Marc Rheinard (Awesomatix)was able to TQ the second modified qualifier at Arena33 in front of Oliver Havranek (Xray), who scored another great result after his fourth place in Q1. At the beginning of the run, Ronald Völker pulled away from the field and was able to build up a gap of 1.0 seconds from the rest of the group. But at the 4-minute mark, Völker had to stop his car due to some technical problems which brought Rheinard back to the point again. Marc took this advantage to score important points which can help him a lot in the fight for the overall TQ in the upcoming Q3 and Q4. Behind Rheinard and Havranek, we saw Christopher Krapp (Yokomo) taking the third spot ahead of Eric Dankel (Mugen Seiki) who looked strong in this round as well. Yannic Prümper (Yokomo) finished fifth for the round and Michele Manzo (6), Michal Orlowski (7), Antoine Brunet (8), Loic Jasmin (9) and Tim Wahl (10) completed the top 10 in Q2 of the matrix Modified division.
We saw another strong TQ run from Xray driver Alexandre Duchet in Q2. The French driver was able to stay ahead of the pack posting the only 16 lap run. Awesomatix driver Simon Lauter finished second for the round in front of the Xray of Jan Ratheisky.
Behind the top 3, there were 4 drivers in 0.6 seconds to take positions 4 to 7. Enrico Jung was fastest of this pack taking fourth for the round ahead of Lukas Ellerbrock (5), Olivier Bultynck (6) and Max Mächler (7).
Danish driver Steven Olsen was the man on top as he took the win for the round ahead of Mischa Kroos in second and Roman Borschel in third. During the run, the fight for the lead was between Olsen and Schulz all the time and in the end, it looked like Schulz got closer and closer to Olsen until he rolled his car at the 4:20 minute mark to serve the win to Olsen on a silver tray! Behind Olsen, Kroos and Borschel the top 5 were completed by Kevin Sparbier and Jaques Libar.
The second round of qualification in the 17.5 Stock class saw young gun Maximilian Unterschütz closing the gap to the strongest driver Thomas Bemmerl down to only 0.832 seconds. With Unterschütz posting the fastest lap of the run, it seems that he could be a serious contender for Bemmerl for the rest of the weekend. But not only Maximilian Unterschütz was quicker in Q2 as we saw Roman Borschel (3), David Kuschnarew (4) and Dominik Ruf (5) turning 20.9 laptimes as well. That shows that they are all able to go fast and that it`s all about consistency over the whole five minutes!
Q2 of our 40+ Masters division saw Caspar Morgen on top. Caspar, who finished second on the podium here at ETS RD1 took the win ahead of Torsten Baggendorf, round 1 TQ Werner Schmitzer, Michel Zierold and Frank Fuchs. With the Top 5 only separated by one second, the fight for the overall TQ is still wide open and it will come down to Q3 and Q4 to find out who will start from pole position in the 40+ Masters class.
The Formula class saw no changes in the rankings as the top 6 finished in the same order as in Q1 this morning. Compared to Q1, where Jan checked out dramatically over the rest of the field,Lukas Hoch was able to finish a little closer behind Ratheisky (3 seconds) which will give him some hope for the finals. David Ehrbar is still trying to find more pace from his self-made car as he finished third another time in Q2.
David Kuschnarew was the Top Seed after controlled practice here at ETS RD2 Season #14 2021/22 at Arena33. He is running the actual Yokomo BD10/LCR car in the 17.5 Stock class and he is really happy with the handling of the car in the hot weather conditions. Take a look “Under the Hood” of his Yokomo ride!
David Kuschnarew uses these components in his Yokomo BD10/LCR-2020 touring car:
Body Shell: ZooRacing Wolverine Speedo: ORCA ETS Motor: ORCA ETS 17.5T Battery: Gens Ace 8200mAh Radio: Sanwa M12S Servo: Highest BLP68 Tires: Matrix Handout Sponsors: DK Grafix Specials: The horizontal body posts are an in-house development. The ARS system and the graphite battery holders are from Team Yokomo.
After Marc Rheinard being fastest in the seeding practice, Ronald Völker found his way back to the top of the board in Q1 of the Matrix Modified class here at Arena33. Völker started second into the heat behind top seed Rheinard and in the opening laps of the heat he was able to close up to Marc visible on track to take the lead. With Völkers hot lap (18.145) being slightly faster than Rheinard`s (18.265), his medium time at the end of the run was two tenths faster per lap which secured him the only 17 lap run 3 seconds ahead of Rheinard.
