Coelho’s rivals welcome return to familiar ground

With the 2017 Euro Nitro Series having opened in May with Mulhouse in France a new addition to the calendar, it is back to more familiar ground for teams this weekend (7-9 July) as Round 2 travels to Ettlingen in Germany. The third time the championship will visit the circuit, drivers will be hoping to recover ground from the dominant performance of Xray’s Bruno Coelho, who on the technical Mulhouse layout, became the frst driver in the four year history of the ENS to do the double on a weekend. As a result of this impressive achievement, the newly crowned ETS and EOS Champion finds himself leading the way in both the 1:10 and 1:8 standings of the nitro onroad championship but Ettlingen hasn’t been the best of hunting grounds for the Portuguese ace on the previous two visits. With results of 9th in 2015 and a slightly better 6th last year in 1:10, Coelho’s new increased tie in with nitro onroad stalwarts Fabio Domanin and Massimo Fantini mean a lot better can be expected this time round. With Alessio Mazzeo making it an Xray 1-2 in the 1:10 A-Main in France, this line-up should also contribute to Xray being a contender for the win this time out, with the duo appearing to work well together on their debut as team-mates at the season opener.

In terms of challengers to Coelho, in 1:10, reigning Champion Teemu Leino will be out to get his title defence on track after suffering a DNF at Round 1. The Infinity driver struggled to find form at Mulhouse qualifying 6th but last year took the first of two wins at Ettlingen en route to becoming the ENS Champion. Ettlingen’s other winner is Dirk Wischnewski, his 2015 victory in wet conditions ending a long drought of wins for the former European Champion. Having missed the season opener, this will be Wischnewski’s first ENS appearance with Mugen, the German having bolstered the Japanese manufacturers’ titles efforts as he joins former champion Erik Dankel who opened his 2017 campaign with a podium finish in France.

From Shepherd the challenge will come from their two new recruits Eduardo Escandon and Thilo Todtmann. Replacing Wischnewski at the German manufacturer, Escandon had a competitive showing on his first outing, qualifying and finishing 5th. Of the other leading manufacturers it is Briton Alex Thurston, who made his first ENS A-Main in France, who heads the challenge of Serpent, with their top 1:10 finisher at Round 1 Mark Green opting to switch to 1:8 for Germany.

In 1:8, Coelho admitting the track layout in France suited his driving, on paper the favourite for the win this weekend has to be World Champion Simon Kurzbuch. As its a World Championship year for the sport’s premiere class, the Shepherd driver faces highly motivated opposition. In France the Swiss ace uncharacteristically came undone in his fuel strategy and like his country’s famed watch making industry he will be looking to ensure precision timing for the final. The reigning champion took the TQ and win in Ettlingen last year. The previous year it was champion elect Dario Balestri who took victory at the German round and, after a unexpectedly off performance on his ENS debut as an Infinity driver with the difficult weekend ending in a DNF, the Italian will be out to prove a point especially as compatriot and team-mate Lamberto Collari also travels to Germany having skipped the first round.

In contrast to Balestri, Infinity’s newest signing would lead their challenge in France. 1:12 World Champion Naoto Matsukura surprised everyone, even himself, as he qualified fourth on his first major 1:8 outing. Unfortunately fuel tubing issues robbed us of the the chance to see how he would fare over 45-minutes but he’ll be one to watch this weekend. Fellow countryman and team-mate Takaaki Shimo finished 4th on his ENS debut but the vastly experienced 1:8 driver clearly wanted better. Expected to be a key challenger for the 1:10 win in France, Jilles Groskamp would instead put in a stealth drive in 1:8 to finish second despite qualifying in the B-Main. This weekend the Dutch veteran is focused only on 1:8 and last year he qualified third in Ettlingen.

The other impressive performance in Mulhouse was that of Toni Gruber, the German completing the podium on his debut as a WRC driver. Last year Gruber took his best result of the season at Ettlingen when he finished second on his way to third overall in the standings and, after a strong start to 2017, he will be hoping to go one better and register that first ENS win. Elsewhere inaugural ENS Champion Robert Pietsch carries the hopes of Mugen. The former World Champion took 5th in France, 2nd to 6th all finishing on the same lap, but has enjoyed success in Ettlingen finishing runner-up to Balestri there in 2015.

