Boots takes opening qualifier in Spain

Elliott Boots has TQ’d the opening round of qualifying at the 1:8 Offroad European Championships in Redovan, Spain.  The reigning champion was fastest over the first of the five 5-minute qualifiers from fellow British driver Darren Bloomfield, the former champion just under a second off the Kyosho driver.  Turning out to be an all Champions affair at the top of the time sheets, former back to back champion David Ronnefalk would post the third fastest time followed by former double champion Robert Batlle.  Having topped seeding yesterday Daniel Bernabe would struggle in the opening qualifier with a combination of running on new tyres that left him with an aggressive car and not getting the set-up on his SOAR correct for today’s cooler overcast conditions.  The Spaniard would also have a 4-second mistake on his last lap.  This left João Figueiredo to be the surprise of Q1 with last year’s Euro B Top Qualifier getting a P5 ahead of Neil Cragg who completed the Top 6.

‘The right start’, was Boots reaction to taking the opening qualifier adding, ‘we’ll try continue like that and hopefully get two more’.  Pleased with his Reds Racing powered MP9, leaving it unchanged from yesterday after it ran good in the morning shakedown despite yesterday’s beating sun being blocked today by clouds, he said the wind & traffic were his only issues.  With dust clouds sweeping across the track, he said, ‘the wind was really strong and was blowing the car around a lot so I was jumping low to be safe and get a banker in’.  Coming up on ‘a lot of traffic’ in the latter part of the qualifier, he said while ‘they didn’t hold (him) up much’ it did effect his rhythm a little leading to him catching the pipe once leading to a roll but luckily his car landed back on its wheels.  Running on Pro-Line’s Fugitive tyre, when asked if he planned any changes for Q2 he replied, ‘we’ll stick with it’.

‘I put qualifying tyres back on but to be honest I didn’t think I’d get second, I really happy with second’, was how Bloomfield summed up Q1.  Using the two seeding practices to test a final tyre, a Beta Hurricane, the Agama driver said this lost him between half and 1-second a lap and ending up P12 it was a ‘downer day’ but the focus was always on doing his own thing and working towards the final.  Switching to a medium compound V-Max tyre this morning, the 2012 Champion had the speed again but added ‘the tyre got a bit soft and chewing gummy at the end but you need this compound for the speed’.  Asked about his plans for Q2, he replied, ‘just keep clicking them rounds off so leave the car the same’.

Batlle declared Q1 as ‘not bad’ adding ‘1-second off TQ is almost nothing’.  Switching to a softer compound of Procircuit’s new prototype tyre, the 2007 & 11 Champion said ‘in the beginning it was OK but the last 2 laps were tricky’.   With ‘a lack of traction’ from his MBX7R, the Spaniard said while the tyre was one factor he feels some of the lack of traction was in the set-up.  Planning to go to a harder compound he added ‘we will also make a few (car) changes for the next one’.

‘A pretty good start’ was Ronnefalk’s view of his P4 time.  The HB Racing driver added, ‘I didn’t have any big mistakes, just touched the piping but I did have a big coming together with the wind which cost me a few tenths’.  The Swede said after a not so good shakedown, the ‘driver made a big improvement’ for Q1.  Continuing to run on AKA’s Zipps tyre, the Warm-up Race winner said the plan for Q2 in terms of his D815 was to ‘keep it like it is’.

‘Awesome’ was Figueiredo’s reaction to his posting the fifth fastest time adding, ‘I did expect to be a good’.  The 19-year-old Kyosho driver said adding weight to his MP9 had improved the car but running in the same heat as Bloomfield, Batlle and Ronnefalk he said the key to his run was to ‘keep rhythm with the others’.  Using Hot Race’s new Amazzonia tyre in medium compound the Portuguese driver will leave everything unchanged for Q2 and focus on his driving.

Team Associated’s Neil Cragg said his improved performance was down to ‘finally getting used to the track’ continuing ‘it’s a daunting track to learn’.  The former electric offroad World Champion said the aim has been to ‘keep improving, keep improving but (they) made a big step yesterday evening (with set-up)’.  Describing his drive to the P6 time as ‘nothing special’ he said it was an ‘80% drive to get a banker and (they will) pick up from there’.  In terms of his LRP powered RC8B, he said ‘on track it feels dialled’ but added ‘I’m loosing time on the whoops and I’m not sure if its me or the car but there is time to be got there. Right now its not easy on the eye (in the whoops)’. Behind Cragg, Spanish driver Jorge Soler, Italian Marco Baruffolo, event host Oscar Baldo and former champion Yannick Aigoin completed the Top 10.

