Mixed feelings with Kumpen, Longin and Dumarey

The start of the Nascar Whelen Euro Series play-offs at the Autodromo dell’Umbria in Magione (Italy) did not deliver the expected result for Anthony Kumpen and Bert Longin. One highlight for PK Carsport though was the smashing victory of Maxime Dumarey in Elite 2.

Money Time in the Nascar Whelen Euro Series! Magione was hosting the one but last meeting of the season, the first event of the decisive play-offs. This meant double points could be earned in the two races on the Autodromo dell’Umbria, so marking a good result was ever more important.

‘That’s why it’s even more a pity that we were unable to go the full distance this weekend’, analyses Anthony Kumpen. ‘I started the first race in third position, but it took me a long time to overtake Eddie Cheever. By then, Vilarino has built too much of a lead. I was still able to close the gap of four seconds, but the race was finished before being able to make a real move.’

This race also proved to be a tough one for Bert Longin, be it that he wasn’t to blame. ‘At the start of the race, I got hit, resulting in a spin, thus dropping back to 22nd position. The only thing left for me to do was to move up the field as quickly as possible. Crossing the finish line in 8th position really was the best I could do.’

In the second race though, Anthony discovered that it’s not always peace and quiet in NWES. ‘At the start, Cheever pushed Vilarino into me, costing me a few positions’, says our friend from Hasselt. ‘Not very sportive, to say the least. I had to come back from the tenth position, eventually ranking 5th. But seeing that I gained almost ten seconds on the leader in just the last six laps, then you know we could have done much better today.’

Longin couldn’t agree more with his team mate Kumpen. ‘Started in seventh position and ended as such, although I was driving fourth for a while’, explains the driver from Leuven. ‘In the Nascar Whelen Euro Series there really isn’t room for small mistakes.’

Elite 2 on the other hand saw a great race for PK Carsport, with Maxime Dumarey bringing home his first victory. In race 2, the young Flemish guy could also have won, but at the restart he got boldly pushed off track. Even so, Dumarey is now leading the championship in Elite 2, just like PK Carsport is still in the lead of the teams ranking.

In Elite 1, Longin moved up to the sixth place in the ranking, with Kumpen being eleven points behind leader Ander Vilarino, just before the season finale in Le Mans. ‘I want that title’, says a determined Anthony Kumpen. ‘I realise he isn’t just any driver, but I will do my utmost to close the gap. That would really be the icing on the cake, to finish what has already been a wonderful first season in the Nascar Whelen Euro Series.’