2017 ENS opens with first French encounter

A new season of the Euro Nitro Series and it is a new destination for the high profile onroad nitro championship as the first encounter of Season #4 takes drivers to France this weekend (19-21 May).  With all previous seasons of the ENS having started at Italian locations, the addition of the Mulhouse track is certain to mix things up but only time will tell if it is enough to end the domination of reigning 1:8 Champion Simon Kurzbuch.  Also the reigning World Champion, the Shepherd driver completed a perfect 2016 campaign winning all four races having started his run of success the previous year when he won the season finale.  In 1:10, reigning Champion Teemu Leino claimed two victories on the way to wrapping up his first ENS title.  Like Kurzbuch, the Finn comes into the weekend, the ENS’ 13th championship race, looking to get started on becoming the first back to back ENS Champion.

In 1:8, this a World Championship year for the class, Kurzbuch’s biggest challenge will come from the Infinity team mainly in the form of Dario Balestri and Takaaki Shimo.  Both are new signings to Infinity for 2017 but both are very familiar rivals of Kurzbuch.  In 2015 Balestri took the ENS title from the Swiss driver and last year he was the only one to get the better of Kurzbuch albeit only in qualifying when he took the TQ at the season opener & the season finale.  Making his ENS debut in France, Shimo had an epic battle with Kurzbuch for the 2015 World title in Brazil with just 0.214 of a second separating them after the 1-hour final.

Finishing third overall behind Kurzbuch and Balestri, Toni Gruber was the find of the 2016 season and the German will be looking for that first break through win.  Driving for ARC last season, his two podium finishes didn’t go unnoticed and he has been duly snapped up by Italian manufacturer WRC Racing.  Another double podium finisher in 2016, Robert Pietsch can never be discounted as he again leads the Mugen challenge.  With one ENS career win and two TQ’s, the former World Champion will be hoping to find that form again having had some rough races last year. One interesting 1:8 newcomer this year will be 1:10 World Champion Dominic Greiner.  The 1:10 specialist, who has TQ’d nearly half of the ENS races over the last three seasons, will drop his 1:10 programme and now focus solely on 1:8 as class pioneers Serpent look to get back in the mix in what is the Formula 1 category of RC racing.

While a lot of drivers are focusing on a 1:8 program this year, the opening race of the season has still attracted a healthy & ultra competitive 1:10 entry. While it might be void of Greiner, the competition chasing Leino’s title is world class, literally.  Having stood next to Greiner on podium at the Worlds, Alessio Mazzeo and 4th place finisher Bruno Coelho head up a very strong Xray team.  Having been rivals last year when Mazzeo drove for Serpent, they will now work together on trying to secure Xray’s first ENS title to complete the magic set with Coelho the reigning Champion of both the ETS and EOS.  Leo Arnold also represents the Slovakian manufacturer and as Mulhouse is his home track expect the Frenchman to be in the running for the win.

With 2016 Vice-Champion Dirk Wischnewski making the surprise announcement earlier this month he was leaving Shepherd, new recruit Thilo Todtmann will be the German manufacturer’s main 1:10 charge.  Inaugural ENS Champion Eric Dankel, 3rd in the 2016 standings, heads Mugen’s effort while after a brief departure Kyle Branson returns to Capricorn to lead the Italy team which holds the most number of ENS race wins in the class.  Serpent are pinning their 1:10 hopes on British duo Mark Green and Alex Thurston.

ENS chooses single tyre partner for Season #4

The Euro Nitro Series is pleased to announce that for its upcoming fourth season it will switch to a single tyre partner for all four rounds of the championship.  With 2016 another growth year for the high profile onroad nitro championship, the number of drivers registering points at the end of the third season breaking the 300 mark, feedback highlighted a desire among racers for the ENS to switch to a single brand of tyre for the entire season.  Also taking onboard racers’ experiences of previous seasons, tyre quality was identified as the No.1 priority for drivers and reacting to this the ENS has agreed a partnership with Matrix for 2017. The Italian tyre manufacturer supplied the tyres for the very first ENS race in 2014 and has provided tyres for a race each season since.  Apart from the single tyre brand creating a level of familiarity for drivers another key benefit is that racers can carry sets of tyres through for practice at the following round.