Behind the Mugen Seiki of Völker and the Awesomatix of Rheinard, it was Christopher Krapp who was closest to the leaders with his Yokomo coming short to Rheinard by only a second to takt third overall for the round. The Xray duo of RD1 runner up Antoine Brunet and Oliver Havranek finished fourth and fith with Havranek posting a great run in the second fastest heat. The top 10 in the Matrix Modified class got completed by Yannic Prümper (6), Robert Pietsch (7), Michal Orlowski (8), Marco Kaufmann (9) and Eric Dankel (10).
Alexandre Duchet took the first round of Xray ProStock qualifying here at Arena33. In the opening laps it was Max Mächler leading the field around the track but after some laps the Xray duo of Ratheisky and Duchet came back to take over the lead until the end. Simon Lauter, Tim Benson and Alex Kunkler opened up the tire game with not starting in Q1. Nicolai Lindegaard (4), Olivier Bultynck (5), Lukas Ellerbrock (6), Enrico Jung (7), Pawel Staszewski (8), Fabian Bucher (9) and Christoph Kirchhefer (10) completed the top 10.
In the Hobbywing Frontwheel class it was Stefan Schulz who was able to set the fastest overall runtime in Q1. With a very clean and consistent run he was able to edge out his competitors by 0.4 of a second on track. The race winner from RD1 at Arena33, Steven Olsen from Denmark, finished second with a comfortable gap of 3.7 seconds ahead of the third placed Mischa Kroos from Switzerland. Roman Borschel and Frederik Hovgaard completed the top 5 of Q1 in the Hobbywing Frontwheel class. The top 10 got completed by Henrik Heitsch (6), Torsten Baggendorf (7), Kevin Sparbier (8), Jonas Völker (9) and Jaques Libar (10).
The two times ETS race winner at Arena33, Thomas Bemmerl, took RD1 of qualifying in the Stock 17.5 class on Saturday morning. Bemmerl won the heat in front of Roman Borschel and Maximilian Unterschütz. After Unterschütz had a slower first lap, he was the driver with the fastest lap of the race (20.954) later in the run. Behind them, Top Seed David Kuschnarew finished fourth for the round in front of Daniel Pöhlmann, who had a good run in the second fastest group of the 17.5 Stock class. The top 10 were completed by Philipp Hagnauer (6), Felix Schneider (7), Dominik Ruf (8), Jan-Simon Knispel (9) and Wolfgang Hößle (10).
Werner Schmitzer was the fastest driver in the very competitive field of drivers in our 40+ Masters class. Werner won the top heat 1.7 seconds ahead of Torsten Baggendorf and Caspar Morgen. Manuel Stankowitz and Michel Zierold followed very close on positions four and five in Q1. Behind them, Mirco Thalheimer (6), Frank Fuchs (7), Thomas Oehler (8), Oliver Kaufmann (9) and Flavio Paladin (10) completed the top 10. As the pace of the top 10 is super close and everybody is doing almost the same fastest laps, the following three rounds of qualifying should be very exciting to watch.
Q1 of the Formula class saw a dominant performance from Jan Ratheisky who won the heat some 6.3 (!) seconds in front of the rest of the field. With this run, Jan showed that he is on fire today and that a win in the Formula class will not be possible without beating him. Lukas Hoch finished second, David Ehrbar in third place. The top 10 got rounded up by Renè Kölbel (4), Herbert Weber (5), Michal Wijcik (6), Tomas Sova (7), Robert Kampehl (8), Chris Grenz (9) and Patrik Sadrinna (10).
Dominik Ruf is running his Tamiya TRF 420 touring car here at ETS RD2. He is racing in the very competitive 17.5 Stock class and was the fastest driver in thursday`s sessions of free practice. His car is almost out of the boy but includes some extras to improve the handling here on track at Arena33.
Dominik uses these components in his Tamiya TRF 420 touring car:
Body Shell: ZooRacing Wolverine Speedo: ORCA ETS Motor: ORCA ETS 17.5T Battery: LRP 7.400mAh Radio: Sanwa MT4 Servo: Power HD R12 Tires: Matrix Handout Sponsors: H2 Racing Development (requests are welcome 😉 ) Specials: TRF420 Mid-motor conversion kit and direct spool cup from H2 Racing Development. Battery holder are an in-house development from a friend.
