January 27, 2018

Cragg gets his first EOS win

Neil Cragg finally got his first win of the Euro Offroad Series, the Team Associated driver taking the TQ and win at Round 2 in Daun, Germany.  Winning the opening A-Main from reigning champion Michal Orlowski with that result reversed in A2, the pair would go into the final encounter battling for the overall win.  Cragg would lead early from Orlowski but in the same spot where he gave up the lead in A2, Cragg together with Orlowski would roll delaying third placed Lee Martin and allowing Martin Bayer to go to the front.  Coming under pressure from Martin before a mistake from the former Champion and then an all or nothing last lap from Orlowski, Bayer would hold on for the win denying Orlowski the overall win.  Bayer’s second podium of the season, the Xray driver will leave Germany as the new championship points leader while team-mate and Round 1 winner Bruno Coelho leaves with a 10th place, a result he will be hoping is his season throw out.

‘I’m super happy, I have never been close to winning one before’, was how Cragg summed up his first EOS win, the British driver now in his third season of the EOS.  He continued, ‘I have to thank Associated and CML for this (win).  I was off the pace the last one but since then they have worked really hard so thanks a lot for that’.  On A3 he said, ‘they were all over me at the start but I was still feeling comfortable.  Michal crashed at the jump but within half a second I crashed too. Idiot.  I knew Michal had to win because I had the faster time so I was hoping Lee and Martin would stay in front.  A big thanks to Lee Roy and Bayer for helping with the win. I was a little lucky but you make your own luck’.

‘It was close but I made a mistake at the famous table top’, was Orlowski’s reaction after the race.  The Polish driver continued, ‘I knew I had to win and did my best and almost got it. Neil deserved to win this weekend’.  On his battle with Bayer for the lead, he said, ‘Bayer controlled the race well and I was hoping he would crash. I needed one more lap to pass him. Still, second is a better result than Warsaw’.

A very happy Bayer described his A3 win as ‘excellent’.  The Czech driver said, ‘I was lucky they crashed but there was huge pressure to hold them behind me.  I knew they both had nothing to lose.  Lee needed to pass me to make the podium and so did Michal to get the win.  They forced maximum and holding them behind was really difficult, I am extremely happy for this’.  On hearing he now leads the championship standings, he said, ‘It sounds awesome, it’s just great. 2 races and 2 podiums, I’m really happy with this’.

Discovering his Yokomo had a broken hinge pin after A2, Lee Martin said with a new one fitted for A3 his car was ‘really good’.  Getting caught up with Cragg when his fellow countryman rolled out of the lead, he said, ‘I was super unlucky when me and Neil got together which let Bayer into the lead.  He drove a pretty good race and unless he made a mistake there was nowhere to pass’.  Dropping behind Orlowski after a mistake on his last lap, Martin concluded, ‘It has been a very unlucky weekend so far’.

View complete event results here.

View the event image gallery here.


January 27, 2018

Orlowski takes A2 from Cragg

Michal Orlowski came out the winner of a somewhat chaotic A2 of 2WD at the Euro Offroad Series in Daun.  Starting from second on the grid, the Schumacher driver would get tangled with Top Qualifier Neil Cragg on lap 2 after the Associated driver got his landing wrong off the table top following the wall.  This would let Lee Martin through to the lead followed by championship leader Bruno Coelho but that battle lasted only a lap as Coelho hit the Yokomo driver at the corner table top allowing Orlowski into a lead he would quickly extend.  Having dropped to 4th, Cragg would recover to finish 2nd with Martin Bayer completing the Top 3 as Martin & Coelho eventually finished 6th and 9th respectively.

‘It’s all down to the last one’, was Orlowski’s reaction on winning A2.  Summing up the race he said, ‘Neil cased the table top and rolled over but I couldn’t react fast enough and we got stuck together.  I got away 3rd and was thinking sometimes it’s the best place to be and yeah it happened’ – Martin and Coelho making contact.  He continued, ‘Once in front I tried to make the gap on 2nd bigger.  I was also trying to get a faster time than Neil but missed it by 2/10th because of the slow start’.

Cragg said, ‘I was a little lucky to get 2nd out of that, I had many crashes at the dreaded table top’.  The former World Champion continued, ‘I was 4th or 5th at one stage so to get a 2nd I’ll take it but I’ll try to drive better the next one’.  Looking to the deciding third A-Main encounter having failed to make the cut at the season opener in Poland, he said, ‘I am pleased how this weekend is going and I have the faster time than Michal so he has to win to beat me’.

Clearly frustrated by his incident with Coelho, Martin called A2 a ‘pretty silly race’.  He continued, ‘In that race there was a lot of people forgetting to brake.  The track here is so fast and intense some drivers forget to press the brake and seem to think it is ok to drive through you’.

View complete event results here.

View the event image gallery here.


January 27, 2018

Cragg wins A1

Top Qualifier Neil Cragg has taken an easy win in the opening A-Main of 2WD at the Euro Offroad Series in Germany.  The top 3 on the grid making an early break, the Team Associated driver would lead home Michal Orlowski and Lee Martin, Orlowski benefiting from a late mistake by Martin on the wall while the Yokomo driver was in second and closing down on Cragg.  Behind, HB Racing’s David Ronnefalk would put in a great drive to work his way from 10th on the grid through to fourth.  For championship leader Bruno Coelho the opening A-Main wouldn’t be the turning point he was looking for and despite having the fastest car on track he crossed the finish line 7th.

‘Exactly as I wanted it to be’, was how Cragg summed up his A1 win.  He continued, ‘I got a gap on Michal and was as comfortable as you can be leading a race.  Then the guys started to crash so I took my foot off.  One more like that will do’.  Asked about his mistake at the table top he said, ‘Oh I forgot about that.  The dreaded table top jump.  I just didn’t clear it right, I didn’t give it enough power’.

Commenting on his race Orlowski said, ‘Its not what I wanted, too many crashes again’.  The Schumacher driver continued, ‘I have good speed in my car but need to cut out the mistakes’.  Battling with Martin for most of the race the Pole concluded, ‘It was a good fight with Lee for 2nd and I got a bit lucky at the end’.

‘Pretty good’ was how Martin described his race.  The Yokomo driver saying, ‘I had one pretty big mistake which is shame as I was just catching Neil as well’.  In relation to his car, his fastest lap time almost identical to that of Orlowski, added ‘(the) car was lacking a little drive again so I need to rebuild my diff for the next one’.

View complete event results here.

View the event image gallery here.


January 27, 2018

Chassis Focus – Michal Orlowski

Chassis: Schumacher Cougar KC
Motor: LRP X22 6.5T
ESC: LRP Flow X
Batteries: LRP 3500mAh
Radio/Servo: Sanwa
Tires: Schumacher (handout)
Body: Aerox
Remarks – Polish ace Michal Orlowski recorded the fastest qualifying time with his Cougar KC. His buggy is equipped with an alloy steering system and carbon chassis, while together with Schumacher’s engineer Tristram Neal Michal is testing some new suspension parts and working on the chassis flex, but no further details have been disclosed.

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