Ronnefalk to defend title from pole

Just as he did last year enroute to winning his first 1:8 Offroad European Championship title, David Ronnefalk will start the Main Final in Sand am Main from pole position.  Top Qualifier for the event the Kyosho driver cruised to an easy win over the man who he took the title from Darren Bloomfield but it was the second of the Semi Finals that provided the drama.  On target for a repeat of Ronnefalk’s domination of the first Semi, World Champion Robert Batlle’s Mugen would in the final 30-seconds of the 20-minute encounter come to a halt coming up the hill due to a battery failure.  Luckily for the Spaniard, who won the last time the championships were hosted at the German track, he had completed just enough laps to claim sixth despite not going the full distance, the last bump up position, to progress to the final.

The benchmark for all his rivals all week, Ronnefalk showed no signs of slowing, the exceptionally composed Swede was never really threatened in the Semi.  The only driver to run multiple 27-second laps the Swede said the race went exactly to plan although he felt Bloomfield had good speed and if it weren’t for mistakes by the 2012 Champion the race might not have been as easy.  Describing his Orion powered Kyosho as ‘perfect’, he declared everything as being ‘all good for the final’.

Bloomfield said to be starting the Main second was ‘better than expected’.  The factory Agama driver said ‘job one was to get in the final’ and they have accomplished that and starting at the front of the grid is ‘even better’.  Managing his first 27-lap of the week, he said had it not been for a ‘scrappy finish’ to the race he could have been closer to Ronnefalk, the final gap being around 4-seconds short of a lap.  Looking to tweak his A8 for the 1-hour final he will be going up in his shock oil and make a droop adjustment as well as fitting a fresh clutch to his Bullitt engine.  Team-boss Jon Hazlewood was pleased with his driver making the final quoting that Lego Movie theme tune in that ‘everything is awesome’.

Third in the Semi A, last year’s podium finisher Martin Bayer summed up his race as ‘good, I’m in the final’.  The Czech Team Xray driver said he was ‘lacking rotation’ from his LRP powered XB8 and should he have any time left after rebuilding the buggy’s centre diff he will look at making a set-up change but added the 1-hour final, in which he start 5th, will make ‘everything different anyway’.

Xray team-mate Renaud Savoya would take the win of the Semi B following Batlle’s drama.  The 3-time champion said the Semi practice didn’t go as planned and this left him ‘not very confident’ for the race.  While his Orion powered XB8 was ‘super easy’ to drive he said it was ‘a little too slow’ and so he had to play an ‘old guy driving style’ which he said worked out well him managing to go 15-minutes without a mistake.  He said the main thing is he is in the final, and having started 7th last year and finished second, starting 3rd now ‘everything is to play for’.

‘Alright’ was how Boots described his second place, 5-seconds behind Savoya.  The World Championship Top Qualifier said in addition to making a few mistakes he struggled with a lack of rotation from his Reds Racing powered Kyosho.  Running Pro-Line’s X2 Suburb and with it cooler than previous runs he said he will probably make a combined set-up and tyre change for the final to try and improve the cars steering.

Making Kyosho the most represented manufacturer in the final, privateer racer Christoffer Svensson was delighted at making the final for the third year in row.  The 23-year-old Swede said he got caught up with Savoya early on and that lost him contact with the lead pack. Battling with Lee Martin and Yannick Aigoin for the all important 6th position he said by the end he was able to get clear of that battle.  Decribing his OS Speed powered MP9 as ‘excellent’ he said with a few less crashes he should be ‘hooked up’ for the final.

Relieved at getting his Novarossi powered Mugen into the final after  suffering a receiver battery failure, Batlle said starting from 10th was not ideal but he’d take it.  Very happy with the pace of his car in the race he said two laps before his MBX7 came to a stop up the hill he could feel something was not right.  Feeling he has the same pace as Ronnefalk he said anything can happen over 1-hour of hard racing.

For the first time in a long time the European Championship will start without one of France’s famous Aigoin brothers among the starting 12.  Top Qualifier of this race in 2011, Jerome could only manage 7th the Semi-A while 2012 World Finalist Yannick ended up 8th.

Main-Final Grid
1. David Ronnefalk – Kyosho/Orion
2. Darren Bloomfield – Agama/Bullitt
3. Renaud Savoya – Xray/Orion
4. Elliott Boots – Kyosho/Reds Racing
5. Martin Bayer – Xray/LRP
6. Christoffer Svensson – Kyosho/OS Speed
7. Carsten Keller – Kysoho/Bullitt
8. Lee Martin – Mugen/Beat
9. Martin Wollanka – Xray/FX
10.Robert Batlle – Mugen/Novarossi
11.Joseph Quagraine – JQ/Reds Racing
12.Teemu Leino – HB/Novarossi