Enjoy some laps around the Arena33 track in Andernach with the camera car from ETS Media Team member Hanno van den Boogard (RC Race Videos). Ronald Völker was so kind to drive it around the Arena33 track for us on Friday morning!
The controlled practice here at Arena33 is in the books and all drivers are now re-seeded into their qualifying heats. After seeding, everybody got the chance to run in the new sorted qualifying groups in one round of qualification practice. This helped everybody finding the right place on the driver stand before the 4 rounds of Qualifying will start tomorrow morning. The seeding practice was close as always and qualifying will bring us some nail-biting thrillers for sure.
Matrix Modified
Rheinard tops seeding by 0.005 from Völker
The last round of seeding practice at Arena33 showed how small the gaps are in the Matrix Modified class. With Ronald Völker being fastest in all rounds of practice with his LRP powered Mugen Seiki so far, Marc Rheinard was fighting back in the last round of seeding practice with his ORCA powered Awesomatix. Rheinard topped Völkers 3 fastest consecutive laps by the very small margin of 0.005 seconds. With more wind on the track during the last seeding round, 8 out of the top 10 drivers posted their fastest laps in this run. As the sun was covered by some clouds, the track seemed to be a little faster again, but the wind component made it tricky to drive as well.
Behind Rheinard and Völker, Christopher Krapp, Yannic Prümper and Antoine Brunet completed the top 5. Looking on the overall ranking list, the field of drivers is together super close with P4 and P16 only separated by 0.8 seconds. Saturday`s 4 rounds of qualifying will show us, who will get it together the best over the whole 5 minutes of each round!
The Top 5 after controlled practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Marc Rheinard | 55.391 (Awesomatix/ORCA) 2. Ronald Völker | 55.396 (Mugen Seiki/LRP) 3. Christopher Krapp | 56.083 (Yokomo/Racing Performer) 4. Yannic Prümper | 56.205 (Yokomo/Dash) 5. Antoine Brunet |56.234 (Xray/Hobbywing)
Jan Ratheisky is the top seed in the Xray ProStock division here at Arena33. Jan was a tenth faster than his French Xray teammate and RD1 winner Alexandre Duchet. Behind them, it is the Awesomatix duo of Max Mächler and Simon Lauter together with the newly crowned German national champion Tim Benson rounding up the top 5 with his Mugen Seiki today.
Can Duchet turn it around in qualifying, or will Ratheisky be the man to start on pole into the mains on Sunday? There are a lot of guys who will try to deny Xray`s next pole position here at Arena33 after they were able to start from the sweet spot here at the last two ETS races.
The Top 5 after controlled practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Jan Ratheisky | 58.563 (Xray) 2. Alexandre Duchet | 58.681 (Xray) 3. Max Mächler |58.900 (Awesomatix) 4. Simon Lauter |58.940 (Awesomatix) 5. Tim Benson |59.692 (Mugen Seiki)
After setting the fastest time in free practice, Stefan Schulz continues to look strong here at Arena33. With his 3 fastest laps being 1 second (!) faster compared to his contenders, it will be interesting to see if guys like Steven Olsen, Philipp Hagnauer or Kevin Sparbier can fight with Schulz for the top spot in qualifying.
Steven Olsen is confident after his win here at ETS RD1, Philipp “Hagi” Hagnauer is always a driver to watch, and Kevin Sparbier is one of the top FWD drivers since the start of this amazing class at the ETS. Who will take pole position at ETS RD2? We will know it tomorrow evening after qualifying.
The Top 5 after controlled practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Stefan Schulz | 1:10.289 2. Steven Olsen |1:11.390 3. Philipp Hagnauer |1:11.441 4. Kevin Sparbier|1:11.585 5. Oliver Kaufmann |1:11.851
David Kuschnarew was the fastest driver in the two rounds of seeding practice in the Stock 17.5 class. With the top 9 posting their three fastest consecutive laps in the first of the timed practice runs, Kuschnarew came out fastest with a small gap of 0.092 seconds ahead of Dominik Ruf.
