Session reports from day two of the second round of the 2020 VERS season, here from Brands Hatch in Great Britain. Heikki Veskila won from the front row yesterday after Spencer James was tagged by a back-marker having started on pole and been leading comfortably, but he starts there again today for the fourth time - can he finally take his first win of the year? Race TwoIt was time for race two in Brands Hatch, and the drivers lined up at their grid slots to start another thrilling race here in VERS. The revs built up and away they went! The top 3 all got good starts and the order stayed the same into turn 1, while Ziegler and François gained positions after judging the getaway well. Further back, Jarvinen out-braked herself into turn 2 and careered straight into the gravel trap, fortunately coming out unscathed but with too much damage to continue. Up front, James looked to finally capitalise on his consecutive pole-positions and he tried to build a gap over Cardoso and Veskila. However, Cardoso came with him showing great pace, leaving Veskila to drive a lonely race as 4th place was disputed by Eskola and François. Souza’s race was, unfortunately over at Hawthorn as the Brazilian was forced to retire the car with hydraulic issues. The race at the front looked to be decided as James started to edge away from Cardoso, who looked to have settled for 2nd place. The midfield was as tight as ever with Garcia, Jordan, Brandt and Axelsson all scrapping away at the lower points positions. An apparently anonymous race from Seppanen ended in retirement after a spectacular engine failure left his car billowing smoke at the side of the road. But the Jamaican driver Spencer James upfront was flawless and didn’t put a foot wrong, winning round 4 in Brands Hatch and picking up the fastest lap along the way! Cardoso came home 2nd with Veskila rounding off the podium. Following them were Eskola, François, Ziegler, Jordan, Axelsson, Brandt, Garcia, Beales and Holst rounding off the top 12. Race ThreeRace 3 meant the grid was the reversed top 10 of the last race, with Garcia lining up on pole with Brandt alongside. As the lights turned to flag it was Garcia who managed to get away well, conserving the lead into the first bend after cutting across Brandt, who then lost out. However, as the fast-starting Jordan tried making an optimistic move on Axelsson into the very first turn of the race, he tagged Axelsson’s right-rear tyre, sending the Dane into the Brands Hatch gravel trap and leaving Jordan with a bent left-front steering arm! Axelsson quickly got out of his car and ran towards the stricken Johnstone Racing Engineering machine - now in the barriers due to the lack of steering - and a heated debate kicked off over who was to blame for the incident. Further back, Beales was left stranded after a gearbox problem. Last race winner James got off to a flying start, looking to regain positions after starting 10th. He made decisive move after decisive move, passing championship rivals Cardoso and Veskila with daring moves. He then moved up another position courtesy of François as he was tagged in the rear by Ziegler! Dramatic scenes as the Frenchman proceeded to use foul-language over team radio. The stewards deemed it a racing incident. Garcia looked to fall back into the clutches of Ziegler now, and the German rookie made the most of a bad exit out of turn 2 to take the lead of the race into Surtees! It was race over, however, for the Finnish duo of Seppanen and Jarvinen, who collided outside the points. Spencer James meanwhile was on the move again, and after slicing past Eskola, he forced German driver Brandt into a mistake, the Schneider driver taking a trip through the grass and losing a couple of spots. James was given airtime yet again as he hounded Garcia for 2nd place in hope of being able to catch up to the lead car of Ziegler. He dived down the inside of Paddock Hill Bend to claim 2nd place, but it was too little too late. In the end it was Ziegler claiming his first win in his rookie season, with the excellent James in 2nd with the fastest lap. Veskila claimed the final podium spot as Garcia dropped back in the latter stages of the race. Following them were Eskola, Garcia, Cardoso, Brandt, Kozlowski, Bateson and Daniels round off the top 10. StandingsAs we leave England and to Spain for the next round, its a different name at the top with Veskila replacing fellow Estonian Eskola at the top after an excellent 3 races, all in the podium. Spencer James moves into 3rd after a win and a second-place while Ziegler climbs greatly as a result of his win. Crys Luga is the only driver yet to score a point. We hope you enjoyed this round as much as we did, and we look forward to seeing you back here for the next round in Valencia!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
December 2023
Categories |