Home heroics for Hungary’s Zoltán Koncseg in EuroRX1

As temperatures soared around the Nyirád Racing Centre in Hungary, thousands of passionate fans were treated to an epic finale in the hugely competitive EuroRX1 category. It was home track experience that won out in the end, as Zoltán Koncseg roared to a massively popular victory in a race that was filled with drama.

Having scored solidly throughout the qualifying heats, Koncseg finished a strong second in his semi-final to set up a second row start for the ultimate showdown at the famous ‘Red Cauldron’. Off the line it was pole-sitter Liimatainen who bolted into the lead, while fellow EuroRX1 Championship contender Litwinowicz stumbled on getaway and was only bumped back into contention from behind by Tamás Kárai.

With Liimatainen out front being chased by Belevskiy, Koncseg slotted into third and immediately went into the joker lap, piling the pressure on those ahead to build a gap. Litwinowicz also went for the joker, and just as they needed to keep it fast and consistent, the front pair clashed after Liimatainen ran wide in Turn 2, with the contact putting Volland Racing’s Belevskiy out of contention, ending his run of consecutive wins so far in 2025.

Liimatainen did all he could to build a gap, staying out of the joker until the final tour, but a few mistakes here and there meant that the gap wasn’t enough, and with the huge crowd on its feet, Koncseg came through the merge point in the lead and blasted over the line for an emphatic first EuroRX1 win.

With Liimatainen and Litwinowicz completing the podium, Nils Volland brought it home in fourth having initially run higher up the field, with the last of the runners being circuit owner Kárai.

Zoltán Koncseg said: “It was fantastic, I'm very happy! We didn't count on it, but when I saw the goal open up, I thought maybe we could do it. We were sitting there, and it was fun. I was impressed by the way I was driving and it was a lot of fun to score the first win. Of course there was some luck involved, but you have to take the chance. It was like 70 degrees in the car, it was really, really, really hard… but to win in front of the Hungarian fans is amazing!”

Mika Liimatainen said: “Today's been very good, but in the finals, something went wrong with the car. We had some hits with the Belevskiy, then something happened but it’s OK. There were a lot of people here – a lot of fans, the Hungarian guys, who I like very much. The track is very good, maybe we could do something with Turn 1 because if you win there, don't go flying in the air, you go inside and can control the race. Next time we have a home race in Kymiring, let’s see what it is like!”

Damian Litwinowicz said: “The weekend was going perfect, I won my semi-final, but then something strange happened in the final. The initial start was going good, but then the car stopped and I got hit from Kárai in the back – I think that gave me some extra momentum to go because I don't know what would have happened if he didn’t hit me!