Maximilian Unterschütz postest the third fastest time, another 0.079 seconds behind the leaders. With Philipp Hagnauer (4th) and Thomas Bemmerl (5th) there are two experienced drivers behind the top three and qualifying will guarantee some close racing in the 17.5 Stock class. The fight for the A-Main starting spots will start on Saturday morning when we head into the 4 rounds of qualifying.
The Top 5 after controlled practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. David Kuschnarew | 1:02.978 2. Dominik Ruf |1:03.070 3. Maximilian Unterschütz |1:03.149 4. Philipp Hagnauer |1:03.376 5. Thomas Bemmerl |1:03.434
Werner Schmitzer topped the timed practice in the Infinity 40+ Masters class here at Arena33. He will start first into qualifying and he will see RD1 runner up Caspar Morgen and Thorsten Baggendorf following him closely. The top 10 are separated by only 1.4 seconds over the three consecutive laps and there are a lot of well-known names in the mix to grab one of the highly coveted places in the A-Main.
The Top 5 after controlled practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Werner Schmitzer | 1:03.029 2. Caspar Morgen|1:03.271 3. Thorsten Baggendorf |1:03.686 4. Manuel Stankowitz |1:03.950 5. Michel Zierold |1:03.971
After seeding practice, it is still Jan Ratheisky in the first position of the Scorpion Formula class. With a slightly comfortable gap of 0.662 seconds, Ratheisky looks really sharp on track. David Ehrbar found some pace to finish seeding practice second overall, in front of Lukas Hoch in third place. Will qualifying be a case between Ratheisky and Ehrbar only, or will we see Lukas Hoch in the mix in tomorrow`s four rounds of qualifying?
The Top 5 after controlled practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Jan Ratheisky | 1:06.765 2. David Ehrbar|1:07.427 3. Lukas Hoch |1:07.583 4. Renè Kölbel|1:08.279 5. Michal Wojcik|1:08.338
We are looking forward for Saturday here at ETS RD2 where we expect another sunny day at Arena33 with some great qualifying action in all classes. On our website you will not miss anything as you can find the PullstartTV livestream in our “LIVE” section. To get quickly to the results of all classes simply navigate to the “RESULTS” area on our landing page.
Enjoy ETS RD2 together with us – no matter where you are!
ETS RD2 of Season #14 2021/22 started with 6 rounds of free practice today. With the amount of 173 entries, drivers enjoyed a relaxed and handy day here at Arena33 in Andernach with temperatures around 26°C. With the weather forecast looking even hotter for the whole weekend, all drivers try to find a dialed setup for this weather conditions. The clockwise driving direction (ETS RD1 saw cars running anti-clockwise) is another challenge for everybody and drivers reported that the track “is really great” in this direction as well.
Matrix Modified
Völker still in good shape
The Matrix Modified division saw RD1 winner Ronald Völker on top of the board with his Mugen Chassis. He edged out Yokomo`s Yannic Prümper by 0.4 seconds over the three fastest consecutive laps. Behind Prümper, Marc Rheinard found himself in third position with his Awesomatix, another tenth of a second behind.
My Mugen car worked amazing today in these hot conditions and I feel very confident with my car on the track. I am happy to be right on pace as there will be no weather factors like clouds or rain taking influence this weekend.
Ronald Völker, Mugen Seiki
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Ronald Völker | 55.001 (Mugen Seiki/LRP) 2. Yannic Prümper | 55.409 (Yokomo/Dash) 3. Marc Rheinard | 55.507 (Awesomatix/ORCA) 4. Antoine Brunet | 55.886 (Xray/Hobbywing) 5. Robert Pietsch |56.261 (Mugen Seiki/LRP)
In Xray ProStock class we saw Alexandre Duchet (Xray) continuing his dominance from RD1, four weeks ago at the same venue. Alexandre was able to set the fastest time some 0.184 seconds ahead of Max Mächler (Awesomatix). Behind them, Jan Ratheisky (Xray) looked strong and finished third overall for the day.
My Xray worked really fine the whole day, especially in these hot conditions where it is not easy to handle the tires in the right way. In my opinion the track is a little more difficult to drive in this direction and not an easy challenge. I will prepare my car now for tomorrow and my goal is to start from pole position into the finals again this weekend!
Alexandre Duchet, Xray
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (3 consecutive laps)
Fastest in the Hobbywing Frontwheel class after six rounds of free practice was Stefan Schulz. The fresh crowned German Champion showed that he is on a high with three very impressive laps and a gap of over almost one second to RD1 race winner Steven Olsen in second and Kevin Sparbier in third.
