Tamm triumphs on dazzling Euro RX1 debut as title contenders come unstuck

Tamm had already sent out a calling card by boldly running wheel-to-wheel with championship leader Yury Belevskiy in heat two yesterday, but contact left him down in seventh in the overnight order.
 
A rocket-propelled launch in heat three and a solid run in heat four kept the Estonian in contention, and he took full advantage of a squabble between title protagonists Belevskiy, Damian Litwinowicz and Mika Liimatainen at the start of the first semi-final to assume a lead that – joker laps aside – he would not subsequently relinquish.
 
That earned Tamm pole position for the all-important final in mixed wet-dry conditions. While he conceded the initiative into Turn Two – as Mikko Ikonen swept spectacularly around the outside of all of his adversaries to grab first place from the very back of the grid – the Ford Fiesta driver reclaimed it with an incisive overtake approaching mid-distance. And with all manner of chaos unravelling behind, that was that.
 
Tamm’s margin of victory at the chequered flag was more than six seconds over a similarly inspired Mats Öhman. The experienced Swedish campaigner – who drives with hand controls after being left paralysed from the waist down in a snowmobile accident in 1998 – was arguably the standout performer of the day.
 
Even a stall at the start of heat four was not going to hold Öhman back, as he flung his JC Raceteknik-prepared Volkswagen Polo around the 1.163km circuit with unadulterated brio. From fifth on the grid, he artfully avoided a Turn Two mêlée and benefitted from a double joker penalty for a jump-start by pole-sitter Martin Enlund to win semi-final two.
 
In the final, he unleashed a strong turn-of-speed once again to cross the finish line just over a second behind Enlund in third place, but when his countryman was later disqualified for a clash with Belevskiy, Öhman was elevated to the runner-up spoils.
 
Astonishingly, Ikonen rounded out the rostrum in third – notwithstanding his tyre dramatically delaminating at the beginning of the last lap, pitching the home hero into a spin – as the championship contenders found themselves in the wars.
 
Belevskiy – who had only made it into the final after Liimatainen was handed a two-second penalty for contact between the pair in their semi-final – initially ran at the tail-end of the field, but ever the canny operator, an early joker strategy and relentless pace hauled the Swiss star back into the mix.
 
He was on-course to finish second until he found himself turned around by Enlund on the penultimate tour, with the closely-following Litwinowicz having nowhere to go but into the side of his former team-mate, putting both Audi drivers out on the spot.
 
Despite his DNF, Belevskiy has nonetheless extended his gap over Liimatainen at the summit of the standings from four points to ten heading into the Turkish season finale on 20-21 September, with Litwinowicz a further five points in arrears in third – setting the scene for a tantalising three-way title showdown at Istanbul Park next month.

Maiko Tamm, commented, "It’s amazing – I really need to thank all my team, they did a brilliant job. The weekend had a lot of ups and downs – yesterday I had a huge spin, so I had to reset mentally and come back. Today was all about focus: the semi-final was crazy, and the final even more so. In second position, I couldn’t see much on the track, so I just had to stay clean and push. To take the win on my Euro RX1 debut is unbelievable – I honestly have no words. I hope to continue racing in this championship, because the atmosphere here is amazing.”

Mats Öhman, said," It was an incredible final – everything was so intense, especially the first corner. The car was very good, and my team has been amazing all weekend. Driving in the final was tricky, but my launch worked perfectly and helped me get ahead. The competition was tough, but it feels great to take the victory. I’m not sure yet how I’ll celebrate tonight, but I’ll enjoy it!”

Mikko Ikonen, added, “It was a bit of a surprise to end up in that position. I had a great start, and after turn two I was leading – I was quite sure I was going to win today. But on the first lap, I suffered a puncture on the rear left, and after that it was a struggle. Obviously, it was heartbreaking, especially in the final lap. Still, it’s nice to come away with a podium finish. The competition has been strong all weekend, which makes it even more satisfying.”

Click here to view the final classification from the Euro RX1 of Finland.

Click here to view the provisional championship standings.