TCR Wrap - Home boys Leopard take their first win as Pellinen stars

Matt White - Touring Car Editor
May 7, 2016
3 min read

In two action packed races in Spa, two more new winners emerged as championship favourites struggled under the Belgian sunshine.

Race 1

Dušan Borković started from pole position on Friday evening for race one alongside championship leader Pepe Oriola. Both cars made sluggish getaway’s and were jumped by Fin Aku Pellinen from third on the grid on the way down to La Source for the first time. Oriola was able to slot into second place ahead of Borković but Pellinen had his head down and had a two second gap by the end of the first lap in his West Coast Racing Honda Civic.

Pellinen maintained his lead for the entirety of the race to win his maiden TCR race.

James Nash in the second of the Lukoil Seat Leon’s followed the front three but most of his race was spent looking in his mirror at the Leopard VW Golf of Jean-Karl Vernay who made his way up to P5 after taking Mat’o Homola at Les Combes on lap 2. Nash drove a great defensive race until the end of lap 7 when JK braked too late into the bus stop, hitting the back of Nash’s car putting the Brit into a half spin but he managed to rejoin in 9th.

Vernay was penalised with a drive through penalty which was added to his race time dropping him from 4th to 14th.

With all that carnage going on Homola came home fourth ahead of the other West Coast Honda’s of Gianni Morbidelli and Kevin Gleason, David Kajaja passed both Nash and Nash’s teammate Sergei Afanasyev on the last lap to take 7th, the final point scored by former British Formula Ford winner Antti Buri on his TCR International debut in his Golf.

2015 champion Stefano Comini didn’t make the start, a driveshaft failure on the way to the dummy grid ended his day and youngest man on the grid Attila Tassi had a huge accident on the final lap when a right front puncture pitched him head first into the barriers at Pouhon. Fortunately the young Bulgarian was fine and the car was repaired for race 2.

Race 2

Antti Buri started on pole ahead of his two Leopard teammates of Vernay & Comini. Vernay managed to grab the lead on lap one from Buri and Comini also passed the Finn at turn one at the beginning of lap 2. Mat’o Homola then set about the task of getting his B3 Leon onto the podium as the rest of the field scrapped away behind them.

Dušan Borković and pre race championship leader Gianni Morbidelli made contact on lap 1, broken left rear suspension for Dušan and a right front puncture for Gianni which ended both of their races early.

On lap 4 there was a change of lead, Comini overtaking Vernay at Les Combes, the Frenchman offered little resistance to the move. A lap later the move was reversed with Vernay taking the lead back at the same spot. Vernay was then able to pull a gap on to take his and the teams first win of the season.

Buri held position in third ahead of Homola and race 1 winner Aku Pellinen. Next up were two of the Craft Bamboo Lukoil Seat’s, James Nash leading home Pepe Oriola, Kevin Gleason picked up eighth on the last lap ahead of Sergei Afanasyev when the Russian made a mistake at Pouhon. Pierre Yves Corthals rounded out the top ten.

Attila Tassi’s Saturday was just as wild as Friday, a wild moment on lap 2 at the exit of Les Combes dropped him out of the top positions and more was to follow as he had contact with David Kajaja at Blancimont sent the Leon into a wild sideways moment for which he did well to recover from without hitting anything. He later received a drive through penalty for track limits.

Pepe Oriola now leads the points by two points from team mate James Nash, Gianni Morbidelli a further two points behind in third.

Championship Standings after 6 races:

1st Pepe Oriola 84 pt.

2nd James Nash 82 pt.

3rd Gianni Morbidelli 80 pt.

4th Aku Pellinen 63 pt.

5th Stefano Comini 59 pt.

6th Jean-Karl Vernay 56 pt.

7th Sergey Afanasyev 56 pt.

8th Mat'o Homola 49 pt.

9th Dušan Borković 47 pt.

10th Davit Kajaia 26 pt