The hot track is a real challenge for the FWD cars. As hotter the surface gets, as more the car starts to push over the front. But as my car feels pretty balanced, I will not change anything on my setup, I will just try to adapt my driving to the current track conditions in seeding and qualifying!
Stefan Schulz
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Stefan Schulz | 1:10.337 2. Steven Olsen |1:11.261 3. Kevin Sparbier |1:11.696 4. Frederik Hovgaard |1:12.115 5. Nicolas Delisè |1:12.191
In the Stock 17.5 class, Dominik Ruf nailed the fastest laps of the day in front of Maximilian Unterschütz and Arena33 double race winner Thomas Bemmerl. With the Top five being only separated by 0.636 seconds, we all can be very excited what will happen in seeding practice and qualifying in the Stock 17.5 class at ETS RD2.
I am really happy with my day so far. After ETS RD1 I finally was able to do some practice and found some things on my car which I was able to improve. As we run clockwise this time, it seems that the layout suits my driving style better and I feel very comfortable out there. I hope that I can carry over the pace into the rest if the weekend.
Dominik Ruf
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Dominik Ruf | 1:03.012 2. Maximilian Unterschütz |1:03.220 3. Thomas Bemmerl |1:03.408 4. David Kuschnarew |1:03.423 5. Philipp Hagnauer |1:03.648
Manuel Stankowitz was the fastest driver in the Infinity 40+ Masters class. He topped the Thursday practice by 0.5 seconds ahead of Werner Schmitzer and RD1 runner up Caspar Morgen. With the absence of RD1 winner Soren Boy Holst we are searching our third ever winner in the ETS 40+ Masters class this weekend – who will step on top of the podium on Sunday?
My car feels great here at Arena33 so far and I like the layout which we are running clockwise this time. It is not easy to find the right setup for the tires in these hot conditions, but I will keep my car as it is and try to improve my overall result (P7) from ETS RD1 some weeks ago.
Manuel Stankowitz
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Manuel Stankowitz | 1:03.564 2. Werner Schmitzer |1:03.988 3. Caspar Morgen |1:04.061 4. Frank Fuchs |1:04.064 5. Mirco Thalheimer |1:04.245
The Scorpion Formula class saw the two dominant F1 drivers Jan Ratheisky and David Ehrbar out front. But they seem to have a serious contender with Lukas Hoch this time here at Arena33. Lukas was able to set the second fastest consecutive laps to sit in between Jan Ratheisky and third placed David Ehrbar overnight.
To drive clockwise is really great here at Arena33 – something we should do more often like this. As my focus is more on the touring car side this weekend, I didn`t put a lot of work in my F1 car until now. But with the start of seeding tomorrow I will check my car in detail as I expect a serious challenge from my teammate Lukas Hoch and David Ehrbar.
Jan Ratheisky
The Top 5 after Thursday practice (3 consecutive laps)
1. Jan Ratheisky | 1:07.240 2. Lukas Hoch |1:07.851 3. David Ehrbar |1:08.009 4. Renè Kölbel|1:08.420 5. Herbert Weber|1:08.669
On Friday morning, drivers will have another two rounds of free practice followed by two important rounds of seeding practice. Last on Friday afternoon, there will be another round of practice for everybody in the qualification groups to find out more about their contenders and to define everybody`s position on the rostrum.
Follow us during the whole weekend and check out the LIVE section on our website. There you find the livestreaming from ETS RD2 Season #14 2021/22 at Arena33 in Andernach / GER via pullstart.tv!
The ETS returns to the Arena33 racetrack in Andernach/Germany where the new season started only 4 weeks ago. The ToniSport managed track on the ground of the DJK Andernach Club will welcome all racers again for some great ETS racing action. Due to a lot of ongoing Covid-19 travel restrictions and country regulations not allowing to host events, the ETS crew saw the only chance for a RD2 at the same and proven venue again!
Same – same, but different!
We presented the track of Arena33 in our Track Check prior to RD1. As there has nothing changed in case of the surface, the curbs and the green Astro in between the track, it might look that ETS RD2 will be a copy of ETS RD1 and everything remains the same! If you think so you are totally wrong! At ETS Rd2 the drivers must face the challenge running the track in the opposite direction. At RD1 it was anti-clockwise, and RD2 will see cars circulating in clockwise direction.
