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The DHI track
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| The XRAY T2 continues to showcase the highest performance and strike success. The XRAY Factory Team recently appeared at the 2006 racing season kick-off race - the famous DHI Cup - to fight the toughest competition ever and to showcase the all-new T2. With a starting list of the world\'s best drivers and all four world champions and all the factory teams in attendance, it was highly expected to be an excellent, highly-competitive race. |
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Jilles relaxing
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| Team XRAY was represented by all the best European team members: Jilles Groskamp, Joel and Andreas Myrberg, Victor Wilck, and plenty of other top drivers from all over the Europe ; factory support was handled by the chief-engineer of the T2, Juraj Hudy and Martin Hudy. Paul Lemieux, the latest edition to the US team with two titles already (US Cleveland Indoor Champion 2005, US Novak Touring Champion 2006) flew in from USA to compete in the tough and demanding rubber tire racing conditions. The team looked very strong and respectable, but also had big expectations put upon it. |
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T2 from Victor
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| The race was very demanding right from the beginning. There were only two practice rounds scheduled for Friday, with qualifications on Saturday. At the end the most demanding thing was the ever-changing track conditions which changed almost every round; this made it very difficult to find the proper setup. With the new T2 at only its second large event and not perfectly adapted to the track, we had a lot more work ahead of us than anybody else. However, the new Multi-Flex Technology™ was a significant help as we did not have to change any parts, we just had to find the best compromise for the chassis and top deck MFT settings. |
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Juraj working with Paul on set-up
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| Jilles won the first qualification, giving the team more confidence and setting a good pace. In the other finals, the team worked on small setup changes to be well prepared for the finals. Jilles and Victor were very fast with their T2s and were at the top. Joel had a bit of bad luck while Martin struggled in most of the qualification heats as he could not find the best balance and was overheating the tires; after 4 minutes of racing with lap times good enough to qualify him at top in A main, his car suddenly oversteered. Juraj Hudy has worked with the team to fine tune the car setup and change small details to find the optimal compromise and some settings worked better, some not. |
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Driver's stand
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| At the end it was Jilles, Victor, and Paul who qualified in the very very strong competition in the A main, making XRAY the best qualifying team and making the T2 the best representing car in the A final, qualifying at 2nd and 3rd positions. Joel and Martin did not make it into the A main, instead both qualified in the B main, running with 3 other world champions - Hara, Surikarn and Spashett - so it was still a world class competition was expected in B final too. |
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Top 3
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| The finals were as usual crammed with top drivers, making them very exciting and thrilling to watch. Jilles and Victor pushed very hard and cruised very closely behind the leading Marc Rheinard, who did not give any small space for passing. As such, Jilles and Victor both finished in the 2nd and 3rd positions (respectively), making it a DOUBLE podium finish for Team XRAY - an excellent and astonishing result for the brand new T2, making it a hot contender and a car hard to beat for the upcoming season. |
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| The XRAY T2 did well not only in the Modified category but also in the Stock category too, having the young Thomas GĂĽnsel and private driver Frans Heinsbrok in A main with their T2s. Frans made an excellent showcase by moving and driving through the crowd from the 9th qualifying position to the final podium position in 3rd place. Frans, driving the T2 for first time, said after the race: \"The T2 is brilliant car.\" We have to say it was a great run for a first time and making it to the podium. |
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Team XRAY
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| The 2006 DHI-Cup is now in the history books and the T2 has signed that page with huge letters. The entire team was very happy for the great performance and especially the easy-to-work-on car whose setup could be changed so quickly. At the end, some XRAY drivers were happy to make it to the final, and some were not that happy, but overall the team did an awesome job and again showed that it is a very professional and dedicated racing team that continues to set new standards. |
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Thanks go to the organizers of this great event (despite the ever-changing conditions), thanks go to all teams for an exciting event, and thanks go to all XRAY drivers for their great teamwork and to all fans for ongoing support. See you at the next race.
The full report from Jilles Groskamp can be found here. |
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