Set Promotion on the way to Dreux in France with the aim to win on a new track to challenge all ERC regulars.

The European Rallycross Championship continues the coming weekend in France. Almost all teams and drivers will travel to the unknown, as the circuit at Dreux has not hosted an ERC event before. However, the Set Promotion team, that competes in the Super1600 class, has done its homework properly. The team did a few days of testing on the Dreux track in spring. “The track is quite short. The forecast for the weekend is mostly rain, and we did our testing in dry conditions. Of course it’s not fun if we end up looking at the sky the whole time. Nevertheless, the tests were useful and now the team and the drivers know the track,” says team manager Jussi Pinomäki.

Set Promotion had a strong start to the season, finishing first and second in the opening event in England. Finn Jussi-Petteri Leppihalme (Renault Clio Mk2) won, reigning champion Norwegian Andreas Bakkerud (Renault Twingo Mk2) came in second and the teams latest addition, Russian Timur Shigaboutdinov (Renault Clio Mk2) qualified for the B final in his maiden ERC event. “The aim is of course to keep the same level as far as results are concerned. The race will be extremely challenging and tight because the event will also be part of the French domestic championship series. No less than 47 drivers have entered our class. Now it’s important to succeed, because the locals are very good and will mix-up the top places for sure,” emphasises Pinomäki.

Image caption: Russian Timur Shigaboutdinov from Tatarstan, the newcomer of the Finnish Set Promotion team. © QBA/ERC24