Semi Final A Result
1. David Ronnefalk – Kyosho/Orion – 42/20:16.135
2. Darren Bloomfield – Agama/Bullitt – 41/20:12.999
3. Martin Bayer – Xray/LRP – 41/20:21.525
4. Martin Wollanka – Xray/FX – 41/20:29.321
5. Joseph Quagraine – JQ/Reds Racing – 40/20:04.517
6. Teemu Leino – HB/Novarossi – 40/20:04.725
7. Jerome Aigoin – Kyosho/Novarossi – 40/20:15.267
8. Joern Neumann – Team Durango/FX – 40/20:15.467
9. Hupo Honigl – Team C/Novarossi – 40/20:25.026
10.Jack Embling – Mugen/Beat – 40/20:29.673
11.Alex Zanchettin – TLR/Novarossi – 39/20:06.033
12.Dominic Bauer – Mugen/Alpha – 6/3:11.471

Semi Final B Result
1. Renaud Savoya – Xray/Orion – 41/20:13.269
2. Elliott Boots – Kyosho/Reds Racing – 41/20:18.412
3. Christoffer Svensson – Kyosho/OS Speed – 41/20:23.502
4. Carsten Keller – Kysoho/Bullitt – 41/20:25.540
5. Lee Martin – Mugen/Beat – 41/20:26.899
6. Robert Batlle – Mugen/Novarossi – 40/19:21.070
7. Miguel Matias – Xray/RB – 40/20:10.055
8. Yannick Aigoin – Associated/Ultimate – 40/20:14.420
9. Daniel Reckward – RB/RB – 40/20:16.345
10.Hannes Käufler – TLR/Reds Racing – 40:20:24.555
11.Fabrizio Teghesi – Kyosho/OS Speed – 39/20:02.288
12.Byran Baldo – Mugen/Novarossi – 39/20:12.056

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Semi-Final line-up complete

With the week starting out with 169 drivers only 24 now remain in contention to become the 34th 1:8 Offroad European Champion at Sand am Main with the 1/4 Finals deciding the 8 drivers who will join the 16 direct qualifiers in the Semi Finals.

In the first of the 20-minute 1/4 final encounters it was Italian star Alex Zanchettin who took the win taking his TLR to a comfortable win over former finalist Hupo Honigl.  Starting from 10th on the grid having bumped from qualifying for the 1/8 Final, Honigl had a good run with the Austrian taking his Team C through the field and bump for a second time.  Young chargers Jack Embling and Dominic Bauer completed the all important Top 4 to secure their places in the Semi, the Mugen duo having a good battle with the separation only 0.450 as they crossed the finish line.

In the second of the 1/4 Finals, former Champion Miguel Matias took a comfortable win to progress.  Starting from pole and setting the fastest lap of the race, the Portuguese Team Xray driver took the win over fellow former champion Daniel Reckward.  A podium finisher the last time the Euros was held in Sand am Main in 2011, the RB driver finished 22-seconds behind Matias.  Driving a TLR German driver Hannes Kaufler completed the Top 3 with 2013 Semi-Finalist Bryan Baldo 7-seconds adrift securing the final spot up for grabs in the Semi Finals.  The race saw the end of the road for last year Semi Finalist Davide Ongaro who while holding a bump up position was forced to retire with radio problems.   It was not a good race for 16-year-old RB driver Marco Baruffolo who, having impressed in the final qualifier when he set the 6th fastest time, ended up only 10th.

Semi Final A Grid
1. David Ronnefalk – Kyosho/Orion
2. Teemu Leino – HB/Novarossi
3. Darren Bloomfield – Agama/Bullitt
4. Joseph Quagraine – JQ/Reds Racing
5. Martin Bayer – Xray/LRP
6. Joern Neumann – Team Durango/FX
7. Jerome Aigoin – Kyosho/Novarossi
8. Martin Wollanka – Xray/FX
9. Alex Zanchettin – TLR/Novarossi
10.Hupo Honigl – Team C/Novarossi
11.Jack Embling – Mugen/Beat
12.Dominic Bauer – Mugen/Alpha

Semi Final B Grid
1. Robert Batlle – Mugen/Novarossi
2. Elliott Boots – Kyosho/Reds Racing
3. Renaud Savoya – Xray/Orion
4. Carsten Keller – Kysoho/Bullitt
5. Christoffer Svensson – Kyosho/OS Speed
6. Lee Martin – Mugen/Beat
7. Yannick Aigoin – Associated/Ultimate
8. Fabrizio Teghesi – Kyosho/OS Speed
9. Miguel Matias – Xray/RB
10.Daniel Reckward – RB/RB
11.Hannes Käufler – TLR/Reds Racing
12.Byran Baldo – Mugen/Novarossi

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‘From Race Control’ – Day 5, Finals

The day has arrived to crown the 34th 1:8 Offroad European Champion and while a sunny morning in Sand am Main there is a very strong wind blowing. Starting the day with the 1/32 final, the serious action gets underway with the 20-minute Semi Finals with the Top 6 finishers in each becoming the 12 drivers who will battle it out for the title. In a change to the normal Euros format this year, a World Championship year, the Main final with be extended from its traditional 45-minute duration to 1-hour.

