Another TQ run for Tessmann as Ronnefalk breaks

It was another TQ run for Ty Tessmann at the 1:8 Offroad World Championships in Australia as the Canadian opened Day 2 of qualifying with a considerably slower time for the 10-minute compared to yesterday.  Topping Q2 with a time of 10:08.083 compared to today’s pace of 10:12.716, Tessmann led an Xray 1-2 with Bruno Coelho topping his heat for his best points so far. Having taken the opening round of qualifying, it wasn’t to be a good start to Wednesday’s action for reigning champion David Ronnefalk.  On his third lap, the HB Racing driver ‘donkey flipped’ his buggy on the right side of the track leading to a broken suspension arm.  A strong run from Spanish Mugen driver Juan Carlos Canas would see him complete the Top 3 ahead of team-mates Ryan Maifield and Robert Batlle.  Former Worlds Top Qualifier Elliot Boots, who so far hasn’t featured strongly, would be the top Kyosho for the third round with his first Top 6 run.

Commenting on his latest run, Tessmann said, ‘It went ok. We changed some stuff on the car, some was good, some was bad.  We have more stuff to try in the next round’.  The 2014 World Champion added, ‘It wasn’t my cleanest run. I had a bobble on the back stairs and also some traffic so I’m happy to be on pace’.  Choosing to run Pro-Line’s Buckshot S2 tyre, the current ROAR Champion said, ‘it was the right tyre for the conditions. The track was pretty dusty without being blown off (between rounds)’.

A rather pleased looking Coelho said, ‘It was a very good run. Even though I had three big mistakes I still finished second’.  The versatile Portuguese driver continued, ‘All the mistakes were my own fault and they cost me maybe 5-6 second so without it could have been a TQ run.  I need to improve on that part (his driving)’. Asked about his car, he replied, ‘finally I had a very good feeling from the car.  I’m very happy with the whole package. We changed a lot. The shocks, toe-in, camber, a lot of things. We are on a good way’.

Reacting to his Q3 performance Canas said, ‘the track is difficult and the car too’.  The 16-year-old, continued, ‘I am fighting with the car today. It was better yesterday. We need to make it more comfortable to drive’.  Having changed to less toe-in in the rear for the latest run, he will go back adding ‘the run could have been faster’, his time only 0.057 off Coelho.

A content Maifield described the round as ‘OK’ adding, ‘we made a lot of changes to the car to make it safe for the mains but it was probably too safe’.  The American continued, ‘overall it was a relatively clean run. Nothing crazy. I had a mistake in the pits when I braked for another car and hit the wall which cost me a second’.  For the second of the day’s qualifiers, he will ‘make a rear shock change and go up in the rear diff again’.

‘Overall it was OK, it was a Top 5 run the car is not so good’, was Batlle’s summary of his performance.  The 2012 World Champion explained, ‘the rear is squatting even more than yesterday.  We had good speed but we need to improve the squat more for the next one’.  The Spanish driver said he also had ‘a lot of traffic with Ty’,  I let him passed and he crashed and then I had to let him go again. At least we have 3 good results and we need one more to make a good final.  That is the target for now’.

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Tessmann tops Q2 in Perth

Ty Tessmann has topped the opening day of qualifying’s second round at the 1:8 Offroad World Championships in Perth, Australia. Fifth in Q1, the Xray driver was fastest on his second attempt ahead of fellow Heat 1 runner Ryan Maifield by 9/10ths of a second.  Running in Heat 2, the track getting one of its scheduled waterings before the first two heats, Q1 Top Qualifier David Ronnefalk was fastest of that group to complete the overall Top 3 ahead of Robert Batlle, Dakotah Phend and Juan Carlos Canas.  Quickest in yesterday’s controlled practice to go into qualifying as the Top Seed, the day didn’t improve for Davide Ongaro. The Team Associated driver suffered a costly error in Q1 but ended up with a DNF for Q2 as he lost a wheel while on a TQ pace run.

I think we can get more out of the car so we will make changes for tomorrow.”

Ty Tessmann

Reacting to his TQ run, Tessmann said, ‘I thought it went pretty good. It was a little dusty but the guys after had it dusty too. On the down steps I got a little squirrelly and had to correct it but otherwise it was a clean run’. The former World Champion continued, ‘I tried a different tyre, S2 Invader, and it was good for these kind of conditions. We will keep an eye on how the track develops and the dust’. Looking to Q3, drivers from the top 5 heats not up until midday compared with the 08:00 start today, he said, ‘I think we can get more out of the car so we will make changes for tomorrow’.

I played a little strategy at the start and stayed in the pit so as to be on my own.”

Ryan Maifield

Commenting on his run Maifield said, ‘It was good. I tried to put in another clean run. I played a little strategy at the start and stayed in the pit so as to be on my own’.  The Arizona driver continued, ‘I drove pretty conservative. One or two laps I didn’t hit my marks but it cost 1 to 2 seconds most’.  On his car the Mugen driver said, ‘we made a few changes to improve the drivability for long runs. For tomorrow we will make a spring change and maybe also the rear diff but the big thing is to work out what tyre to be on’.  For Q2 he ran the same set of JConcepts’ new Blockers tyre he used in the opening qualifier saying they ran the same set to get an understanding of how the tyre, which is also an all new compound, wears’.

We kept the car the same to see how it was in the day time conditions and it felt good for the entire run.”

David Ronnefalk

‘It was not bad’ was how Ronnefalk summed up Q2. The defending World Champion added, ‘It was a good run with no mistakes although I touched the wall coming into the pits. I lost 1 to 1.5 seconds there but overall the car was very consistent again. I had a lot off traffic which cost me more time there. Without this and the pitlane mistake it would have been a TQ again for sure’. On his car the HB Racing driver said, ‘We kept the car the same to see how it was in the day time conditions and it felt good for the entire run. We can fine tune some fine details but we have the car for the final which is for sure the most important thing’.

We have enough speed and now we are already working on the final and what tyre to use.”

Robert Batlle

Only 11th in Q1 after two crashes on the triple, former World Champion Batlle was happier with Q2 describing the run as ‘not bad’. Describing his Mugen as quite easy to drive, the Spaniard added the car was ‘a little squatty on the rear’ and they need ‘to work on that for the next one’. Suffering a mistake that cost him 5-seconds and ending up 5-seconds off the TQ, he said, ‘we have enough speed and now we are already working on the final and what tyre to use’. Asked what he planned for Q3, he replied, we wait what and see. We have plenty of time. We have nearly 24-hours before we run again’.

There was a bunch of cars racing each other and I want to stay out of that tomorrow and race my ow race.”

Dakotah Phend

‘That was a little better. Less mistakes on my part. I drove a lot better’, was Phend’s view of his second qualifying attempt. The TLR driver added, ‘I will try to get a better starting position at the start. There was a bunch of cars racing each other and I want to stay out of that tomorrow and race my ow race’. On his car, the US driver said, ‘It got a little edgy at the end so we will try fix that. It just was just the last few laps so we’ll do nothing crazy of a change. Maybe in the shocks we’ll go with a thicker oil.’

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