Bayer wins EOS Season finale

Martin Bayer has won the season finale of the Euro Offroad Series in Wels, Austria, it having been 2-years to the week since the Czech driver last stood on the top step of the EOS podium.  The Xray driver denied team-mate Bruno Coelho the perfect weekend thanks to his A2 win, the time of which was 3/10ths of a second quicker than Coelho’s A3 win giving him the overall victory at the Modellbau Wels on the tiebreaker.  His first win since back to back champion Coelho arrived into the championship, today’s win marks his 4th EOS Career win.  With Coelho having to settle for 2nd, it was 2WD Champion Michal Orlowski who would complete the podium as the curtains came down on the championship’s sixth season.

Joking with Coelho, ‘I was just the better driver’, a very happy Bayer said ‘For sure I’m super happy. It has been a long time’.  One of five drivers going into A3 with a chance of the win he said, ‘I knew that to win (A3) was going to be difficult because Bruno had fresher tyres but I also knew it would be very close with the times.  After the disaster of A1 the 2nd and 3rd finals were perfect’. His first win since his appointment as Xray’s Offroad Team Manager and only the third driver to win in 4WD this season he added, ‘the car is so perfect I really enjoy driving it.  It has been a great EOS season for us’.

‘I sucked in the finals’, was how Coelho summed up missing out on becoming only the third driver in the EOS’ 24 event history to do a clean sweep of a race weekend.  He continued, ‘I made a mistake in the first final and also the second but finally in the third I drive a clean race.  I tried to get the best 5-minute time but couldn’t do it but I am still happy for Martin to win because he deserves it’.

Having missed the first day’s action in Austria due to a school Exam and having to race the J-Main in 2WD because he didn’t run any qualifiers, Orlowski said, ‘It is good to be back on podium’.  The only non-Xray driver to win in 4WD this season when he won his home round in Poland, the 15-year-old said, ‘In the last one I was hoping I could get second because then I would have got second overall and second in the championship’.  He continued, ‘I got passed Wollanka and then was battling with Lee Martin but I think it was my error coming onto the straight and I rolled.  In the end third (overall) was still a pretty good result.  Overall I had one win and 3 podiums so hopefully next season will be even better’.

Backing up his P3 in A2 with another in A3, Lee Martin would miss out on the podium finishing the final round 4th overall ahead of compatriot Neil Cragg.  The first season of EOS Martin has failed to register a race win, for Cragg 5th place would mark his best 4WD finish of the EOS, the Associated driver contesting the class since the arrival of the B64 at the third round in Slovakia.

View complete event results here.

View the event image gallery here.