Ronnefalk caps off qualifying with 4th TQ run

Having secured the overall TQ for the 34th running of the 1:8 Offroad European Championships in the penultimate round of qualifying and using the final qualifier to test a harder tyre for the final, the change did little to stop David Ronnefalk from dominating qualifying.  Failing only to TQ the first of the five qualifiers yesterday due to his heat being first up on a damp track following overnight rain, even with a 4-second crash the defending champion took Q5 by over 5-seconds from Team Durango’s Joern Neumann.   Again it was Elliott Boots who completed the Top 3, the British driver turning around his form in the final three qualifiers to secure 4th in the final qualification ranking behind Ronnefalk, Robert Batlle and Teemu Leino.  Running a harder compound of AKA’s Catapult tyre, Ronnefalk said while the tyre took longer to come in by the end it felt really good. Having been the only driver to run a 27-lap time when on the ‘super soft’ compound qualifying tyre and worried about how the harder compound might effect his Kyosho MP9 the time sheets proved he had little to be concerned about as he again ran four of the 27 laps his rivals unable to break passed 28-sec laps.

Having only registered one Top 10 run, when he was 10th fastest in Q3, Neumann after his P2 run in Q5 said that the pace was always there but traffic and crashes meant he never registered a competitive time.  Feeling he was on a similar pace in Q4 before losing about 7-seconds with an incident two laps in succession, he said his FX powered prototype Durango has been good all week, a fact he highlighted early on when he ran a Top 3 time in the second seeding practice despite missing the opening day of practice due to being stuck in hospital with a lip infection.  Ending qualifying in 11th position, for his Semi Final the double 1:10 Electric Offroad European Champion will reduce the kick-up on his buggy for a little more steering.  Having run Pro-Line’s Suburb tyre in X2 compound in qualifying the German plans to run these also in the Semi-Final.  Should he bump up to the main event he will then switch to the new Fugitive tyre which he said while offering a very similar feel to the Suburb is ‘so durable’.  In pre event testing here for the event, he said they were about to run a set of the Fugitive tyre for a total combined run time of around 2-hours.

Mixing it up with the European Championship establishment in Q5, 16-year-old Marco Baruffolo enjoyed a strong final qualifier taking his RB buggy to the 6th fastest time.  Unfortunately the performance came too late for the 2013 Euro B Champion with him missing the Semi-final direct qualification cut by 4 places.  The honour of top Italian instead goes to Kyosho’s 2013 National Champion Fabrizio Teghesi who secured the 16th and final position.  Interestingly the 5 champions of the last 8 years have all directly qualified for the 20-minute Semi-Finals Ronnefalk and Batlle being joined by 2012 Champion Darren Bloomfield qualifying 5th, 3-time champion Renaud Savoya 6th and 2-time champion Yannic Aigoin 14th.

Overall Top 16 (direct Semi-Final Qualifiers)
1. David Ronnefalk – Kyosho/Orion – 522 pts
2. Robert Batlle – Mugen/Novarossi – 516
3. Teemu Leino – HB/Novarossi – 514
4. Elliott Boots – Kyosho/Reds Racing – 513
5. Darren Bloomfield – Agama/Bullitt – 512
6. Renaud Savoya – Xray/Orion – 506
7. Joseph Quagraine – JQ/Reds Racing – 502
8. Carsten Keller – Kysoho/Bullitt – 499
9. Martin Bayer – Xray/LRP – 497
10.Christoffer Svensson – Kyosho/OS Speed – 497
11.Joern Neumann – Team Durango/FX – 494
12.Lee Martin – Mugen/Beat – 490
13.Jerome Aigoin – Kyosho/Novarossi – 490
14.Yannick Aigoin – Associated/Ultimate – 490
15.Martin Wollanka – Xray/FX – 488
16.Fabrizio Teghesi – Kyosho/OS Speed – 487

Round 5 Qualifying Top 12
1. David Ronnefalk – Kyosho/Orion – 11/5:13.391
2. Joern Neumann – Team Durango/FX – 11/5:18.825
3. Elliott Boots – Kyosho/Reds Racing – 11/5:19.185
4. Darren Bloomfield – Agama/Bullitt – 11/5:19.985
5. Teemu Leino – HB/Novarossi – 11/5:21.578
6. Marco Baruffolo – RB/RB – 11/5:22.387
7. Robert Batlle – Mugen/Novarossi – 11/5:22.699
8. Miguel Matias – Xray/RB – 11/5:23.392
9. Martin Wollanka – Xray/FX – 11/5:23.521
10.Martin Bayer – Xray/LRP – 11/5:23.870
11.Christoffer Svensson – Kyosho/OS Speed – 11/24.681
12.Davide Ongaro – Mugen/Novarossi – 11/5:25.231

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