Free practice at Arena33 in Andernach
On Thursday, we saw six rounds of free practice for everybody at Arena33. Luckily, the forecasted rain was not hitting the track and we saw all rounds of free practice in dry conditions. The sun was covered by clouds most of the time and allowed the drivers to run very fast lap times on the asphalt of Arena33. Find out what happened during our day of free practice at ETS RD3 Season #15 2022/23 in Andernach!
Matrix Modified
Strong first day in Andernach for Awesomatix as Rheinard tops free practice
The Awesomatix team had a very good start into the event with Marc Rheinard and Lucas Urbain topping the time sheets of the Matrix Modified class on Thursday evening. The Awesomatix duo was separated by only 0.161 seconds and both cars looked slightly better than others over the three fastest consecutive laps. Yokomo`s championship leader Christopher Krapp finished third for the day ahead of Mugen Seiki`s Ronald Völker and Yokomo`s Yannic Prümper who completed the top 5 at the first day of ETS RD3 in Andernach.
Marc Rheinard told us after the six rounds of free practice:
We tried many things and my lap times had been good all day. In the last heat I drove my fastest times, but the pace was not perfect over the whole runtime. I will discuss that with my team, and we will see if there is something we can do to get that sorted out. But overall, the pace was there and everything is set to go tomorrow.
Marc Rheinard, Awesomatix/Orca
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Marc Rheinard (DE) 53.739 (Awesomatix/Orca)
2. Lucas Urbain (FR) 53.900 (Awesomatix/Orca)
3. Christopher Krapp (DE) 54.125 (Yokomo/Racing Performer)
4. Ronald Völker (DE) 54.183 (Mugen Seiki/LRP)
5. Yannic Prümper (DE) 54.332 (Yokomo/Dash)
Link to the Results on MyRCM: https://www.myrcm.ch/myrcm/report/de/63773/287285?key=200
Awesomatix ProStock
Awesomatix Team Manager Max Mächler on top of the board
In the Awesomatix Pro Stock class, Max Mächler had a very strong day of practice. He posted the three fastest consecutive laps on track and is leading the field after the first day at ETS RD3. His team driver Alex Kunkler was second fastest with his Awesomatix A800MMX in front of Yokomo driver Enrico Jung, Xray`s Jan Ratheisky, and Awesomatix driver and new European Champion Olivier Bultynck (Awesomatix). The field of drivers is very close and qualifying will be a very intense story when we start with RD1 on Friday afternoon.
We had a quick chat with Max Mächler after day one in Andernach:
Even if the Arena33 is not one of my favourite tracks, the first day was just amazing for me. Unexpected, my pace was not that bad, and my car felt good on track from the very first minute. I will keep it as it is and will do some standard maintenance work on it this evening. But no matter how good the car was, my focus will be on better driving tomorrow as there was still some room for improvement from my side 😊
Max Mächler, Awesomatix/Sunpadow
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Max Mächler (DE) 57.121 (Awesomatix/Sunpadow)
2. Alex Kunkler (FR) 57.311 (Awesomatix/Ruddog)
3. Enrico Jung (DE) 57.399 (Yokomo/GensAce)
4. Jan Ratheisky (DE) 57.400 (Xray/Nosram)
5. Olivier Bultynck (BE) 57.598 (Awesomatix/LRP)
Link to the Results on MyRCM: https://www.myrcm.ch/myrcm/report/de/63773/288611?key=200
Hobbywing Frontwheel
Sparbier fastest after day one at Arena33
Serpent racer Sören Sparbier was fastest in free practice of the Hobbywing Frontwheel class here on Thursday at ETS RD3. He had a very quick last practice session and posted the fastest three consecutive laps ahead of the Awesomatix duo of Freddy Südhoff and Steven Olsen. Reigning champion Stefan Schulz (Xray) and Kevin Sparbier (Mugen Seiki) completed the top 5 on Thursday evening.
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Sören Sparbier (DK) 1:09.311 (Serpent)
2. Freddy Südhoff (DE)1:09.730 (Awesomatix)
3. Steven Olsen (NL) 1:09.821 (Awesomatix)
4. Stefan Schulz (DE) 1:09.913 (Xray)
5. Kevin Sparbier (DE) 1:10.173 (Mugen Seiki)
Link to the Results on MyRCM: https://www.myrcm.ch/myrcm/report/de/63773/287283?key=200
Orca 17.5 Stock
Alvaro Fernandez from Gran Canaria tops Thursday practice
In the Orca 17.5 Stock class, it was Alvaro Fernandez posting the fastest laps of the day with his Awesomatix A800MMX. He was right on pace from the beginning at his first ever visit to Arena33 in Andernach and is one to watch for tomorrow`s start of seeding practice and qualifying at ETS RD3. Joshua Winkler, who made his first ETS A-Main in Austria some weeks ago, showed his driving skills and finished second for the day in front of Daniel Pöhlmann, Jasmin Donath, and championship leader Dominik Reile.
