August 11, 2016

Surprise TQ run for Takahata in Q4

Syoki Takahata took a surprise TQ in the fourth round of qualifying at Worlds in Italy.  Running in the fourth fastest heat, the KM Racing driver would set the fastest time ahead of Dominic Greiner who looked set to take the round as his rivals self destructed in the top heat.  Coming to the line on the TQ pace, Greiner would launch his car across the loop believing it would be his finishing time but he got there 0.002 too early.  Spinning in his attempt to get the best possible finish time, once he discovered he was still on the clock and recovered he ended the qualifier with 24-second lap time around the 16-second Miniautodromo Internazionale M.Rosati track.  With Greiner 8-seconds off Takahata, the pair the only drivers to run 19-laps, best of the rest on 18 would be Greiner’s Serpent team-mate Tadahiko Sahashi who completed the Top 3.  Unfortunately a partly stripped rear belt which occurred in the warm-up would leave Q3 Top Qualifier Alessio Mazzeo to struggle around for a P4 for the round.

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August 11, 2016

Mazzeo TQs third qualifier at WC

Alessio Mazzeo has TQ’d the third round of qualifying at the Nitro Touring Car World Championship.  After a delayed start to the second day of qualifying as the rain that halted Q2 continued overnight in Italy, the Serpent driver was fastest in the slower track conditions ahead of Robert Pietsch and team-mate Tadahiko Sahashi.  Having taken the opening round of qualifying yesterday, Dario Balestri would manage only the 7th fastest time, as he was hampered by a shock issue on his Capricorn.  Again Bruno Coelho would show strong running on a TQ pace like in Q1 but this time rather than a mistake of his own the Xray driver would crash into the Shepherd of Simon Kurzbuch which spun in front of him in the windy conditions.

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August 10, 2016

Rain brings halt to opening day of quali at WC

Rain has brought a halt to the opening day of qualifying at the Nitro Touring Car World Championships, a decision finally made that no more acton will take place today in Gubbio.  Just as the top heat started their engines for Q2 forecast rain arrived just 10-minute too early with the Top 10 seeded drivers not even making it out on to the track.  An initial heavy shower was followed by more and heavy rain with thunder & lightning thrown into the mix.  The plan now to resume with the third round of qualifying tomorrow and then review track conditions with a view to running Heat 13 of Q2 with Round 4 so as the entire round doesn’t need to scrapped.  In Q2, as it stands it was Kyle Branson that holds the fastest time.  Running in the second fastest group, the Capricorn driver was quickest from fellow British driver Andy Moore, the pair separated by just 1/1000th of a second. As it stands the overnight TQ is held by Capricorn Dario Balestri who TQ’d the opening qualifier from Simon Kurzbuch and Robert Pietsch.

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August 9, 2016

Balestri top seed for qualifying at WC

Dario Balestri is the top seed for qualifying at the Nitro Touring Car World Championships in Italy.  The Capricorn driver topped today’s controlled practice ranking thanks to setting the fastest times in both the third & fourth rounds with a drivers best two of four rounds determining the qualifying heat order. Topping the final qualifying in a faster time than CP3, most drivers pleased to see an end to practice, Balestri was quickest from Mugen driver Robert Pietsch but in the overall ranking it was the Mugen of CP2 pace setter Takaaki Shimo who would finish up second.   Although the final practice would be his worst round as he got a P6, Balestri’s team-mate Luca Redaelli completed the Top 3 ahead of quickest man of the day Dominic Greiner.

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August 9, 2016

Balestri sets pace in 3rd controlled practice

Dario Balestri has set the pace in the third round of controlled practice at the World Championships in Gubbio, the Italian heading a Capricorn 1-2 from team-mate Luca Redaelli. The third different driver to top the time sheets today, Balestri took full advantage of the hot conditions as the morning’s pace setter Dominic Greiner struggled with the rising temperature. Star of yesterday’s free practice, Simon Kurzbuch would complete the Top 3 for a strong points haul, the heat seeding for qualifying being determined by each drivers best two points finishes over the four controlled practice rounds.

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August 9, 2016

Shimo fastest in CP2 in Gubbio

Factory Mugen driver Takaaki Shimo was fastest in the second round of control practice at the Nitro Touring Car World Championships in Italy. As expected the round would produce slower times than the morning’s opening round with the Japanese driver fastest from Luca Redaelli.  With CP1 pace setter Dominic Greiner doing an engine change and struggling to get a good tune on it leaving him with a P8 in the hotter conditions, Alessio Mazzeo would be the quickest Serpent completing the Top 3 ahead of Dario Balestri.

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August 9, 2016

Greiner tops 1st controlled practice

Dominic Greiner picked up where he left off yesterday to top the first round of controlled practice at the Nitro Touring Car World Championships in Gubbio, Italy, this morning.  The Serpent driver set the fastest 3-consecutive laps with an almost identical time to that which saw him top free practice last night.  Just 0.009 slower this morning, he was fastest from Dario Balestri with Takaaki Shimo completing the Top 3.

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August 8, 2016

Greiner tops WC free practice with impressive final run

After 2 days and 12 rounds of free practice at the 1:10 Nitro Touring Car World Championship in Gubbio Italy an impressive final run by Dominic Greiner put the Serpent driver top of the times sheets. With the day’s opening practice providing the best conditions for setting a fast time, Greiner would complete just one lap as he suffered an engine failure.  With the times dropping off as track temperatures went up over the day, after a second engine failure in the penultimate round Greiner would put together 3-consecutive laps in the final practice to top Simon Kurzbuch FP7 topping time by 0.08 of a second despite conditions not being as good as the morning, Kurzbuch’s FP12 time over 3/10ths off his best.  The only driver in the Top 24 to better his time in the final practice, Greiner would be fastest in the round from Dario Balestri and Alessio Mazzeo by 3/10ths of a second, the biggest margin seen over the day’s six runs.

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