Dreamy weekend at Slovakiaring: Záruba with Huracán sovereignly dominated his class, Makeš is back at the head of TCR Eastern Europe
The drivers of the Mičánek Motorsport powered by Buggyra team take the podium trophies and, in the case of Michal Makeš, valuable points for the championship from the penultimate round of the Central European Zonal Championship.
For Josef Záruba in his Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo EVO, the race at Slovakiaring was primarily a training session for the upcoming penultimate round of the Super Trofeo Europe series. At the same time, the team was determined to achieve the best possible finish in both races. However, Záruba's podium ambitions were perfected - he dominated both qualifying sessions and both races in the GTC class.
"I am glad that this return to ESET Cup, where I started ten years ago, has been so successful. At the same time, we have shown that we are at the absolute top of our game compared to our Central European rivals," Záruba commented on the result.
This is also appreciated by the team manager Jiří Mičánek jr. "We have shown that we have no competition in our category, that we are fast, we know how to set up the car and we have great pilots. Pepa drove great, didn't make any mistakes and fulfilled exactly what we agreed on. These factors meant a clear result," says Jiří Mičánek.
The race weekend in Slovakia was also a test for the team for the next round of the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe, which takes place on the first weekend of September at the Nürburgring. "Every kilometre we can cover in race mode is valuable for us in terms of the Super Trofeo, both in terms of car set-up and for Pepa," said Mičánek.
The main role of penalties: one helped Makeš, the other helped him
Michal Makeš has had another wild weekend, which he turned into one win and one third place, but from which he was eventually ousted by an additional penalty. But the key thing for Makeš is that he has returned to the front of the TCR Eastern Europe championship and has a 25-point lead over second-placed Tomáš Pekar before the final round in Brno. Makeš also holds the lead in the virtual final standings after deducting the two worst results.
In the first race Makeš finished third, but the commissioners penalized him for a sharp duel with Petr Čížek, during which several contacts were made. "Petr and I talked about the race and he said the fights were normal racing incidents and he doesn't understand the penalty. We have no choice but to respect it," said Michal Makeš, who dropped to fourth place after the penalty, but kept his rival for the title Tomáš Pekar behind him.
Sunday's race was then marked by a red flag and a restart. Michal Makeš managed to get to second place behind the German Sebastian Steibel and finished the race safely and without risk. He knew that Steibel would have a 10-second penalty for a jump start at the finish. "I knew I just needed to finish within ten seconds of Sebastian. And the key was to keep Tomáš Pekar behind me," Makeš described the tactics that already reflect the championship fight that is coming to a head.
Tomáš Pekař, who left for the Slovakiaring as the overall leader, made a mistake at the end of the race, drove off the track and finished eighth. This gave Makeš a solid lead in the TCR Eastern Europe standings.
"Michal drove without any mistakes and is concentrating on what we are after now - the title. In two weeks in Brno it will be tough and the title will definitely be decided on Sunday. For us, however, everything will be aimed at finishing, scoring points and getting the last points that can secure the title even after the final total, in which the two worst results of the season will be deducted according to the rules," says Jiří Mičánek.
