Martin sees off Orlowski in A1

Yokomo’s Lee Martin saw off two challenges from Michal Orlowski to win the opening A-Main at Round 2 of the Euro Offroad Series in Slovakia.  The Top Qualifier would lead from start to finish but twice came under pressure from the Schumacher driver at opposite ends of the 5-minute encounter, a last lap roll by Orlowski leaving Martin to win by 2.5 seconds.  Starting from fourth and getting past Marc Rheinard at the first double on the opening lap, Bruno Coelho, having been promoted to second by Orlowski’s early mistake would complete the Top 3 after an almost identical mistake ended his chances of mounting an attack on the leader.

‘Keep your nose clean’ that was Martin’s reaction to his win, the reigning champion adding ‘basically that was my race’.  With ‘Michal super fast’, Orlowski’s fastest lap 2/10ths quicker than his own, he said ‘it was obvious he was pushing quite hard’ adding it was keeping his own race clean that got him the win.  In terms of his YZ-2, he said towards the end of the run it felt like it was losing drive.  Not sure why this is, he said they will not make any changes adding the problem maybe to do with his rear tyres getting too hot.

‘Again just one mistake too many’, was how Orlowski summed up his race.  The 14-year-old, who like most drivers has been having difficulties with the lap’s first of two doubles that lead into a slow corner, said after the mistake on lap 5 he pushed hard to catch back up adding his KF2 was ‘really good’.  In a final push through the last section of corners he would ride the dots sending his buggy onto its roof but said he was ‘still happy with second’.  For A2, the World Championship finalist said the plan was to maintain the pace and try to make no mistake adding he would wait this time for Martin to make a mistake.

Coelho, said his touring car rival Rheinard made things a little easier at the start when he over jumped the double allowing him to get through to third on the inside.  Also benefiting from Orlowski’s error he said he was ‘slowly catching Lee’ but then ‘did the same mistake’ as Rheinard and Orlowski.  Describing his XB2 as ‘very impressive’ he said the pace is there but it’s a day on which the driver is just making too many mistakes.  Behind Coelho former Champion Joern Neumann would work his way through from 9th on the grid to finish 4th followed by champions of the future Joona Haatanen and Kaito Kodera.

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