The rookies taking their first steps into the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series continued to thrill the fans with a really close battle between leaders Julien Rehberg and Florian Richard in the NASCAR GP UK. The two drivers remained tied on top of the Rookie Trophy after they scored one victory each at the challenging Indy Circuit of Brands Hatch. They know they only have one chance of winning the special classification and their performance makes the Trophy a must-watch in the 2024 season.
Rehberg continues to be one of the biggest sensations in EuroNASCAR 2. The 18-year old swept the Trophy in Spain and took a dominant victory in Italy. The German clinched his fourth Rookie Trophy victory in Round 5 after luck came to his aid. A collision involving category leader Mario Ercoli in the second restart gave the driver of the #77 Bremotion Chevrolet Camaro the chance to run away with the win. Unfortunately, Rehberg got involved in a final lap contact on Round 6 that prevented him from completing another sweep.
This contact was good news for Richard though, who passed his rival to grab his second Rookie Trophy win of 2024 in Round 6. Richard entered the most unpredictable division of EuroNASCAR following a season in Club Challenge and has impressed with his consistency behind the wheel of the #33 Speedhouse Ford Mustang. Round 5 on Saturday saw the Frenchman’s first setback of the season with an unforced spin in the second restart, but he bounced back on Sunday to keep his position as co-leader in the special classification with 150 points.
Just nine points separated the leaders from Ercoli, who had a weekend of “what ifs” in the UK. The younger brother of EuroNASCAR PRO champion Gianmarco is one of the top drivers in the Rookie Trophy and was in prime position to win both races, but he got involved in incidents. Contact with Thomas Toffel prevented the Italian from seeing the checkered flag on Saturday and a 10-second penalty for avoidable collision with Kenko Miura ended his chances on Sunday. Ercoli aims to bounce back in the next round at Raceway Venray, where the Italian will debut on an oval circuit.
Victor Neumann, Veeti Rajala and Reza Sardeha were pleased with their results after they climbed on the podium in Brands Hatch. Neumann used his prior knowledge of the 1.944 kilometer long circuit to finish second behind Rehberg in Round 5, losing out by only 0.181 seconds at the line. For Rajala and Sardeha, they were the lucky recipients of Rehberg’s last lap incident in Round 6. The Finn and the Dutchman were in the right place at the right time and used the opportunity to score both their first Rookie Trophy podium and overall top-10 finishes of their career.
Simone Giussani was unable to show his potential after a difficult weekend for the Double V Racing driver in the UK. Valerio Marzi, Frederic Perriat and Giovanni Faraonio completed the Rookie Trophy standings, the latter managed to finish on the podium in Round 5 on his maiden event with Club Motorsport. The next chapter of the battle will be written in the NASCAR Oval GP at the Netherlands on 29-30 June. All qualifying and races will be broadcast live on EuroNASCAR’s YouTube channel and plenty of TV stations from all around the world.
NWES PR
