The 2nd Italian GP was held in the small village of Palazzolo, close to Milano in northern Italy. The race saw a large carpet track with a really challenging layout. Some 100 drivers attended the race including all the top Italian electric drivers as well as foreigners Ronald Völker, Eric Dankel and myself. The LRP CPX control tire was used and as the track size was similar to the one at DHI Cup, this was a great opportunity to set up the car for these tires and prepare for the DHI Cup. Traction levels became fairly high and the finals had some close racing in both classes. Besides the Modified class, the 10.5 turn "Sport" class was run as well, with no limit on speed controllers which led to very high speeds and low lap times.
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In practice I tried both cars that I had prepared for the race, and in the end I settled for my first T3'2011 kit which has a fairly standard set-up including a ball diff, standard top deck and roll center holders. The car was very responsive, with good traction and steering right from the start. After a few changes I was the pace setter in the first two qualifiers. In the end, however, Ronald took the TQ spot by a small margin by winning 3 rounds whereas I had won 2 rounds.
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The finals were all quite dramatic with almost non-stop close racing for the win. After a disappointing first final (for me) it was Ronald who won. In the second final, I put pressure for the lead for about 3 minutes until Ronald hit the tape in the chicane, and I benefitted from his mistake to take the lead and hold it until the end. The final was lots of fun to drive and I am sure that the audience found it really exciting. In the last final it was again a close race for the win.
After a minute or so, Ronald slid on the tape before the main straight and I hit him from behind, which set me back a little. I then had to regain my 2nd place position by passing the surprisingly fast Sala, and then trying to catch Ronald which unfortunately wasn't possible. In the end the difference was less than 1 second.
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The car was once again handling great and even though I did not win I am really pleased with the results and that I once again was able to challenge the best driver in the world (at the moment).
The Stock class was won by team driver Eric Dankel who showcased a strong performance through qualifying to take the overall TQ spot ahead of Francesco Martini. The finals also proved to be very close in this category, with Martini managing to win the second leg and thus putting pressure on Dankel for the last final. Martini held to lead to the point where he fell victim to the carpet tape as well, and gave the lead back to Dankel who held it until the end. Both categories showed great racing and great performance from Team XRAY drivers. In the end, XRAY would grab all podium positions in the Sport category.
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Modified results:
1. Ronald Völker 2. Alexander Hagberg - XRAY T3'2011
3. Federico Sala
4. Alessio Menicucci 5. Marco Donadelli - XRAY T3
6. Francesco Martini - XRAY T3'2011
7. Christian Pagani
8. Andrea Simari 9. Gianni Bonetti - XRAY T3
10.Daniele Ielasi
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Sport results:
1. Eric Dankel - XRAY T3'2011
2. Francesco Martini - XRAY T3'2011
3. Daniel Baldissarri - XRAY T3'2011
4. Christian Dâ™alessandro - XRAY T3'2011
5. Davide Minissale
6. Antonio Simari
7. Matteo Berlincioni
8. Dario Facheris
9. Lorenzo Bigi
10.Alessandro Merloni
