The first race of the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup took place on Saturday afternoon at 14.00. The summery weather had tampered a little, changing the 34 degrees of Friday to a much more acceptable 25 degrees. When the lights turned off to mark the start of the first race, Steijn Schothorst had a good start, but the real action took place just behind him. Frontrunner Matt Parry directly took the third position of team mate Jack Aitken. Just after, Jakub Dalewski and and Roman Beregech collided in the third turn of the track, causing a long yellow flag situation.

In the fourth lap, Jack Aitken turned out to be the fastest Brit on track and went by Parry for third place. In the second half of the race, Jack also managed to get by Dennis Olsen for second. In the midfield, Alberto di Folco (ART Junior Team) secured his best performance in the NEC season so far. After joining the grid in Spa, he finished his fourth race in tenth place.

The second race of the Formula Renault 2.0 formed the highlight of the 2013 Gamma Racing Day at Assen. Just after the Red Bull Formula One demonstration by David Coulthard, the second race started at 13.35 in front of 78.000 visitors on the grand stands. Steijn again had a flying start and drove to a good race up until the finish.

The most exciting fight on track was between Louis Deletraz and Alfonso Celis. Both young drivers fought many laps for their place in the top ten rankings. Furtheron, it seemed like Fran Rueda was pushed into a spin by Ryan Tveter, who was awarded with a 30 second penalty after the race. After further investigation, it turned out that the Spanish driver had made the spin on his own account, and Tveter’s penalty was withdrawn, putting him back in 14th position.

As he was flagged, Steijn Schothorst made a very rough breaking manouvre. The move almost resulted in a collision with Matt Parry whose excellent response just managed to avoid a high speed collision. Steijn Schothorst was after the race penalised by the stewards, who decided he will be put back three places on the starting grid at the next race he participates in.

After the Assen weekend, Matt Parry still has the exact same advantage in the rankings as before the weekend started. With a comfortable 121 point lead, he could already secure his championship title in the next round at Most. Jack Aitken holds the second place, followed by Dennis Olsen at just 3 points difference.

The next race of the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup will take place during the Truck Prix at Most, Czech Republic on the first weekend of September.

 

Result Race 1:

1. Steijn Schothorst in 16 laps, 26 minutes and 11.566 seconds, 2. Jack Aitken +4.746, 3. Dennis Olsen +6.371, 4. Matt Parry + 6.650, 5. Mikko Pakari + 14.531, 6. Andrea Pizzitola + 14.961, 7. Nicolas Jamin + 15.572, 8. Raoul Owens +22.036, 9. Tanart Sathienthirakul +28.744, 10. Alberto di Folco + 41.083

 

Result Race 2

1. Steijn Schothorst in 26 minuten en 12.204 seconden, 2. Matt Parry +1.734, 3. Dennis Olsen +5.795, 4. Jack Aitken +6.461, 5. Mikko Pakari + 7.759, 6. Andrea Pizzitola +13.260, 7. Raoul Owens +17.875, 8. Jakub Dalewski +19.154, 9. Louis Deletraz +19.710, 10. Nicolas Jamin +21.275

 

Standings in the championship after 11 races:

1. Matt Parry with 272 points, 2. Jack Aitken 151, 3. Dennis Olsen 148, 4. Pizzitola 126, 5. Pakari 125, 6. Schothorst 100 7. Ocon 98, 8. Owens +95, 9. Jamin 91, 10. Sathienthirakul 87