NLRC/BRC: Kuijpers’ home win

Category: May, Miscellaneous, News Posted 21.05.12 10:36 by Eddi Laumanns

The Eurocircuit hosted the 2nd round of the Dutch and the 3rd round of the Belgian Rallycross Championships, seeing Italo-Dutch Jos Kuijpers winning the SuperCars category from Belgian Ronny Scheveneels.

Last weekend round 2 of the so-called Dutch RallyRacing Championship and round 3 of the Belgian Rallycross Championship were held at the Eurocircuit near Valkenswaard in Holland, the first venue in motorsport’s history especially built for Rallycross and opened in 1971.

One of those who was for many a year one of the racing heroes at Valkenswaard is Belgian Rallycross legend, 10 times BRC winner and professional school teacher François Monten. The former VW Beetle and Audi quattro racer is now back to business to teach 2001 European Rallycross Champion (Division 2) Ronny Scheveneels how to run a SuperCars team on its way to success. Guided by “de Swa” Scheveneels made it to the second row of the A final grid from where the Volkswagen driver shot immediately into the lead. However, the Belgian went much too fast into the first corner to plough with the rear wheels of his Scirocco Mk3 through the sand-trap beside the track. Compatriot Patrick Van Mechelen and Master of the House Jos Kuijpers grabbed the offered chance to pass Scheveneels, but when the Subaru Impreza driver later failed himself the Volkswagen man became the runner-up to winner Jos Kuijpers.

In the Super1600s class it looked as if Marcel Snoeijers would win the last race of the day, but when the Renault Clio driver became hampered by a flat tyre the victory fell prey to Peter van de Wege in the Toyota Yaris. Belgian Pedro Bonnet is getting more and more used to his Volvo C30, at Valkenswaard he scored a flawless TouringCars victory by setting the fastest times in all three qualifying heats as well as leading the A final all the way from the start to the finish line.

The podium of the SuperNationals +2000 category was an all-Volvo affair after Belgian Kristof Bex (Volvo S40 Mk1) had won the A final from his fellow-countrymen Luc Maris (Volvo S40 Mk2) and Filip Baelus (Volvo C30). In the SuperNationals -2000 class Belgian Pedro Cokelaere drove his well aging Honda Civic EK4 to victory, his runner-up was Steven Stessens in an Opel Corsa B.