Chassis Focus – Bruno Coelho

Chassis: Xray XB4 2017
Motor: Hobbywing Xerun 5.5T
ESC: Hobbywing Xerun XR10
Batteries: EZ Power 4900mAh
Radio/Servo: Sanwa
Tires: Schumacher (handout)
Body: Kit
Remarks – Reigning EOS Champion Bruno Coelho continues to dominate 4wd proceedings with his Xray XB4 2017. Set with the same basic team setup that he has been using for several months, for the Arena33 he has made just one change to the car, opting to use a harder front anti-roll bar to prevent the car from traction rolling on power. On his Hobbywing speedo he has also changed its setting to reduce top speed as well as increase drag brake due to the small size of the track and its many tight corners.

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Martin splits Xray’s on the grid

Yokomo’s Lee Martin will split the Xray’s at the front of the 4WD A-Main grid at Arena33. The former champion went into the final round of qualifying battling with Xray’s Martin Wollanka to be the one to start behind already confirmed Top Qualifier Bruno Coelho.  While Coelho would complete a clean sweep of the four qualifiers, Martin would claim another P2 finish but importantly it was to be a faster time than that of Wollanka’s best P2 in last night’s Q2 giving the Brit the tie breaker to secure second on the grid.  With Wollanka demoted to third, a P3 from Martin Bayer in the final round will see the former race winner line-up fourth. The star of the 2WD action, Joona Haatanen would mark the first A-Main appearance of the new Associated B64 by qualifying 5th with team-mate Neil Cragg making his 4WD A-Main debut from 8th on the grid.

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No surprises in Germany as Coelho claims TQ

With the final day of the Euro Offroad Series in Germany opening with the penultimate round of qualifying, there were no surprises as Bruno Coelho again set the pace to claimed his third TQ of the season.  Having taken both of yesterday’s 4WD qualifiers, the Xray driver became the Top Qualifier by again setting the pace over team-mate Martin Wollanka with over 4-seconds in hand.  Behind them, again it was Lee Martin who was best of the rest, the Yokomo driver having at one stage been at the top of the timing screens but ended up third with two mistakes over the 5-minutes.

Happy to take the TQ point and move closer to successfully defending his 4WD title, Coelho said, ‘I was on new tyres now and it was not the perfect choice.  I had super traction and it wanted to traction roll.  Used tyres give a better feeling’.  Overcoming an early mistake, as the tyres broke in the car was more comfortable to drive with him setting a new fastest lap of qualifying 3-laps from the end. With Q4 having only the possibility of affecting who will start behind him, that currently being Wollanka, looking to this afternoon’s finals at Arena33, he said, ‘the speed is there so my focus will be to try and make no mistakes’.

Describing his XB4 as ‘working very well’, the only thing Wollanka had to report was an error at the double before the straight on his opening lap.  The Austrian said he had to single single it to avoid crashing but other than that it was a good run.  With two P2 runs he said he hoped to be able hold second on the grid with the aim for the final to ‘just to drive around behind Bruno’.

Top Qualifier at the season opener but losing out on the win to Coelho, Martin said, ‘I made a bad start but then Bruno made a mistake and I tried to keep with him.  I lose most time at the steps but behind him I was through there tighter and tighter each lap but then went too tight’.  Overall he said, ‘we’re not a million miles away’ and to hopefully close that gap further for Q4 he will make a caster change as well as fit new arms to his YZ4 due to the current set having ‘a lot of play’.

Setting the fourth fastest time, Joona Haatanen declared the run as ‘good’.  Yesterday’s 2WD Top Qualifier, the Team Associated driver said, ‘this was my third run on the same set of tyres but they still worked good but for the last one I will have to run a new set’.  In terms of his new B64, the Finn said, ‘I think it’s good enough to drive 5-minutes so so other than tyres I will leave it the same for the last heat’.  Suffering a roll in Q3 and needing to be marshalled losing him over 2.5-seconds, he hopes to wrap up qualifying with a clean run and improve his starting position for his first A-Main appearance with the B64.

Behind Haatanen was team-mate Neil Cragg. Asked how he was getting on with his B64, he replied, ‘we’re doing aright actually’.  Debuting the car at the previous round of the EOS but missing the A-Main, he continued, ‘we are changing the car and its getting better and better which is better than the last EOS when we ended up getting lost’. In terms of its performance he said, It’s good but not yet 100%. I can push hard but still have to be cautious’.  He concluded, ‘we are in the A-Main which was the main aim coming here and overall it is just getting better & better’.

