The scenery in the Awesomatix Pro Stock class is thrilling before the last race of Season #16 2023/24. Ollie Bultynck (Awesomatix) has a one point advantage over Adam Izsay (Xray) and they will battle it out at Arena Nova in Wiener Neustadt, Austria. We asked them quickly about their feelings right before the championship deciding showdown!

Adam Izsay – “I am looking forward to a close fight with Ollie at Arena Nova”

Adam, the season is coming to an end now and you are still in the fight with Ollie Bultynck for the overall championship in the Pro Stock class. What kind of battle do you expect in Austria?

I expect a close battle also on the last round of the championship as it was on all the previous rounds. It will be close again and I hope that I can win the race :-). It’s a new place for the ETS, but i’m really looking forward to race at the Arena Nova in Wiener Neustadt.

You have made such a huge step in the last 12-24 months when we look onto your race results. What do you think is your key to improve so much latestly?

I have been driving 1:10 onroad for around 2,5 years only so everything was new at the beginning and I needed to learn a lot about driving and setup, but I was practicing and racing as much as I could which helped a lot. I am also thankful for all the help from the team which is a big part of the success and improvements I could achieve.

Are you planning to race at the IFMAR worlds in November? If so, will you compete in Stock or Modified at Finishline RC Raceway?

I would like to race at the IFMAR Worlds again and try to improve on my 3rd place from the previous WC in Gubbio 2022. But it’s still not decided if I can be there this year. If I can go, I will drive stock again and give my very best!

Olivier Bultynck – “It would mean a lot for me and the team to win the overall Pro Stock title”

Ollie, you are leading by one point going into the deciding race of the season. Adam is in a great form, the same as you are. Are you well prepared for the showdown?

I will make sure to be well prepped and I expect another very close race against Adam and all the others. But as I have an amazing team behind me to help, I think my chances for the title are pretty good and I will go for it!

If you win the title it would be your first overall championship at the ETS. How much does the ETS mean to you and what would it mean for you to lift the trophy?

Yes, after being close 2 times I think it would matter a lot to me if I win the championship and it would mean a lot for the team as well because it is a team effort. You can not win such a championship on your own only!

You have the EFRA euros on your hometrack this year. How motivated are you to race in front of your family and friends in Belgium and do you think you will have kind of an home advantage?

Well, it puts more pressure on me but I like that. It pushes me more to practice and work harder so maybe I will have an advantage (hope so). Overall I am very motivated for the European Championship on my home track. It will be great to race so close to my home with hopefully many friends coming to watch the races. But first my motivation and concentration is to 100% on the ETS season finale in Wiener Neustadt!

Michal Orlowski has won the last four ETS races he took part in during the #15 and #16 seasons. The Schumacher driver is in the form of his life so far and only a “very bad” weekend in Wiener Neustadt could cost him the overall championship title in the Matrix Modified class. As it would be Orlowski`s very first ETS championship, all eyes wil be on him and his Schumacher touring car at Arena Nova!

Michal, you are in the best position to win your first ever ETS title. How much are you looking forward to the season finale in Austria at a new venue?

I can’t wait to arrive in Austria and battle it out for the championship with the drivers I have been watching dominate the Touring Car scene since I was 8 years old. It’s a dream come true to be in this position and I will enjoy every second of it.

All you need to secure the overall championship is a fifth place. This doesn’t sound difficult when we look onto your current results. Do you still feel some pressure or are you 100% confident to get the job done?

I will not be thinking about the minimum result I need to achieve to seal the championship. It’s just another race in my calendar and I’m going there to do the best I can on the given day.

You are a part of the ETS since the early stages of your career, even before you had been close to become a professional racer. What does the ETS mean for you and which place does it have in your mind?

I often say without Scotty’s and Uwe’s ETS and EOS, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I gained a lot of experience and knowledge over the years racing at ETS and EOS. These were the races I was noticed at, by factory teams, which allowed me to get my first sponsorships when I was younger.

Your latest results have gained a lot of attraction for the Schumacher car you are running. When can customers expect the car to hit the market?

It has been an extremely refreshing experience to have a platform capable of winning races and I can’t wait for the customers to enjoy the new car very soon.

The IFMAR World Championship will take place in the US in November. You won your 1:12 scale worlds title in the US as well so it seems to be a good place for you. How will you prepare for this one and what do you expect from yourself?

I am planning to race Touring Car a lot this summer. We will travel over to California for a few testing sessions and learn as much as we can. We will continue, what we are doing at the moment with my onroad team and see, what we can achieve together in November!

He is a five time IFMAR world champion and he has won all big races around the globe during his carreer. We are talking about Marc Rheinard who is driving for Awesoamtix since a couple of seasons now. Marc recently finished third overall at the TITC in Bangkok and will go into the final round of the ETS with mixed feelings. The ETS campion of 2009/10 (!) needs kind of a miracle to snatch the title away from his friend and competitor Michal Orlowski at Arena Nova. Let`s find out what Rheinard had to say before the last event of Season #16.

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Marc, you will arrive at the season finale as the points leader. But you know that you can only win the title with TQ and win and Orlowski only finishing 7th. How possible does that sound to you?

Like always I will try my best, but I am sure that it is impossible to beat Orlowski in the overall standings. Even if I am the points leader now, he will become the overall champion. For me it will be all about securing the vice-championship title. I will try to win the race in Wiener Neustadt and then we will see what we`ve got. As much as I wish, I can not imagine that Michal will crack under pressure!

