.

View the complete event results here.

View our event image gallery here.

January 7, 2018

Prumper wins A2 from Rheinard

Yannic Prumper has won the second A-Main at the DHI Cup, the Yokomo driver taking full advantage of a bad first lap from his team-mate and Top Qualifier Ronald Volker. Off the start Volker would run wide in the first corner allowing the second place starting Prumper to go to the front but things got worse as chaos broke out in the pack with Volker being given a Stop & Go penalty.  All this played into the hands of Prumper who quickly found himself with huge advantage but once Marc Rheinard got up to speed that lead was greatly reduced with it looking like the Infinity driver had the legs to beat his fellow German.  It wasn’t to be however as a mistake by Rheinard on the penultimate lap allowed Prumper hang on for the win.  Benefiting from the first lap dramas, Viktor Wilck would complete the Top 3 just holding off Elliott Harper.

‘I was lucky at the start’ said Prumper, adding, ‘Ronald had oversteer in the first corner and then in the 2nd corner flipped and crashed everyone. It was a perfect start for me’. He continued, ‘I took it easy because I had such a big gap but then Rheinard came after me.  I didn’t have the same pace as A1 but luckily he made a mistake and I could hold on for the win’.  With everything to be decided in A3, Prumper is confident he can get the speed back in his car by running ‘less rear toe in’ concluding, ‘it should be fine again’.

‘Its all open in A3’ was Rheinard’s view after A2.  The Infinity driver continued, ‘there was chaos at the start. Ronald spun out and then at the next left jumped the boards and there was a mess.  My body tucked and was rubbing at the front and causing a crazy noise. I had no steering. After that I just tried to get the best out of it and tried to catch Yannic but I ran out of time.  I was on his tail but then had a mistake coming onto the straight.’

Asked what had happened at the first corner, Volker replied, ‘this time I ran out of luck’.  Chasing an 8th DHI Cup title, the German said, ‘I swapped to my second set of tyres and went very wide in the first corner. I had way more oversteer than I expected and the next corner it was completely loose so to get out of the way I jumped the board but the referee called a Stop & Go which ended my race’.  Setting the fastest lap of the race, the World Champion said, ‘the decision to change to those tyre was correct as the car was better after 2-laps but for the next one I need to do extra warm up laps’.

View the complete event results here.

View our event image gallery here.