Close battles in RX3 fight to master Hungary’s Red Cauldron

With four Hungarian entries the home crowd packed the banks of the iconic rallycross circuit eagerly anticipating a strong performance from their local drivers who were pushing hard to maximise their qualifying points ahead of tomorrow’s all-important finals.

Qualifying Heat 1 kicked off the action in style, perfectly demonstrating the competitiveness and close racing rallycross is renowned for. Andre Sousa’s Audi A1 sped off the line with an initially commanding performance that saw him lead the first two laps but with Dominik Senegacnik hot on his heels, a poor line into Turn 5 saw the Austrian perform what may be a weekend-defining overtake for him on the inside of the corner which he converted into a healthy lead. Senegacnik took a last-lap Joker lap to show the Hungarian crowd a truly assured performance he can be proud of.

Senegacnik’s Q1 dominance saw him up against championship leader Joao Ribeiro who was fresh from his battle with Rytis Gurklys in the Q1 heat. Riberio and Gurklys had duelled from the start with an initially strong getaway from championship leader Ribeiro, but contact from Gurkyls straight into Turn 1 reminded us all how hotly contested this EuroRX3 Championship is.

Ribeiro, Senegacnik, Körmöczi and Teješ went into Q2 as the top four positioned drivers. Ribeiro continued to show his dominance taking an early lead which was almost unchallenged until a mistake during his Joker almost jeopardised his race. However, the Portuguese expertly maintained control and glided his championship leading car to the top spot at the end of day 1 on 100 points with Hungarian Körmöczi 10 points behind him. The crowds had already risen earlier in the afternoon for the 22-year-old driver from Budapest after his dominant Q1 performance and local fans will be leaving the circuit this evening hopeful of potential home-success to come over the weekend.

Further down the field drivers knew they needed to take risks to secure the vital points they need heading into day two of the Hungarian round here at Nyirád. Second-place in the standings Gurklys will have been disappointed to fall into the second batch of Q2 heats after he faced a fierce but ultimately costly battle in Q1 with Hungarian Sámuel Kovács. Gurklys did deliver the assured performance he needed in Q2 however, staying clear of the close battle between Tuma and Körmöczi who tussled following Tuma’s Joker lap giving Gurklys the Q2 heat win and fourth position heading into day two remaining well in contention.

In the other Q2 heat, the Sousa brothers knew they needed to put in strong performances and the heat didn’t disappoint. Rogerio Sousa’s exit from Turn 2 on lap one almost saw a three car pile-up leaving Sousa’s brother Andre out ahead in an incident that ultimately saw Hungarian Tamás Végh spin and put his weekend in jeopardy.

That wasn’t the only drama in this exhilarating heat with Geleyns opting to follow Andre Sousa into the Joker on lap one eliminating his opportunity for a potential Joker overtake later in the race. Andre Sousa sped to victory in his Q2 heat with his brother Rogerio holding off the threat of Geleyns to clinch second place. Andre’s solid performance was enough to take him from provisional 10th at the end of Q1 to a much more competitive 8th as we head into day two.

With Saturday’s action at the Euro RX3 wrapped up, attention now shifts to the all-important remaining qualifying sessions tomorrow which will set our line up for the finals. With some great racing already around the red circuit of Nyirád, we’re set for even greater action tomorrow.

Click here for provisional FIA European Rallycross Championship RX3 classification.

Click here to schedule tomorrow’s action live and free on the FIA World Rallycross Championship YouTube Channel.