First blood to Vilarino!
NOGARO, France – The drivers of the Euro-Racecar NASCAR Touring Series kicked off the 2013 season on the Nogaro circuit on Friday 29th March. Ander Vilarino, the 2012 champion in the official NASCAR Series in Europe, stamped his authority on the proceedings by dominating the private test session and the first free practice. The first day gave a glimpse of the provisional hierarchy during which the old hands and the newcomers let the Spanish driver know that he won’t have things all his own way this season. The battle for the title will be a hotly-disputed one right down to the wire!
Although the weather forecast wasn’t very promising the expected clouds did not materialise and the Euro-Racecar NASCAR drivers took to the track in bright sunlight when the official 2013 season began. Vilarino (#2 TFT-Banco Santander) got round in 1mn 35.390s in the morning which he improved to 1mn 34.622s in the afternoon dominating the proceedings. First of all he was followed by his fellow-country man Javier Villa (#9 Scorpus Racing) and then his team-mate Anthony Gandon (#7 TFT-E Leclerc) who lapped in 1mn 37.315s in the morning and 1mn 34.622s respectively. The hierarchy will certainly evolve as today the drivers ran on different types of rubber ranging from new to worn to very worn tyres! Thus, patience is needed as the true levels won’t become obvious until after qualifying. Among the drivers who shone today were Yann Zimmer (#64 Gonneau Racing/OverDrive), Romain Ianetta (#28 RDV Competition), Frédéric Gabillon (#5 Rapido Racing by Still) and Josh Burdon (#18 Scorpus Racing/Forza Motorsport).
“It all went off very well and the team did a great job,” smiled Vilarino. “There was a lot of traffic out there so it was the same for everybody. I’m happy to have started the season like this but I can’t explain the gap that separated me from my rivals this morning. Maybe it was because my tyres were not so worn.”
Vilarino’s team-mate Anthony Gandon, who was second-quickest in the afternoon, was having his first official outing in the Euro-Racecar NASCAR Series. The driver from the Basque country, second in the 2012 Speed Euro Series, didn’t take long to get the feel of his Chevrolet Camaro. “I didn’t think I’d be so close to Ander’s times so soon,” he said. “I have to admit that we’re racing on home turf and I know this track like the back of my hand. The team’s been fine-tuning the car over the past several months so it’s not surprising it’s so quick. We’ll have to see what happens in qualifying.”
Yann Zimmer from Switzerland, who raced in Tours and Valencia last year, confirmed the pace he showed in 2012 by finishing third and fourth in the two sessions on his first outing on the Nogaro circuit. “It’s cool to be back for a weekend’s racing. It was a bit complicated this morning as the track was still damp and I had to learn the layout. We’ll see what happens tomorrow if it rains, but we found a good setup for dry conditions.” Frederic Gabillon who finished in the top three in free practice made a good start to the year. “The car’s nice to drive and with more experience we’ll do even better!”
Sailesh Bolisetti from India is less experienced than Gabillon and he has to learn a few automatic reactions. “I’ve driven a lot in rear-wheel drive cars but this one is very specific. It isn’t easy to handle but great fun. I really enjoyed myself!”
Tomorrow’s programme consists of a second free practice session at 11.30am and then qualifying: Elite at 4.25pm and Open at 4.45pm.
Linkback: https://www.canadianracingonline.com/smf/index.php?topic=17203.msg107019#msg107019
