Vladimiros Tziortzis left his mark on EuroNASCAR 2 Round 1 with a phenomenal win at the 1.9 kilometer long Indy Circuit of Brands Hatch. The Cypriot parked his #5 Academy / Alex Caffi Motorsport EuroNASCAR FJ in Victory Lane for the third consecutive time in the 2023 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series season. After battling down Alberto Naska, Tziortzis pulled away from his chaser to open a comfortable gap but a late caution period bunched the field up again. He then went on to defend the lead in the overtime restart and took the checkered flag under Full Course Yellow due to an incident in turn 1.
After winning both EuroNASCAR 2 races in Valencia from the Pole Position, the 26-year-old Cypriot proved that he also has the skills to make up ground after starting from the second row of the grid. With 120 points on his tally, Tziortzis is leading the EuroNASCAR 2 overall standings with a 15-point advantage on Naska, who finished second in the end. Pulling double duty again, the Cypriot will for sure find a way to continue his EuroNASCAR 2 program with the Monegasque-Italian joint venture led by Federico Monti and Alex Caffi.
Before the race, Tziortzis told the fans that the EuroNASCAR 2 race is “a new day already for him” following the issues he encountered in Qualifying and in the EuroNASCAR PRO race. In Victory Lane the Cypriot then reminded the fans of what he said earlier: “You remember what I told you before the start? That from this race, it’s like a new day because I didn’t start the best way today? We’re back to winning. Things are good, we did it and we will keep going!”
Naska finished second for the third time in a row and therefore collected 105 points so far in the three races of the 2023 NWES season. The 2022 runner-up was put under pressure by Hendriks Motorsport’s Gil Linster in the opening stages of the race but fended off all attacks by the Luxembourgish. Linster was passed by Martin Doubek on lap 22 and finished fourth, while the Czech stood on the EuroNASCAR 2 podium for the first time in 2023. Melvin de Groot started from seventh and closed the top-5 in a strong race for Team Bleekemolen. The Dutchman, who had to miss the season opener, also grabbed the win in the Legend Trophy this time out.
Paul Jouffreau started from fourth and crossed the finish line in sixth at the end of an intense race. Roberto Benedetti followed in seventh overall and second in the Legend Trophy standings that are dedicated drivers aged 40 and more. The special classification’s podium was completed by Claudio Cappelli in eighth. Thomas Dombrowski scored his third Rookie Trophy win of the season in ninth place by beating Riccardo Romagnoli in tenth.
Victor Neumann, who made his EuroNASCAR 2 debut after winning in the Club Challenge at Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, took second place in the Rookie Trophy standings by finishing eleventh overall. Another newcomer, Igor Sicuro from Italy, joined the two Frenchmen on the special classification’s podium. The win in the Lady Trophy went to Speedhouse driver Arianna Casoli in 17th place overall.
A violent accident in overtime in Paddock Hill Bent put an end to the race. Double V Racing’s Patrick Schober and Marko Stipp Motorsport’s Jack Davidson, who was already involved in a crash in Free Practice on Friday, made contact and both slammed into the tire barriers. While the cars were heavily damaged, the drivers walked away from the scene. Due to the crash, race control opted to finish the race under Full Course Yellow conditions. Before that incident, Michael Bleekemolen and Cappelli made contact in Clearways, while Thomas Toffel spun in Graham Hill Bend and was nearly missed by Romagnoli, who went to the grass. Those incidents caused the late caution in the race.
The American SpeedFest X continues on Sunday with two more races on the schedule. EuroNASCAR PRO Round 4 will start at 14:00 CEST, while the EuroNASCAR 2 drivers will round out another fantastic NASCAR GP UK at 17:25 CEST. All races will be broadcast live on EuroNASCAR’s YouTube channel, Motorsport.tv and several TV services from all around the world.
RESULTS: EURONASCAR PRO | EURONASCAR 2
NWES PR
