Liam Hezemans claimed victory in Sunday’s NASCAR Whelen Euro Series feature race at American SpeedFest 11 powered by Lucas Oil. The Dutchman drove a controlled race from the front to lead from the start through to the finish.
Hezemans made the most of his strong start position to hold the lead as the race got underway from a two by two rolling start and rarely looked back during a race which approached 40 minutes in length. The main threat to his position came following an early safety car period following an off-track moment for British racer Max Marzorati.
As the race resumed, Hezemans set about managing proceedings once more, calmly driving home to the finish to claim the spoils in Victory Lane. Frenchman Lucas Lasserre was his nearest rival as the race drew to a close, crossing the line less than a second behind. But despite the relatively small margin, Lasserre never really appeared to have a clear opportunity at passing the leader. The podium was completed by Martin Doubek with Gianmarco Ercoli fourth.
Behind that there was a lively race long scrap for the lower positions in the top-10, with Saturday’s EuroNASCAR race winner Vittorio Ghirelli very much at the heart of the action. The Italian had started on the front row, but he was shuffled down the order after running out wide at Paddock Hill bend on lap one, and one again found himself losing ground following the appearance of the safety car.
That left the Italian firmly within a tight scrap on the fringes of the top-five, with Paul Jouffreau, Ulysse Delsaux, Tobias Dauenhauer and Fabrizio Armetta amongst those involved. Ghirelli settled into sixth mid-race, but appeared to lack the pace he’d used to win a day prior, and this allowed Dauenhauer to build a little breathing room and take fifth.
Ghirelli lost further ground late in the race when the charging Armetta fought past, but the Italian was subsequently handed a drive through penalty, allowing Jouffreau and Delsaux to benefit and take sixth and seventh respectively. Ghirelli eventually held on to secure a good haul of points in eighth with Sebastiaan Bleekemolen and Ryan Vargas completing the top-10.
EuroNASCAR Pro, Brands Hatch, Race 2
- Liam Hezemans, Hendriks Motorsport, Toyota Camry
- Lucas Lasserre, Speedhouse, Ford Mustang, +0.706s
- Martin Doubek, Hendriks Motorsport, Ford Mustang, +2.158s
- Gianmarco Ercoli, CAAL Racing, Chevrolet Camaro, +7.744s
- Tobias Dauenhauer, Bremotion, Chevrolet Camaro, +14.202s
- Paul Jouffreau, RDV Competition, Ford Mustang, +14.426s
- Ulysse Delsaux, Speedhouse, Ford Mustang, +14.718s
- Vittorio Ghirelli, PK Carsport, Chevrolet Camaro, +15.853s
- Sebastiaan Bleekemolen, Team Bleekemolen, +16.265s
- Ryan Vargas, 3F Racing, Chevrolet Camaro, +18.220s
Click here for full race results from this event.