The second round of qualifying at ETS RD1 in the Netherlands marks half-time of qualification and everybody is trying to push as hard as possible for a good result. Some drivers have already scored some decent results while others are under pressure now and need to deliver something. Here is what happened in Q2 in Apeldoorn!
Orlowski wins Q2 as the pack is closing in – Rheinard and Völker recovering from unlucky Q1
In the second round of FlySky Modified qualifying, Schumacher driver Michal Orlowski was starting first out of the gate just to drive one of the slowest opening laps of the heat dropping down to P5. It was Lucas Urbain (Awesomatix) and Ronald Völker (Mugen Seiki) taking over the lead in the first minutes of the race until Orlowski popped up on top of the board again once he found his rhythm on track. Orlowski had a very strong second half of the race and took another win.
But this time, his gap to second placed Marc Rheinard (Awesomatix), third placed Ronald Völker, and fourth placed Lucas Urbain (Awesomatix) was not as big as in Q1 anymore. Rheinard crossed the line 1.6 seconds behind Orlowski with only 0.2 seconds in between Rheinard, Völker, and Urbain. With two out of two, Michal Orlowski is very close to lock in the pole position for the finals now. Story to be continued…..
Ellerbrock again in Q2 while Benson threw away a potential TQ run
Q2 of the Awesomatix Pro Stock class took place on an early Saturday morning and we saw a close fight between Tim Benson (Jambo One) and Lukas Ellerbrock (Awesomatix) again. With both drivers on used tires, it was Benson who jumped into the lead in the early stages of the race. He was leading by 0.5 seconds before he made a small but costly mistake in the fast chicane after the straightway in lap 13.
Benson lost almost a second of time and handed the lead over to Ellerbrock on a silver plate. As they crossed the finish line, Ellerbrock scored his second TQ run of the weekend by half a second over Tim Benson. Olivier Bultynck (Awesomatix) was third fastest, and Rob Janssen (Awesomatix) , Sören Sparbier (Mugen Seiki), and Nico Catelani completed the top 5. The TQ is not decided yet, but the pendulum is clearly swinging to the Ellerbrock side of things!
Stankowitz recovers from a bad Q1 and takes his first TQ run of the weekend
After having a bad run in Q1, Iris driver Manuel Stankowitz was back in the game and took the win in Q2 with six tenths of a second from Roman Borschel (Awesomatix). Stankowitz was the only driver posting a 19.0 lap and clearly had the fastest car on track.
Behind Stankowitz and Borschel, it was the trio of Jacques Libar (Xray), Max Weffers (Xray), and Torsten Baggendorf (ARC) rounding out the top 5 in the second round of Hobbywing Frontwheel qualifying. Q1 winner Nicolas Delisé had to retire his car after 8 laps in Q2 but he will still be in the fight for pole position on Saturday.
Two out of two – Anderson close to seal the overall TQ in the Netherlands
Eric Anderson posted another TQ run in the 1up racing 40+ Masters class. He took full advantage of the clean track in front of him and drove a very clean race with his Awesomatix A800R. In the end, he had an advantage of 1.2 seconds over Torsten Baggendorf (ARC), Elibert Sievers (Awesomatix – fastest lap of the race), and Werner Schmitzer (Xray). With two out of two, Eric Anderson is the top favourite for pole position before the 4ß0+ Masters will head into Q3 and Q4 on Saturday.
Siebert fights back and takes Q2 from Zühlke and Vogler
After making a costly mistake in Q1, Timo Siebert got it together in Q2 and took the win for the round. Nadine Zühlke took second place and was still on top of the rankings after Q2. Jan Vogler, Stefan Rommens, and Wesley van Dejken completed the top 5 on Friday evening. After his TQ run, Timo Siebert is now back in the fight for the pole position and the next two rounds of qualifying will possibly decide it between him and Nadine Zühlke on track.
Jovicic on top at qualifying half-time
It was a perfect Friday for Luka Jovicic as he took another win in Q2 of the Formula class. Andreas Stiebler found some pace for Q2 and moved up to second place in front of David Ehrbar and René Kölbel. Everything is looking really good for Jovicic now and he “only” needs to deliver one more perfect run to book the sweet spot on the grid for the triple A-Mains on the beautiful AMCA track!