We can expect a close fight for the top positions on the grid in qualifying, as we have even more fast drivers in the hunt tomorrow. Driving errors are very expensive on the Arena33 track, and tomorrow it will be all about laying down some clean 5-minute runs than just nailing three fast laps in a row.
Alvaro Fernandez talked to our media team on Thursday evening:
Today was just incredible for me. The track layout is very similar to the track we have on Gran Canaria. But the traction was so much higher. I like the technical layout of the track and after some setup changes my car felt good. There is still some room to improve it and we will try some small things on the setup tomorrow. For the qualifying, I think the most important thing will be to deliver some clean runs without any mistakes on track!
Alvaro Fernandez, Awesomatix
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Alvaro Fernandez (ES) 1:01.327 (Awesomatix)
2. Joshua Winkler (DE) 1:01.672 (Awesomatix)
3. Daniel Pöhlmann (DE) 1:01.936 (Awesomatix)
4. Jasmin Donath (DE) 1:02.028 (Awesomatix)
5. Dominik Reile (DE) 1:02.040 (Awesomatix)
Link to the Results on MyRCM: https://www.myrcm.ch/myrcm/report/de/63773/287280?key=200
ToniSport 40+ Masters
Fastest in the Masters`s class on Thursday – Manuel Stankowitz
The ToniSport 40+ Masters class saw an Awesomatix 1-2-3 with Manuel Stankowitz leading Torsten Baggendorf and Werner Schmitzer after day one. Stankowitz had an impressive run in the fourth practice heat and posted three very good hot laps which earned him the overnight top spot here in Andernach.
ToniSport`s Patrick Beck was the fastest “non Awesomatix driver” on Thursday as he was turning fourth quickest practice laps with his Mugen Seiki MTC2 coming from the second fastest group. Mirco Thalheimer (Xray) completed the top 5 after free practice at Arena33 in the ToniSport 40+ Masters class. As in every class, consistency will be the key to success in qualifying on Friday and Saturday. Let`s find out who will be the best over 5 minutes to claim the very important pole position.
We talked to Manuel Stankowitz and asked him about his first day here at Arena33:
I am happy with my day as my car worked great. I am using the new Protoform P63 body shell which made my car more stable and easier to drive on the Arena33 track. But I think that consistency will be the most important thing when we head into qualifying tomorrow. I will keep my car as it is right now and hope for the best possible result this weekend!
Manuel Stankowitz, Awesomatix
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Manuel Stankowitz (DE) 1:01.257 (Awesomatix)
2. Torsten Baggendorf (DE) 1:01.623 (Awesomatix)
3. Werner Schmitzer (AT) 1:01.828 (Awesomatix)
4. Patrick Beck (DE) 1:01.933 (Mugen Seiki)
5. Mirco Thalheimer (DE) 1:01.964 (Xray)
Link to the Results on MyRCM: https://www.myrcm.ch/myrcm/report/de/63773/287281?key=200
Scorpion Formula
Stiebler continues in a strong form at Arena33
Austria race winner Andreas Stiebler showed that he is still in good shape after winning the last ETS race in his home country Austria. He had a solid day of practice and finished Thursday practice in first place with his Schumacher car. However, his fellow countryman René Kölbel was just 0.271 seconds behind him to take second for the day. Xray driver Jan Ratheisky posted the third fastest time in front of Gergö Valent from Hungary and Herbert Weber who is from Austria as well.
The Formula drivers need to drive very careful on the technical track with their cars and it is not an easy job to wheel those cars around the curbs perfectly. Especially when the wind is picking up, the cars are very sensitive and even more hard to drive. We are looking forward to the upcoming four rounds of qualifying to find out who will deal with these conditions in the best possible way.
Andreas Stiebler told us after free practice:
It is not easy to drive here at Arena33 with our Formula cars, especially when the wind is picking up the cars are somethimes hard to control. The setup from my last practice run felt great and I hope to be competitive with it tomorrow. I will try to avoid the curbs and make no mistakes as these are hurting a lot here!
Andreas Stiebler, Schumacher
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (over 3 consecutive laps)
1. Andreas Stiebler (AT) 1:04.414 (Schumacher)
2. René Kölbel (AT) 1:04.685 (Xray)
3. Jan Ratheisky (DE) 1:05.211 (Xray)
4. Gergö Valent (HU) 1:05.506 (Xray)
5. Herbert Weber (AT) 1:05.613 (Xray)
Link to the Results on MyRCM: https://www.myrcm.ch/myrcm/report/de/63773/287282?key=200
Tomorrow will be another very important day for all drivers as we will have one more rounds of free practice followed by two rounds of timed seeding practice. Last on Friday afternoon will be the first round of qualifying, a gritty moment when everyone must put their cards on the table for the first time. Stay tuned and follow us during the whole weekend. Check out the LIVE section on our website. There you will find our livestreaming options from ETS RD3 Season #15 2022/23 at Arena33l!
