January 6, 2013

Neumann takes 4WD TQ honours at EOS

Joern Neumann has claimed TQ honours at the second round of the 2012/13 ‘TLR/Spektrum Euro Offroad Series presented by Horizon Hobby’ in both 4WD Buggy & 4WD Short Course but the final buggy qualifier saw Naoto Matsukura out pace the German setting the stage for a thrilling battle tomorrow between the Durango and Yokomo factory drivers. The only driver to run a 19-second lap in the final qualifier, the Japanese ace outpaced the series’ defending champion by 1 second with a 15/5:07.512 run which was the fastest time set over the four rounds of qualifying.

Behind the pair, who are clearly in a different league to the rest of the 4WD field competing in Langenfeld, TLR’s Dustin Evans backed up his second fastest time in Q2 with third in the final qualifier to put his aging buggy 3rd on the grid.  Team-mate Darren Bloomfield took his example of the buggy which was designed before some of tomorrow’s A-Finalist were born to 7th in the final qualification ranking.

Durango will have the largest presence in the final with Neumann’s team-mate Hupo Honigl set to line-up fourth where they will be joined by Round 1 podium finisher Michal Orlowski, who has since switched from Tamiya to run as part of the newly formed Team Durango Poland squad, set to carry the No.8 on his DEX410 while young local racer Oliver Speith completes the line up for the main event.

Struggling with a cold all weekend which he openly admits is effecting his performance Tamiya Racing Factory’s Lee Martin will line up fifth on the grid one spot ahead of Martin Bayer.  Giving Xray’s new XB4 its EOS debut the Czech driver, who steered the buggy to a win recently in the popular Czech based Mibocup, could be one to watch tomorrow with the former 1:8 Offroad European Championship podium finisher getting more and more comfortable with the buggy every run.

Responsible for the creation of Schumacher’s new Cat K1 buggy, Tom Cockerill made a good come back after two difficult opening qualifiers to set the sixth fastest time in Q3 & 4 which scraped the British driver through to ninth on the grid.

In 4WD Short Course, Neumann will start on pole position ahead of Evans who at the opening race of the season in Poland brought an end to Durango’s domination of the big truck class.  Evans managed a TQ run in Q3 but overall Neumann easily dominated proceedings but in the last qualifier the American posted the only 20-second lap of the day hinting that he might have just at the right time found the form he surprised Neumann with at Round 1 of the EOS.

4WD Buggy A-Main Grid
1. Jörn Neumann (DE) – Durango – 310 pts
2. Naoto Matsukura (JP) – Yokomo – 308
3. Dustin Evans (US) – TLR – 305
4. Hupo Honigl (AT) – Durango – 305
5. Lee Martin (GB) – Tamiya – 300
6. Martin Bayer (CZ) – Xray – 299
7. Darren Bloomfield (GB) – TLR – 298
8. Michal Orlowski (PL) – Durango – 298
9. Tom Cockerill (GB) – Schumacher – 298
10.Oliver Speith (DE) – Durango – 296

4WD Buggy Q4 times
1. Naoto Matsukura (JP) – Yokomo – 15/5:07.512
2. Jörn Neumann (DE) – Durango – 15/5:08.513
3. Dustin Evans (US) – TLR – 15/5:16.097
4. Hupo Honigl (AT) – Durango – 15/5:19.327
5. Michal Orlowski (PL) – Durango – 14/5:01.494
6. Tom Cockerill (GB) – Schumacher – 14/5:01.505
7. Martin Bayer (CZ) – Xray – 14/5:02.325
8. Lee Martin (GB) – Tamiya – 14/5:05.441
9. Christopher Krapp (DE) – Kyosho – 14/5:05.737
10.Markus Metsch (DE) – – 14/5:07.046

4WD Buggy Q3 times
1. Jörn Neumann (DE) – Durango – 15/5:09.651
2. Hupo Honigl (AT) – Durango – 15/5:16.329
3. Naoto Matsukura (JP) – Yokomo – 15/5:17.819
4. Darren Bloomfield (GB) – TLR – 15/5:18.553
5. Oliver Speith (DE) – Durango – 15/5:19.637
6. Tom Cockerill (GB) – Schumacher – 14/5:03.166
7. Martin Bayer (CZ) – Xray – 14/5:03.904
8. Jiri Mara (CZ) – Xray – 14/5:04.015
9. Oliver Scholz (DE) – Team C – 14/5:05.467
10.Michal Orlowski (PL) – Durango – 14/5:07.603

Complete event results can be found here.

View our event image gallery here.



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