Running clockwise for a new challenge
At RD1, a lot of racers confirmed some facts from out Track Check concerning the nice curbs, the importance of a flowing rhythm and the weather sensitivity of Arena33. These facts will be a key for RD2 again, but the clockwise running direction will add something new for everybody to make it even more complicated to go fast. It will be interesting to see what will challenge the drivers the most! Finding a new position on the driver stand? Hitting the long sweeper at the end of the main straight with maximum speed on the perfect line? Getting into the tight chicane without losing to much corner speed?
Possible key sections
As we don`t have any experience and data’s running clockwise at Arena33, the track is kind of an unknown factor as we head into ETS RD2. Nevertheless, we will point out some facts which we think can play a roll during the weekend of racing.
The 2 corners before entering the main straight: These corners are relatively slow. Drivers can try to get super close to the car in front and with a better exit onto the straight there is a chance to get by in the long sweeper at the end of the straight!
End of long Sweeper: We expect the cars to approach this section in full swing at a high speed. At this point, drivers must carry the best possible speed while entering the following, more tight corners. This section will be tricky and can lead drivers into mistakes while fighting for positions!
In front of the Driver Stand: This section will be one of the key facts to go fast. After the long left hander, drivers can lose a lot of time this hard right turn. The position of every driver on the rostrum will also be important for a good feeling while passing by with the car directly in front of them.
Chicane entry: The slowest point on track! Compared to the anti-clockwise running direction, the entrance into the chicane is tighter and requires a good amount of slow speed steering. We might also see some guys trying to pass others when they go wide at the chicane entry.
The Teardrop on the left side: Here the cars arrive after they have accelerated hard out of the slow chicane. This corner offers enough space to go side by side and the radius can allow drivers to try something. If a pass is not possible, the following, more tight corners before the straightway will be the next option directly afterwards.
Let’s go racing
We are looking forward to the race weekend and the restart of the ETS after all these long months of waiting and hoping and the Arena33 track is fully ready for the show!
The ETS Media Team will head into RD2 at Arena33 in Andernach with some serious enhancement. As the master of announcing, Scotty Ernst from the USA, is still not able to join us in Europe (Covid-19 restrictions), it was Uwe Rheinard moderating most of the race at RD1 a couple of weeks ago. Uwe did a really good job on the microphone and got some support from race reporter Patrick Beck to take a small break from time to time.
But as Uwe is much needed for a lot of other different duties during a long race weekend, the ETS crew is happy to welcome Phil Richter as the main announcer for ETS RD2.
Experienced and motivated
Phil comes along with a good routine as he announced several races in the past. Only two weeks ago he announced the German nationals in Bernau (close to Berlin) and he did really well over there. Asked about his ETS duty, Ohil told us:
I am super happy to get on the microphone at such a prestigious event and I will give my very best to make it a good one for everybody. It is really fantastic and I can`t wait for Thursday when racing finally gets underway.
-Phil Richter-
ETS RD1 Race reporter Patrick will still be around to back him up whenever needed, and we are looking forward to another great ETS race at Arena33 in Andernach from 12. – 15. Of August 2021.
The second round of ETS Season #14 2021/22 is right around the corner and Arena33 will be the facility where all drivers meet again after a short break of only 4 weeks! Arena33 was chosen for RD2 as there are still a lot of Covid-19 restrictions in most European countries. The ETS crew nowadays needs a location which suits all predictable Covid-19 rules. As Arena33 is managed by ToniSport it was the best solution to bring the ETS back to this track which is ETS approved and features enough space in the pits for everybody. As soon as it will be possible to race on our other beautiful ETS tracks they will come back to the schedule – let`s hope for Apeldoorn in September!
Solid number of entries for RD2
At the first round of the new season, we had 200 entries which was a great turnout for the comeback of international (and still restricted) RC racing. We missed some drivers who were not allowed to travel without dealing with quarantine or other problems and we still were happy with the overall number of entries. Once again, thank you to everybody who raced with us at ETS RD1. The list of entries for RD2 is a little shorter with 170 entries right now. If we consider that we are in the middle of the summer holiday period with a lot of people having the chance to go to vacations for the first time since the start of the pandemic, we think 170 is something we can also be satisfied with.
