The fight to become the new king and prince of the American SpeedFest began on Friday with the free practice sessions for the 2024 NASCAR GP UK. The Indy Circuit of Brands Hatch is short and demanding for the drivers as they need to get every corner right to maximize their potential. Championship leaders Vittorio Ghirelli and Martin Doubek used their experience and pace at the 1.944 kilometer track to take the top spots in two 30-minute sessions in both EuroNASCAR PRO and EuroNASCAR 2.
The Italian and the Czech are carrying plenty of momentum after their sweep in the second event of the season in Italy. With three wins to their tally after the first two meetings of 2024, they are eager to make it four when Round 5 for both EuroNASCAR PRO and EuroNASCAR 2 go green in front of tens of thousands of fans on Saturday.
EuroNASCAR PRO: Ghirelli the only one below 49 seconds
Every millisecond a driver can gain at the legendary Brands Hatch circuit is vital and that’s how PK Carsport’s Ghirelli took first place in EuroNASCAR PRO. The Italian was the only one to set a lap time below 49 seconds, with his best time of 48.960 being 0.134 seconds quicker than his closest rival: the reigning Champion and CAAL Racing top driver Gianmarco Ercoli. Liam Hezemans led the Junior Trophy classification for drivers aged 25 and under in third place ahead of his Hendriks Motorsport teammate Martin Doubek.
Lucas Lasserre completed the top-5 ahead of RDV Competition’s Paul Jouffreau, who took second place in the Junior Trophy. The Frenchman’s teammate at Speedhouse Ulysse Delsaux continued to impress in seventh. Academy / Alex Caffi Motorsport’s Vladimiros Tziortzis took both EuroNASCAR 2 wins in 2023 at Brands Hatch and began his 2024 American SpeedFest experience in EuroNASCAR’s top division with an eighth place finish.
Fabrizio Armetta and Sebastiaan Bleekemolen rounded out the top-10 ahead of local hero Jack Davidson, who was third fastest amongst the Juniors. The Challenger Trophy for elite amateur drivers was topped by class leader Thomas Toffel in thirteenth place. Max Lanza and Riccardo Romagnoli filled the top-3 positions in 16th and 20th, the latter doing so despite not taking part in the second timed session due to a crash involving his teammate Giovanni Faraonio that left Club Motorsport with significant repair work to do.
EuroNASCAR 2: Hendriks 1-2 from Britain’s favorite Davidson
With no previous winners entering the EuroNASCAR 2 division for the 2024 NASCAR GP UK, the battle is on to become the new prince of the American SpeedFest. Primary title protagonist Martin Doubek is the favorite to win and he met the expectations by topping the combined times in EuroNASCAR 2. A lap of 49.236 was enough to put the Czech driver ahead of teammate Gil Linster, who was hampered by mechanical troubles with his #50 Toyota Camry in the second session.
Third fastest behind the Hendriks Motorsport duo was a driver that has the home advantage: Jack Davidson. The Lux Motorsport pilot lapped the Brands Hatch circuit plenty of times in the past and used his experience to steal the show on the opening day. The Scotsman beat several strong contenders such as Melvin de Groot and Patrick Schober, both rounding out the top-5 positions. Team Bleekemolen’s De Groot also led the Legend Trophy for drivers aged 40 and over.
Another driver with plenty of experience at Brands Hatch is Marko Stipp Motorsport’s rookie Victor Neumann. The Frenchman considers the historic track in the Kent region as his home circuit and showed a promising pace by topping the Rookie Trophy special classification in sixth place. Teammate Thomas Krasonis was seventh ahead of Roberto Benedetti and Claudio Cappelli, the top-3 finishers of Legend Trophy. Thomas Toffel completed the top-10. Veeti Rajala and Florian Richard were second and third in the Rookie Trophy respectively with Arianna Casoli the fastest in the Lady Trophy.
The 2024 NASCAR GP UK promises to bring plenty of action to the fans and the on-track excitement will continue on Saturday with Qualifying and Round 5 of the 2024 season in both divisions. All qualifying sessions and races from Brands Hatch will be broadcast live on EuroNASCAR’s YouTube channel and numerous TV channels around the world.
EuroNASCAR PRO Results | EuroNASCAR 2 Results
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