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Bernabe Top Seed as pace proves genuine

Having surprised the entire paddock at RC Redovan when he was fastest in the opening timed practice, Daniel Bernabe quashed all question marks over his time by again topping the second & final practice at the 1:8 Offroad European Championships.  Improving on his earlier 3-consecutive laps by 1-second, the SOAR driver again topped the times in Spain from defending Champion Elliott Boots, the Kyosho driver also bettering his CP1 time by 8/10ths. Pretty much a repeat of CP1, David Ronnefalk would again post the third fastest time, the HB Racing driver finding a similar improvement in time to Boots.  Behind the former champion, Mugen’s Bryan Baldo will be seeded 4th for qualifying at his home race with Xray’s Martin Wollanka improving from 12th after the first practice to get P5 just ahead of Robert Batlle.

Admitting to being as surprised as everyone else competing at the 36th running of the European Championships, Bernabe said it as an ‘awesome feeling’ to be able to back up his opening performance with another P1 time.  Only making a front droop change to his OS powered 998, the 22-year-old said the track changed between rounds and ‘it took (him) a few laps to get used to it’. Asked about if he felt he could transfer his quick 3-lap pace into a good 5-minute qualifying time, the Spaniard replied he was ‘pretty confident’ adding he feels ‘the consistency is there for a good time over the 5-minutes’.  With SOAR boss Didian Ho doing all the work on Bernabe’s car, the Taiwanese car designer said the big call for the first qualifier will be on tyre compound and diffs. Running Pro-Line Fugitive tyres, he said the actual track temperature as opposed to the air temperature would decide what way they go with him considering going up 1K in the diff oils if it proves as hot as today.

Keen to find out more about Bernabe’s background, Boots said overall ‘we are looking good and for the last one I was trying to go for a longer run (rather than 3-laps)’.  Suffering ‘a few bobbles with the wind’, the British driver added in qualifying ‘you’re going to need a lot of luck with the wind’.  Focusing on consistency for qualifying he added, ‘we have the right set-up and tyres and we will go into to the first one as we are’.  Asked who he felt looked strong for qualifying, Boots replied ‘obviously this guy (Bernabe) but Robert (Batlle), David (Ronnefalk) and the Baldo brothers are going to be there’.

‘I felt the car was faster that time so it was pretty good’, was how Ronnefalk summed up CP2.  The former back to back champion said while there were ‘slightly too soft in the shocks’ on his D815 this wasn’t a big thing and depending on the temperature at the time of Q1 they will adjust that if needed.  Hampered by coming together twice with a backmarker in the final practice which ‘cost (him) a few laps’, the 20-year-old said ‘the speed is there and I feel very good with the car’.  Having been evaluating both AKA Enduro and Zipps tyres, he said he is ‘pretty sure to use Zipps’ adding while the times are the same ‘the feeling with (Zipps) is better for me’.

Not improving his CP2 time as much as his rivals, Bryan Baldo was slightly disappointed but together with his brother Oscar he said they are already working on a package for longer races namely the Semi Finals. Changing to a harder rear spring on his MBX7R he said this made for better stability in the long jumps with the wind.  Describing the car as ‘really good now’, on tyres he said he plans to run Procircuit’s new unnamed tyre through qualifying and into the finals.  Asked if they had enough of the prototype tyres available he said while they had limited numbers there was enough to see him through the rest of the event.

Wollanka said while his car felt ‘very good’ in the first practice a number of changes for CP2 had made it ‘near perfect’.  Changing his rear diff, switching from a lexan to a plastic wing, and mounting his tyres differently, the Austrian improved his time by over 2-seconds.  Running tyres from leading onroad foam tyre manufacturer and offroad newcomer Hot Race for the the Euros, the former podium finisher said mounting their medium compound Roma pattern the opposite way round had made his XB8 more aggressive.  Asked if he planned any changes for the first qualifier he hinted that he might try a different bodyshell saying he would run ‘almost the same’ set-up for Q1.

‘Not bad’ was how Batlle summed up his controlled practice pointing out that being 0.9 of a second off over three such long laps was ‘nothing’.  Mugen’s lead driver said a tyre and shock change for the last round had left his Ultimate powered MBX7R to ‘push a little in front’ but otherwise ‘the car feels good’ adding ‘its so easy to drive and consistent’. With a 5-minute shakedown practice in the morning he said he hoped to find a little steering in that and asked about going into the first qualifier he replied, ‘I’m happy’.

Continuing to lead the challenge of Italy’s young guns, Davide Ongaro would end seeding 7th.  The reigning European Junior Champion, having finished 4th overall at the Euros at his home track in Sicile last year, has run his car pretty much unchanged throughout practice. With the 15-year-old showing well on the time sheets, the Mugen driver said he doesn’t see a reason to change the set-up for Q1.  After Ongaro the next best Italian in seeding is Kyosho’s Riccardo Berton, last year’s 6th place finisher sits 11th ahead of former Champion Darren Bloomfield.

Working on getting his car ready for long run focusing on consistency rather than outright speed, Oscar Baldo was pleased with P8.  The 19-year-old said his MBX7R had good consistency and he was ‘happy now’ with his package although in CP2 they ran his engine on the rich side.  Behind Oscar, Serpent’s Joern Neumann improved in CP2 to claim ninth with Finland’s infamous Joseph Quagraine rounding out the Top 10.

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