Opposite driving direction
To create a new challenge and a different racing experience, the track at Arena33 will be raced into the opposite direction at ETS RD2. Last time the cars drove anti-clockwise, this time we will see everybody going clockwise on the track. Something like this is always a big challenge and the ETS crew is confident that it will produce some great racing during the weekend! We will publish our “Track Check” on Wednesday – check it out and learn about the Clockwise driven Arena33 for ETS RD2.
But now, let us take a closer look on the different classes, the list of entries, and what to expect from drivers and teams at ETS RD2 Season #14 2021/22
Matrix Modified
Coelho and Hagberg forced to cancel RD2 as well
The modified class will once again race without Xray`s top guns Bruno Coelho and Alexander Hagberg. They will not travel to Germany because of the quarantine regulations in their home country Portugal. As they already missed out RD1 for the same reason, they have to face a tough rest of the season with no more throw out result remaining.
Who will challenge Völker
The last ETS race at Arena33 was dominated by Ronald Völker and his new Mugen ride in a very impressive way. Last weekend he added another German champion title to his long list of victories with taking the win in Bernau (close to Berlin). It seems that he is feeling well and confident in his new team, and he will try to win his fourth consecutive ETS race (after winning in Daun and two times at Arena33) and the second ever for Mugen Seiki. His teammates Robert Pietsch and Eric Dankel both made the A-Main last time, and they will try everything to repeat this result to support Ronald in a strong way!
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Rheinard close to Völker at German nationals
At the German nationals, Marc Rheinard was at the same pace with Ronald in the mains and he was right on Ronald`s tail in A1 and A2. It will be interesting to see, if Marc can find something on his Awesomatix to be that close to Ronald at Arena33 as well. If he can improve a little bit, he will be in contention for the win and Völker`s hardest challenger. Rheinard`s French Awesomatix teammate Lucas Urbain will not be in Andernach due to job-based commitments. RD1 finalist Tim Wahl, Thimo Weissbauer and Michele Manzo will be in the mix for Awesomatix at Arena33 to achieve a good team result for Awesomatix!
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Can Xray get even closer?
Another one to watch will be Antoine Brunet from France – the rising star of ETS RD1. He was leading the Xray field of drivers in the modified class and he showed an extraordinary performance with qualifying second on the grid and bringing home the overall result in the end. Together with his Xray teammate Marco Kaufmann they will try to shine once again in the absence of Hagberg and Coelho. Will they be able to fight for the win?
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Krapp, Prümper and Jasmin again for Yokomo
Yokomo`s lineup for RD2 remains the same with Christopher Krapp, Yannic Prümper and Loic Jasmin. They had a pretty descend pace last time and especially Krapp was very fast at the german nationals last weekend. It seems that their new car works fine, they now just need to transform the pace into a strong result at the ETS again. Krapp finished 4th last time at Arena33 and he, together with Yannic and Loic, will push hard to step on the podium this time!
Who else to watch?
Behind the bigger teams, there are a bunch of incredible fast guys in the field of high-class drivers. Schumacher`s Michal Orlowski is one of these drivers and we can expect a great performance from the polish star once again here at Arena33, where he made the A-Main at both races on the newly designed Arena33 track so far. With the support of his father, they will figure out how to go fast with their Schumacher platform while trying to improve his 8th spot from RD1. There are some more fast guys aiming to qualify for the A-Main and it will be a big show as always when we head into qualifying at ETS RD2 of Season #14.
Xray ProStock
Will Duchet carry the momentum?
We saw the French driver Alexandre Duchet taking away the win at RD1 in front of all his fast contenders. He was driving perfectly and got a lot of compliments from all drivers who tried to beat him. With the track now getting raced in clockwise direction, all eyes will be on Duchet and his Xray car and a lot of guys will try to outpace him. His teammates Jan Ratheisky (reigning ProStock champion) and Lukas Ellerbrock will complete the group of top guns for Xray. With Ratheisky always being able to win races we can all be very excited what the guys will show us at ETS RD2
High quality Awesomatix driver lineup
The field of drivers for RD2 looks very strong – as always in the prestigious ProStock class at the ETS. The strong Awesomatix team with Max Mächler, Simon Lauter, Olivier Bultynck, Frederik Mikkelsen, Martin Hofer and their latest team addition Alex Kunkler comes along with a lot of race craft. They will try to fight back against Xray with full force. The only driver missing at RD2 is Louis Kretschmer who did so good at RD1 with a 4th overall.