Posting his first Top 6 time, when asked how qualifying was going newly crowned 2WD champion Michal Orlowski replied, ‘Not so good I would say’.  The Schumacher driver said, ‘I tried to get around for 5-minutes without a mistake’ adding ‘the steps is a big issue as I never know how the car will react there’.  With only a P11 to go with his 6th, he said, ‘I need one more good run’ to make the A-Main and to try give him a better car to achieve this they will stand up the rear shocks so the car jumps better.

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Q2 Update – Coelho fastest again

Bruno Coelho has brought Day 2 of the EOS at Arena33 to a close with another TQ run in 4WD.  Claiming his first 2WD race win earlier in the day, the Xray driver had to work a little harder for the TQ the second time round after a mistake on his 5th lap.  This left Team Associated’s Joona Haatanen take up the TQ pace but a mistake from the 2WD Top Qualifier would drop him to 8th for the round.  A slower round than the first by 1-second, Coelho’s advantage was also a lot less with team-mate Martin Wollanka 2.5 seconds adrift.  Although he would manage to better his P2 time from Q1, Lee Martin would end up third quickest ahead of his Yokomo team-mate Marc Rheinard, the result sure to see Rheinard make the A-Main at his home race having ended up as the BQ in 2WD.  An impressive drive from Burak Kilic, from the second fastest heat, would see the teenager making it three Yokomo’s in the Top 6 after finishing his heat behind Associated’s Neil Cragg who managed the 5th fastest time.

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Coelho in a different class in Q1

Bruno Coelho was in a different class to his rivals in the opening round of 4WD qualifying at the Euro Offroad Series, the reigning champion topping the times by almost 6-seconds.  Having set the pace in practice, the Xray driver lead away the field putting in a perfect run setting the fastest lap in the process. Behind Coelho, who is looking to successfully defend his EOS title this weekend at Arena33, Yokomo’s Lee Martin would post the second fastest time, splitting the Xray’s as Martin Bayer completed the Top 3 ahead of Hupo Honigl.

‘Very good’ was how Coelho summed up Q1.  Having been surprised by the level of grip his XB4 had in practice, saying he would unexpectedly have to look at changing the set-up, he opted to not to change anything but put on a new set of tyres.  Declaring the car was ‘surprisingly now very good’ he added ‘maybe it was the set of tyres’ he had used in practice that was the issue.  Starting the qualifier first, once he saw Martin had made a mistake he could run ‘a comfortable’ heat adding ‘everything was perfect’.

Martin said, ‘I made a terrible start. I crashed coming onto the straight the same as I did when 2WD qualifying started.  After that I just tried to drive to be second because unless Bruno made a mistake I was never going to catch him. It was out of my hands’.  In terms of his car he said ‘it was twitchy and we need to take away that edginess for the next one’.  He plans to run a stiffer front spring to get the car more to his liking.

‘I had a monkey style lap at the start and lost 1-second, then I was catching Lee but I had small traffic issue so I ended up third’, was how Bayer summed his run.  The Czech driver said a front swaybar adjustment had improved his XB4 from practice when he was also third quickest but over 3-consecutive laps.  Declaring, ‘now the car is really good’, he said ‘I just need a clean run for 2nd place’.

Describing Q1 as ‘a crazy run’, Honigl continued, ‘there is a lot going on in this track’.  Finishing 1.9-seconds off Bayer’s pace he said, ‘I was happy with my driving just there is a lot of traffic. Even when I let Bruno go I didn’t know where to let him passed because there is only one line around the track. On his Tekin powered XB4 he said, ‘it was a bit edgy because it was on new tyres but it should be better for the next one’.

Top Qualifier in 2WD, Joona Haatanen would take his B64 to the fifth fastest time.  The factory Associated driver was pleased to open with a Top 6 run saying the new car, which they debuted at the previous EOS encounter, is now ‘so much better than at the Hudy Arena’.  Feeling he lost time getting stuck behind traffic, the Finnish teenager said his car was maybe too comfortable to drive and so they would most likely make a set-up change for Q2 after discussing it with Team Manager Craig Drescher and his team-mates.

Completing the Top 6, Marc Rheinard said, it was ‘a better start than 2WD’.  The Yokomo driver continued, ‘It was an OK run but I’m still making mistakes’.  For sure I’m not perfect on this layout track and the car is OK but I can’t go at the speed I want so I think we need to try something for Q2′.

View complete event results here.

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