You had been TQ in Apeldoorn and you won the race in Aigen. How would you sum up your season until know?

Yeah Apeldoorn started good but it was like a first hit in my face with being TQ and only finishing seventh in the end. With a win or at least a podium there, my season would have been much better. But anyway, I have a win and three third places so overall it is still a pretty good season I must say!

How was it to see your friend Atsushi Hara at the TITC again after quiet some time. Great to see him joining 33Graphix now?

It is always nice to see Hara as he is one of my closest RC race competitors from back in the days. When I saw him there we talked about all the great memories we have and especially about 2008. Even if the 2008 worlds didn`t go to his plans, he also said that this was the best race ever in RC to show our sport. It is always great to hang out with him and super cool that he will use our 33Graphix clothes and stickers from now on. I hope he will come over to the ETS next season!

You had been able to finish third on the podium at the TITC in Bangkok. For everybody who had never been there: What makes this race so difficult at all?

The TITC is always very special. At first, the temperatures are always super hot and the track changes almost every run. This makes setup changes not easy as you need to have a lot of experience in these conditions to always know what to do. The track is pretty bumpy and challenging and in the evening the cars start to traction roll (on asphalt) in the happy hour. It is very demanding but it is still a great race because you are in Bangkok and there are many cool things you can do beside racing. For example visiting some cool rooftop bars and enjoying some good food and drinks 🙂

The IFMAR worlds will happen later this year in the US where you won your very first title 20 years ago. Wouldn’t that be the perfect story, Marc?

Yes, that`s what I want. It`s been 20 years now since I won my first worlds and I really want to repeat this special moment. But it will be hard as there are many drivers able to win the race. I will try to be prepared as good as possible and I look forward to fight for the title at Finishline Raceway in Bakersfield (USA) in November!

He is actually the fastest touring car racer from France and was promoted to a full time RC racer some weeks ago. Awesomatix driver Lucas Urbain is living his dream right now and we talked to him before the last ETS race of the season – a season that went very well for him. Let`s find out what Lucas has to say before travelling to Arena Nova in Austria!

Lucas, you just came back from the TITC in Thailand. How was your race, and do you expect more or less traction on track in Austria 😀

Man, TITC was truly a blast, the atmosphere, the food, the grip… Racing-wise I did alright, I sort of reached my goal going there. However, my speed was really good at times, and looking back, with better racing management – and more luck at times – I could have stepped on the podium. Still a very positive learning experience, I’ll be better prepared if I get to come back for sure!
Traction levels reached an all-time high in Daun so I wouldn’t be surprised if high grip is again one of the main talking points in Austria. In any case I think I’ve reached my traction rolling quota for a year in Thailand, so I feel ready to tackle any level of grip😅

You are still having a small chance to win the championship if some things happen at Arena Nova. How will you approach the last race of the season and how big would you rate your own chances, especially against Orlowski?

I do indeed have a chance but it’s very slim, and even if I get the perfect weekend, it is not even down to my result alone. Michal needs to have a very poor weekend by his own standard which given his current dominant form absolutely stacks up the odds against me. Realistically, if I can be a bit of a thorn in his side and give myself a chance to stall his dominance, I’ll be very happy. And let’s not forget Marc and Ronald, they’re both in great form, the latter is overdue a win this year and Marc hasn’t been outside the podium in a very long time.
I did not even do all the maths on all the championship permutations because where my rivals end up is not fully under my control. In the end the plan is just to send it and see where I end up.

You are now a professional RC racer since a couple of weeks. What is different now when you wake up in the morning?

It is indeed life changing. Difference number one is being able to wake up and go to bed at normal hours. This alone is really boosting my energy levels. Since I used to work shifts and spend all my holidays into RC, I could never enjoy consistent rest periods and constantly felt in some state of jetlag.
For the first time in my life, I am in charge of my own work schedule. Initially I was worried I would lack the discipline to get to work on my own, but it hasn’t been the case so far. Let’s see over time if that remains true when the honeymoon period is over🤞🏻. Either way, I am living my best life right now and I want to relish every moment.

You won one race and you are about to finish the season in the best overall position of your ETS career.  How do you rate your performances during this ETS Season?

This is clearly my strongest season to date. My standard for what I consider a good vs a bad result keeps on shifting year by year, and I am very keen on keeping that progress going. Still, looking back all I can remember is the mistakes I made here and there, the wrong setup decisions and all the “what ifs”.
I am trying hard to make sure it doesn’t overshadow the highs of the podiums and wins but at the same I feel like it fuels my obsession in becoming a stronger racer. The positive thing in all that is I can see what happens when I get everything right. My task now is making sure it happens more often.

Last but not least: The IFMAR worlds will take place in November. How will you prepare for this event and what do you expect from Finish Line RC raceway?

The IFMAR worlds is still far away but thankfully being full time allows me to project myself much further in the future. On top of it Max (Mächler) is very determined to give us the best chances to do well at that race. I think his support is instrumental to keep me focused on that objective.
We have already booked our trip to the West Coast Invitational to have a first taste of the Finish Line RC Raceway early in May and we’re likely to visit again later in the year. I think the nature of the track is likely to suit me quite well and I am looking forward to seeing how I can stack up against everyone when I am fully prepared.