Jung wants another A-Main
Enrico Jung was fast with his new Yokomo ride at RD1, and he will aim to reach the A-Main again for a perfect start into the season. The fight for the A-Main spots will be a nail biter for sure!
Hobbywing Frontwheel
Steven Olsen on a high
After winning his first ever ETS race in the Hobbywing Frontwheel class, Steven Olsen should be on a high and in great form when he returns to Arena33. It was a hard-fought win for Olsen against Henrik Heitsch and the newly crowned German champion Stefan Schulz (he won the title last weekend in Bernau).
Trio to challenge Olsen
Heitsch and Schulz showed great pace in all their FWD races so far and it seems that they will be once again the guys to battle it out with Steven Olsen. But when we look at the other entries, we find Kevin Sparbier who is always super close with them, and he will try to repeat his podium finish from 2020 here at Arena33.
Comeback from “Hagi” and local hero Kaufmann
Another name we see on the list is Philipp “Hagi” Hagnauer from Switzerland who makes a quick ETS return after a long time. A driver to watch will be local hero Oliver Kaufmann who knows the Arena33 track and it`s behaviour very well. But as we only name a few guys here, there might be some surprises after qualifying as the A-Main spots are highly coveted. Everybody who ever made an A-Main at the ETS wants to do it again as it is something really rewarding!
Stock 17.5
Can somebody break Bemmerl`s winning streak?
The 17.5 Stock class was totally in the hands of Thomas Bemmer last time. Thomas impressed with clean driving, perfect racing lines and nerves from steel. He won the last two ETS races here at Arena33 and some fast guys on the list of entries will try to make life not easy for Bemmerl this time as he is the clear favorite for RD2.
Back-to-back champion Pöhlmann leads the hunt
Daniel Pöhlmann, the back-to-back champion of this class, Alexander Müller and Joachim Altenhof are the three drivers which are driving on top of this class constantly together with Bemmerl. They know how to win races and they will try to snatch the TQ away from Bemmerl this time to have a good chance of breaking his winning streak. Philip Hagnauer from Switzerland, who was really fast in his best years, can also be a guy to watch at ETS RD2.
Focus on Maximilian Unterschütz
The young and very talented Maximilian Unterschütz won a round of qualifying last time (Q4) and grabbed a strong second on the grid. The finals didn`t went to plan for Maximilian but he showed that he is improving race by race and it should be only a factor of time and patience until he can fight for a podium, or even a win in the 17.5 Stock class. We are looking forward to watch him racing on track!
Infinity 40+ Masters
Looking for another race winner
The Infinity 40+ Masters class was dominated by Alexander Stocker until Soren Boy Holst was able to win ETS RD1 at Arena33 with Stocker not attending the race. Boy Holst had a fantastic run in the finals, winning the event from the 6th starting spot – that was amazing. But as Boy Holst is not on the entry list for RD2 so far, we are looking for a third different race winner of the 40+ Masters class.
Who will be the third ever 40+ Masters race winner?
Second place finisher Caspar Morgen, third place finisher Mirco Thalheimer and local hero Oliver Kaufmann will take the challenge. Together with the other A-Main finishers like Thomas Oehler, Ingo Braun, Manuel Stankowitz and Thorsten Baggendorf they will race it to the finish line to find out who will be the winner of the Infinity 40+ Masters class at ETS RD2.
Scorpion Formula
Ehrbar vs Ratheisky – an epic battle in F1
In the Scorpion Formula class, the battle for the win will be between Jan Ratheisky and David Ehrbar again – no doubt about that! The only drivers which were able to fight with them for a race win in the last years, Jitse Miedeme, Matej Dobnikar, Luke Lee, Olivier Bultynck and Andreas Stiebler will not race RD2 in Andernach this time.
Behind Ratheisky and Ehrbar we can expect Herbert Weber showing a good pace as he is one of the routiniers in the Formula class. RD1 Third place finisher Renè Kölbel maybe can throw something at Ratheisky and Ehrbar as he finished unchallenged on the podium last time. The rest of the field is kind of a surprise bag, and we are looking forward to find out what`s inside!
We are happy to welcome all of you at Arena33 for ETS RD2 Season #14 2021/22!
