The 2024 NASCAR GP Czech Republic at Autodrom Most started with a battle to remember. Pole sitter Vittorio Ghirelli was chased by front row starter RDV Competition’s Paul Jouffreau from the green flag to the checkered. The young Frenchman had a fast car, but the Italian top driver fended off every challenge and kept his lead to the finish. With Ghirelli’s fifth victory of the 2024 EuroNASCAR PRO season secured, the Italian extended his championship lead in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series heading to Round 9 on Sunday.
“Jouffreau was very fast and we were struggling from halfway through the race,” said Ghirelli. “He was a bit aggressive, but it was a nice battle. I really struggled, but I also had a lot of fun. It wasn’t so physical, but mentally it was really tough. If I would have made a little mistake, he would have passed me. This is for my dad, he’ll be having a hip surgery soon and this victory is for him.”
All drivers got through Autodrom Most’s infamous first turn at the start. The pack of Ghirelli, Jouffreau, Marc Goossens and Sebastiaan Bleekemolen were the ones fighting for the victory after they drove away from the rest of the field. Goossens and Bleekemolen tried their best to keep up with the Italian and the Frenchman at the front, but the top duo had a strong pace, leaving Ghirelli and Jouffreau to tussle it out in front of tens of thousands of fans.
The decisive moment of the race came on lap 11 when Jouffreau saw an opportunity in turn 1 to attack Ghirelli. The Frenchman did not get the momentum to complete the overtake, bumped into the side of Ghirelli’s car and then ran wide into the grass a couple of corners later. Afterwards, Ghirelli in the #24 PK Carsport Chevrolet Camaro ensured that there would be no space left for Jouffreau to go through. As a consolation, Jouffreau took the victory in the Junior Trophy classification in second overall.
Goossens maintained third position to the finish, securing his first podium of the year. At the age of 54 years and 275 days, the Belgian became the oldest driver to ever finish on the EuroNASCAR PRO podium. Bleekemolen followed in fourth ahead of Liam Hezemans, who led the rest of the pack. Home crowd hero Martin Doubek was sixth with Fabrizio Armetta, Tobias Dauenhauer, Ulysse Delsaux and Max Lanza completing the top-10. Lanza won the Challenger Trophy battle for elite amateurs after running as high as ninth. A collision between Gianmarco Ercoli and Lucas Lasserre on lap 2 left the two title protagonists finishing in 16th and 20th places.
With another victory for Ghirelli, his advantage to Hezemans at the top of the standings has been extended from seven to 15 points. Jouffreau moved up to third due to Ercoli’s struggles. Dauenhauer also climbed up one position to move into the top-5 in the EuroNASCAR PRO championship.
The EuroNASCAR PRO drivers will have a chance to rest for Sunday’s Round 9, but the action continues on Saturday with Round 8 for EuroNASCAR 2 scheduled for 16:55 CEST. All races from the NASCAR GP Czech Republic will be broadcast live on EuroNASCAR’s YouTube channel and several TV networks from all around the world.
EuroNASCAR PRO Results | EuroNASCAR 2 Results
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