Tobias Dauenhauer struck again! The German won the second consecutive EuroNASCAR 2 race at Autodromo di Vallelunga in dominant fashion, starting from the pole and leading all laps. Thanks to his two wins, the Hendriks Motorsport driver leaves Italy with 80 championship points and heads to Circuit Zolder, in Belgium for the second event of the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series season with a huge momentum.
“It was a perfect weekend for me, especially as a rookie,” said the driver of the #50 Hendriks Motorsport Ford Mustang. “Thanks to Hendriks Motorsport and RZ Oil Germany, I cannot describe what I’m feeling right now. I’m just speechless. Now I’m looking forward to the next races at Circuit Zolder and of course we want to continue like this.”
Starting from the pole, the German again had a perfect jump and pulled away from the field. In the opening laps, the 22-year-old managed to open a big gap on Andre Castro and Alessandro Brigatti, who were fighting for second position, disappearing at the head of the field. In the end, Dauenhauer built up a huge 13-second gap on his opponents to win his second race in a row.
At the wheel of the #8 Feed Vict Racing Chevrolet Camaro, Brigatti passed Castro with a perfect move on the inside. The Italian then settled down in second to score back-to-back podium finishes.
The fight for third position was as hot as the Italian sun in Vallelunga. First, Castro had to park his #22 Chevrolet Camaro off track. The American had high hopes when entering the event with the Austrian powerhouse, but “Lady Luck” was not on his side at the Autodromo di Vallelunga Piero Taruffi.
Solaris Motorsport driver Nicholas Risitano was then battling for third with Alex Ciompi and Dylan Derdaele in the first half of the race, but the driver of the #98 CAAL Racing Mustang had issues that shuffled him back down the order. Afterwards, Risitano sustained the pressure brought by Vittorio Ghirelli to score his first podium with his new team.
Dauenhauer’s teammate Ghirelli ended up fourth after an eventful race with several passes and duels against his fellow competitors. He beat DF1 Racing driver Andreas Jochimsen to the line, while the Dane closed the top 5.
Ciompi finished sixth at the wheel of his #17 Shadow Racing Cars by 42 Racing Ford Mustang. It was a rollercoaster race for the Italian newcomer, who was third in the Rookie Trophy behind Dauenhauer and Jochimsen. After fighting for a podium spot, the 35-year-old finished sixth ahead of Vladimiros Tziortzis, the first Cyprian driver in NWES history.
Not Only Motorsport driver Davide Dallara, returning PK Carsport driver Guillaume Dumarey and CAAL Racing’s Max Lanza rounded out the top-10 after thrilling and exciting battles in the midfield throughout the 15-lap race.
By finishing 11th, Arianna Casoli grabbed the win in the Legend Trophy and in the Lady Trophy at the end of a solid run on her home track. The Italian immediately fell in love with the 4 kilometers of the Autodromo di Vallelunga. She praised the high speeds and the technical challenges of the new home of the NASCAR GP Italy.
Julia Landauer didn’t finish the race due to a spectacular accident in turn 8. The American PK Carsport driver got together with Marko Stipp Motorsport’s Kris Richard in spectacular fashion.
After two thrilling races of the EuroNASCAR 2 championship on Saturday, the EuroNASCAR PRO drivers will be in action on Sunday. After Qualifying at 9:40 CEST, the ENPRO Round 1 will start at 11:45 CEST. The second race is scheduled at 15:30 CEST in the afternoon. All 3 sessions will be broadcasted live on EuroNASCAR’s YouTube channel, Facebook page and Twitch profile and on Motorsport.tv.