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The last round of EOS took the last weekend in Austria in Wels at a Hobby show which attracted a lot of spectators. This was the last 4th race of the EOS 2014 season that was going to decide the overall winners. Since the beginning of the 2014 EOS we have worked within the team very hard, collected more and more experiences and knowledge and kept improving from the race to the next one. The hard work paid off with a victory for me in both 2WD and 4WD classes in the 3rd round. The last 4th should decide the overall winner and I still could take the overall win if I would win the last round, so everything was still open that gives an idea how competitive this season was.
To be ready for this last 4th round we have again worked very hard with the team and prepared several new prototype parts. Unfortunately we did not have time to test those new parts before the race and as such we had to use the first practice rounds just to test the parts and to work on set-up. Gaining the experience with the new parts and also the fact that the carpet did not suit me well I was slightly off the pace and I have struggled the first rounds and as such I finished 5th in qualifications in 2WD class. Unfortunately in all the final runs I had traffic issues after the start of the race and I could not finish better than 6th overall which brought me an overall 4th place of the 2014 season. Considering that this was our first âśseriousâť season with the 2WD and that we worked from a race to race to improve step by step we did for sure a fantastic work and huge progress and as such I am very confident for the next season. |
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After the 2WD class was done on Saturday I was looking forward the 4WD on Sunday. During the entire season the team was more than competitive and we put a lot of pressure on the other teams. As mentioned before the overall champion of the season had to be decided this Sunday and after my win in the 3rd round I had very high chances for the win. I expected that this last race of the season will be thrilling and I was a bit nervous but at the same time very confident as our XB4 has been working extremely well the entire season. Unfortunately the Sunday did not start well for me as I did not feel well. In qualification I was many times on the pace but some small mistakes cost me a lot and I finished 3rd in qualifications with my team mate Martin Wollanka making it to the A-main as well. With the current competition level there is no room for a single mistake if you want to TQ and unfortunately I made several small mistakes.
Despite being 3rd on the starting grid for the finals I felt still very comfortable as the performance of the car was there for the win I just needed a bit of luck which unfortunately did not happen as I had many fights in the final runs and traffic which resulted into overall 4th place which unfortunately did not allow me to take the overall win of the 2014 season.
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| The 2014 EOS season was XRAYâ™s and also my own 2nd season only. During the season we have shown our dedication and worked within the team very hard which brought us some great achievements and wins and allowed us to fight for the overall win. This year we missed the overall win closely but I am sure we will continue our work and will put even more pressure on the competition to try to grab the title next year. I would like to thanks everyone in the team for their very dedicated work and efforts. The biggest thanks goes of course to XRAY and to Juraj who have shown the fanatical dedication for the absolute perfection and many times did impossible with the speed of development and prototypes production which for sure is our key why we continue to improve and get to the top so fast. The big thanks goes to everyone in the team who supported us during the season including Reno Savoya, Miguel Matias, Martin Wollanka, Lorenzo Crolla, Malin Karlsen, Nuno Rebello, David Kukla, Ales Bayer and everyone else. I am very happy and very proud to be part of this great team and I can not wait for the next season. Now it is start to get ready for the outdoor season. |
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EOS 2014 - 4WD Buggy Overall Championship Standings (Top 10)
1. Joern Neumann - 468 pts
2. Martin Bayer â“ XRAY XB4 - 462
3. Naoto Matsukura - 458
4. Lee Martin - 452
5. Hupo Hoingl - 452
6. Renaud Savoya - XRAY XB4 - 447
7. Michal Orlowski - 442
8. David Ronnefalk - 442
9. Ronald Volker -434
10.Oskar Levin - 430
EOS 2014 - 2WD Buggy Overall Championship Standings (Top 10)
1. Naoto Matsukura -464 pts
2. Joern Neumann -461
3. Hupo Hoingl -459
4. Martin Bayer - XRAY XB4 2WD - 451
5. Tom Cockerill -451
6. Lee Martin -450
7. David Ronnefalk -447
8. Peter Pinisch -435
9. Juho Levanen -431
10.Michal Orlowski -428
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