With Infinity’s Teemu Leino (1:10) and Shepherd’s Simon Kurzbuch (1:8) out to try & defend their respective ENS titles, Season #4 kicks off in France over the weekend of May 19-21. A country with a rich onroad nitro racing history, and with the ENS attracting a growing number of French competitors last season, the addition of the Mulhouse track has been welcomed by racers and manufacturers. After the season opener it is back to more familiar surrounds as Ettlingen in Germany holds Round 2 in July. From there it is on to Aigen in Austria in August with Fiorano in Italy once again bringing the season to a close at the end of September.

2017 Euro Nitro Series Calendar (Season #4)
Round 1 – Mulhouse/France (19 – 21 May)
Round 2 – Ettlingen/Germany (7 – 9 July)
Round 3 – Aigen/Austria (18 – 20 August)
Round 4 – Fiorano/Italy (29 Sept – 01 Oct)

2017 Euro Nitro Series to open in France

The Euro Nitro Series is excited to announce that it will travel to France for the first time in 2017 with Mulhouse in the east of the country the location for the opening round of Season #4 of the high profile Onroad Nitro Championships on May 19-21.  Continuing as a four round championship, this will be the first year all rounds will be staged in different countries with Germany, Austria and Italy making up the rest of the schedule.  A country with a rich history of onroad nitro racing, and with the ENS attracting a growing number of French competitors each season, the addition of Mulhouse has been welcomed by both manufacturers and racers.

Following Mulhouse, which will also host the 1:10 200mm European Championships later in the season, the Euro Nitro Series travels to Germany and the popular Ettlingen track on July 7-9. First appearing on the calendar in 2015, the track has proven very popular and on both occasions the 1:8 winner there has gone on to be crowned overall champion. After a 5 week break, Austria hosts the third round as the championship returns to Aigen on August 18-20. One of two tracks that has been on the calendar since the inaugural ENS season, it has become somewhat of a Teemu Leino specialist track with the 2016 1:10 Champion the winner there for the last two years.

Continuing as the curtain closer on the season, the world famous Mini Autodromo Jody Scheckter track in Fiorano, Italy, hosts the season finale. For 2017 the date has been brought forward by almost a month with the biggest race of the year taking place on September 29 to October 1st. With the Euro Nitro Series having just enjoyed its’ biggest season to-date, 191 drivers registered points in 1:8 and 121 in 1:10, 2017 has all the making of being another great year for onroad nitro with both Team Shepherd’s Simon Kurzbuch and Team Infinity’s Teemu Leino aiming to defend their titles.

2017 Euro Nitro Series Calendar (Season #4)
Round 1 – Mulhouse/France (19 – 21 May)
Round 2 – Ettlingen/Germany (7 – 9 July)
Round 3 – Aigen/Austria (18 – 20 August)
Round 4 – Fiorano/Italy (29 Sept – 01 Oct)

World Champions head ENS Austria entry

After a two & a half month break, the Euro Nitro Series resumes with the third round taking drivers to Austria this weekend (September 2-4).  With the World’s biggest prize keeping them occupied during the break, it is newly crowned Nitro Touring Car World Champion Dominic Greiner who leads the 1:10 entry while 1:8 World Champion Simon Kurzbuch heads the 1:8 field for the championship’s 3rd visit to the Aigen track.  With the race marking the start of the second half of the season, the weekend could be crucial to deciding the 1:8 title but with 1:10 having produced two different winners so far it is an opportunity for more drivers to join the race to become champion.

Winning the World Championship with a dominant performance in the 1-hour main in Italy, the ENS’ long time outright fastest 1:10 driver will be hoping to finally bag a win of the season.  Last year the Serpent driver was part of one of the most exciting races of the year when he battled it out with then HB team-mates Teemu Leino and Jilles Groskamp.  Greinier also took his first ever ENS win at Aigen a year earlier and comes into the weekend fresh from winning another German National title.  Due to his busy schedule of both the nitro and then the electric touring car World Championships, reigning champion Groskamp will miss Austria leaving the 2015 winner Leino to head a no less strong Team Infinity line-up. Having given Team Infinity their first ENS win at Round 2 in Germany in June, Leino is joined in 1:10 by Francesco Tironi and Worlds finalist Carmine Raiola.  Winner of the season opener, Dirk Wischnewski heads the Shepherd challenge along with Ettlingen podium finisher Patrick Nahr.  At Mugen Erik Dankel can be expected to be in the mix for the win while Xray will be looking to Leo Arnold for a good result.

