First French National win for Baranger

Shepherd driver Fabien Baranger claimed his first Elite Class National win over the weekend with victory at Round 3 of the FFVRC 1:8 Onroad National Championship.  Having finished P2 behind reigning Champion Maxime Ripoll last month in Châteaubourg, young Baranger would go one better at the RSMA track near Paris.  In qualifying it was Mugen Seiki’s Christophe Louis, podium finisher at Rounds 1 & 2, who secured the TQ ahead of Ripoll’s Xray with Baptiste Jimenez third and Baranger fourth.  With Baranger winning his Semi Final he would bump up a spot to start P3 for the 45-minute final.  With Louis leading early on, the race would see dramas for many racers including the leader, Ripoll and Baranger who suffered a flame out while in the lead.  In the end strong pace, only himself & Ripoll posting 16-second lap times, would allow Baranger recover to take the win and end Ripoll run of race wins, the World Championship finalist recovering from his issues to finish 2nd.  Louis would not be able to keep his run of 2026 podium finish going finishing fourth as Simon Bergoin, who initially took over the lead from Louis, claimed the final step on the podium.

Image: Shepherd Micro Racing [Facebook]