Round 4 of the Spanish National Championship took place in Vila on Sept 12-14 with fine weather and a very technical track.
Friday was free practice and top drivers were all looking very fast. On Saturday morning we had a controlled practice where Inaki Pahissa set the fastest lap time and he was looking very strong in this race. Other XRAY drivers like Johnny Pastor who ran on their home track and Mikel Angulo were also fast. There were two more top drivers that joined the team at this race; both Javier Hidalgo and Javier Alonso decided to use the NT1 for this race, and both looked consistent and fast considering that it was their first race with the car.
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Later on in qualifying Carlos Peracho set the pace, Mikel Angulo had a very fast run in the third heat, and Johnny managed to make it to the final in the last run while Inaki struggled with the car as the track temperature rose and so he only managed to qualify in 10th position. Peracho ended up in the TQ position.
Semi-final B
Semi-final B saw I?aki Pahissa and Javier Alonso run away from the rest of the competitors and have a close battle between themselves Javier had an engine stoppage and left I?aki alone. Inaki won the semi-final and qualified for the main final. The other two that qualified for the final were Ramon Guasch and Josep Gradoli.
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Semi-final A
Semi final A was won by Vicente Eres who made a clean run. Behind him were Toni Mateo and young driver Fabio Barbosa who qualified for the final.
Main final
Right from the beginning, Carlos Peracho ran away with Josue Artiles. Behind them was Johnny Pastor who had a bad start. Inaki started to climb positions until the car started to become very difficult to drive and started dropping off the pace. Johnny continued and managed to climb up to 3rd place. Carlos Peracho had an engine stop around the half way mark, leaving Josue Artiles alone in 1st place. Johnny (in 2nd place) at that moment had some trouble in the last pit stop and ended up in 4th place. Vicente Eres, who was very fast, had a problem with one of his tires and had to retire, while Inaki Pahissa ended up in 8th position.
Final results:
1. Josue Artiles
2. Toni Mateo
3. Israel Solis 4. Johnny Pastor XRAY NT1
5. Ramon Guasch 6. Carlos Peracho XRAY NT1
7. Fabio Barbosa XRAY NT1
8. Inaki Pahissa XRAY NT1
9. Josep Gradoli XRAY NT1
10. Vicente Eres XRAY NT1