Having made the first two rounds look easy, and shown he’s not just quick in 1:8 but also in 1:10 with his Nitro Touring Car Worlds podium finish, a win in Aigen would clinch a second ENS title for Kurzbuch.  Having lost the title to Dario Balestri last year, it is the 1:10 World Championship Top Qualifier who is expected to be the Shepherd driver’s biggest rival.  The Capricorn driver didn’t have a good weekend in Aigen last year but will be no less determined to add his first win as the reigning champion there this year. Top Qualifier on the last visit to Austria, Robert Pietsch will be aiming for a similar performance as he tries to make up for a very disappointing Round 2 where the 2011 World Champion didn’t even make the final.

Lamberto Collari will make his first visit to the Aigen track for an ENS encounter, the 9-time World Champion looking to lead Team Infinity’s quest for a first win as a manufacturer.   Elsewhere, star of Ettlingen Toni Gruber will be looking to back up his second place with another podium finish for ARC.  At Serpent, Merlin Depta will lead the team’s efforts with him hoping he can finally finish at least in the same position he qualifies, the first two finals of the year proving difficult for the personable German. Round 3 of the ENS will feature controlled tyres from Hot Race, with Italian tyre company’s owner Nicola Marrone racing himself in Aigen.

Kurzbuch & Wischnewski aiming to build on early ENS lead

Simon Kurzbuch and Dirk Wischnewski travel to Germany this weekend aiming to build on the early points lead victory brought them at the Euro Nitro Series season opener in April. Following an 8-week break since the Bologna event, the onroad nitro championship returns to Minidrom Ettlingen which last year made its first appearance on the ENS calendar bringing contrasting results for the two drivers. For 1:10 specialist Wishnewski, his home race would end a 6-year drought of international wins as he notched up both his and Team Shepherd’s first victory in the high profile championship. For Kurzbuch, then as the reigning ENS Champion, the race would effectively end his title hopes as the Top Qualifier finished only 7th. As he struggled, up front it was the new champion to be Dario Balestri who would claim his first 1:8 victory of the ENS.

Benefiting from wet conditions to win Round 1 in Italy, having by his own admission struggled in the dry qualifying ending up only 8th fastest, Wischnewski showed genuine pace in Ettlingen last year, qualifying 2nd. As Round 2 is the last ENS encounter before this year’s World Championships, the German will be looking for a repeat win this Sunday not only to help his ENS title aspirations but, with the majority of his World’s competition racing in Ettlingen, as a psychological boost for Italy in August.

On paper, as a team it is Serpent who look the strongest coming into the weekend. Last year Dominic Greiner was Top Qualifier and leading the race until he ran out of fuel. In qualifying for the season opener he and Alessio Mazzeo qualified P2 & 3 with last year’s season finale winner Mazzeo coming very close to backing that up with another win on the last lap.

Having struggled in the wet final at Round 1, it his first wet race in over 10-years, Bruno Coelho will be looking to get his and Xray’s challenge back on track this weekend. Top Qualifier in Bologna but missing out on the podium, the Portuguese wasn’t really at the races at the German round last year qualifying 9th and finishing 11th but riding high in the ETS the form is certainly there.

In 1:8, World Champion Kurzbuch goes into the weekend as the hot favourite but he can expect strong competition from within his own Shepherd team. Oliver Mack claimed a hugely popular European Championship title in Ettlingen last year and was also strong in the ENS encounter qualifying 4th. Aside from Mack, Kurzbuch’s main competition can be expected to come from reigning champion Balestri. Top Qualifier at Round 1 but losing out on the win in the pits, the Capricorn driver will be out to make amends for that at a track that set him on his way to lifting the prestigious ENS title. Runner-up to Balestri on that occasion, Robert Pietsch will be looking to give Mugen’s MRX6 it first ENS glory.

The big unknown of the weekend is going to be the new Infinity team. Making their debut at Round 1, the Japanese newcomer and its high profile driver line-up are certain to be stronger following their experience gained in Italy. The best represented manufacturer in the A-Main with three cars, Carmine Raiola qualified 3rd and was their best finisher in 6th. With legend of the sport Lamberto Collari and current ENS 1:10 Champion Jilles Groskamp also in the main event, these two very methodical drivers will have analysed every aspect of Round 1 and can be expected to be stronger bringing with them the rest of the large team. Having said all that, Europe’s current inclement weather looks set to play its part in proceedings, however for when it is dry Enneti will be providing the controlled tyre for the weekend.