Stienes Longin (#11 PK Carsport Chevrolet SS) swept the season opening weekend in the ELITE 2 Division at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, Spain by leading from flag to flag the ELITE 2 Round 2. The Belgian started from the pole and perfectly mastered two early restarts to take the checkered flag with a 2.7 margin on his opponents at the end of an intense 8-lap dash to the finish after the second and last caution of the race.
“It was a tough race and I had to manage two restarts, but I was able to control the situation and stretch my lead in the end,” said Longin, who won his third career NASCAR race. “The team gave me a perfect car and now we are in a really good position for the championship.”
CAAL Racing teammates Salvador Tineo Arroyo (#54 CAAL Racing Chevrolet SS) and Guillaume Deflandre (#56 CAAL Racing Chevrolet SS) put on an incredible show for the thousands of fans crowding the grandstands for the Valencia NASCAR Fest. The Spaniard spent the entire race in third position, studying the Belgian and finally making his move at the last corner in the penultimate lap. Deflandre immediately fought back and made a move on the inside at the very last corner of the race. The two crossed the start-finish line separated by a mere .033 seconds, with Tineo barely edging Deflandre under the checkered flag.
Another exciting sprint went on for the fourth place and Hugo Bec (#3 Tepac RDV Compétition Ford Mustang) won the drag race to the finish line to barely beat – .018 seconds was the gap between the two cars – Roman Mavlanov (#15 Dexwet Renauer Team Ford Mustang), who won the Rookie Cup classification, Martin Doubek (#5 Dexwet Renauer Team Ford Mustang) and Eric De Doncker (#98 Motorsport 98 Ford Mustang), who led the Legend Trophy classification.
Freddie Hunt (#66 DF1 Racing Team Chevrolet SS) conquered the first top-10 of his NASCAR career by ending up eight at the wheel of the #66 DF1 Racing Chevrolet SS. Marco Spinelli (#6 Double-T by Nocentini Ford Mustang) and Brazilian rookie Marconi De Abreu (#47 Brazil Team Ford Mustang) rounded out the top-10, while Arianna Casoli (#8 Vict Motorsport Ford Mustang) brought home the Lady Cup trophy finishing 18th.
Gabriele Gardel (#24 PK Carsport Chevrolet SS), Thomas Ferrando (#37 Knauf Racing Team Ford Mustang) and Riccardo Geltrude (#7 Double-T by Nocentini Ford Mustang) all got involved in the two cautions and will look to rebound in three weeks at Raceway Venray.
The “Fastest Half Mile Oval In Europe” will host the second round of the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series regular season on May 15-16.
PHOTO – CREDITS: NASCAR Whelen Euro Series / Stephane Azemard