Bulldog Lacko Wins on Sunday Too in Zolder

In Zolder, Belgium, the venue of the seventh racing weekend of the European Race Truck Championship, Adam Lacko added two victories to his European Championship account. However, his loss after the leader of the overall ranking Jochen Hahn deepened due to the given up first Sunday race. Jiří Forman collected score points and experience. Saturday Super pole traditionally decided about the starting positions of the quickest ten in the starting grid of the first Belgian race. The shortest time of the four-kilometre lap was achieved by Adam Lacko who thus won the pole position over the second quickest Jochen Hahn. Jiří Forman accelerated and this lap time brought him the fourth starting row. The start procedure was without problems and Adam maintained his leading position after the first curve. “What I worried about was confirmed. Although I knew I started successfully, the first left turn is followed by three right turns and thus Jochen just needed to keep next to me. In the following curves he had the shorter route and seized the lead,” confessed Lacko. Adam held the German pilot for the whole race but the narrow circuit did not give much chance for overtaking. Adam thus passed under the chessboard flag raking second. Although Jiří Forman lost his starting position being overtaken by the ambitious Lenz, Reinert´s problems returned him to the desired eighth rank assuring the pole position in the second race. “This was wonderful experience among the concrete barriers here. I succeeded in getting the eighth rank, the first row for the second race. That will be very interesting here in Zolder,” said Jirka Forman, who will have Sascha Lenz paired with him in the first row. Thus the first row of the second race of the day reminded of the starting grid of the last race in Most, where Forman had to withdraw for a technical issue from the leading rank. Sascha Lenz took the lead this time immediately after start and Forman held the second rank till the fifth lap where he was overtaken by his teammate Adam Lacko. However, the newcomer to the Buggyra team could not maintain the podium rank. “Pity, I think it could have been better. From the fourth lap on the engine did not pull as it should. We must look at it and evaluate the situation,“ said Jirka, who finished the race with the seventh rank. Adam Lacko, starting from the fourth row, reached the second rank in the fifth lap and began to reduce the distance to Lenz, who had built up a five-second advantage. Two laps before the finish the Czech pilot attacked him and seized the lead. “Super! The truck worked well and the ride was excellent experience. Pity this was not the case in the first race, the score would be more hopeful,“ rejoiced Adam, who, nevertheless, lost another three score points after Hahn on Saturday. Sunday Simply fantastic was the performance of Adam Lacko in the Sunday super pole where he achieved the shortest lap time like on Saturday with an advantage of seven tenths of a second before the second ranking Hahn. Jiří Forman also repeated his Saturday performance and obtained the fourth starting row for the race. Unlike on Saturday Lacko guarded his lead in the first curves and began to gain distance in front of his rivals. Unfortunately, this situation was only maintained until the sixth lap. “We test new engine components and that entails certain risks, which we are aware of,” said Lacko after the unfinished third race, finally won by Jochen Hahn. Two laps later Jiří Forman also withdrew from the race from the so far successfully held eighth rank. The defect causing that was broken disc. “I do not know exactly where the fault was. What I know for certain is that I use the same brakes like Adam and he has no problems with them,” said Forman who has to profoundly analyse this fact with the team engineers. Thus both Buggyra trucks started the last race from the last positions and nobody expected Lacko to be able to repeat his Saturday result of the handicap race. But already in the fourth lap the Czech pilot ranked fourth and two laps later he was leading the race. “A successful ride! I hope we have managed to show who is the quickest here,“ laughed the rejoicing Lacko, losing 35 score points after the leading Hahn after the Belgian stage. “It will be difficult but I am a fighter and will not give up until the last curve. If Hahn wants the title I will not give it to him for free,” hinted Lacko on the German cooperation in the final race. Jirka Forman was unable to fully concentrate for the last weekend race and finally ranked ninth. “This was not the best performance. We must evaluate everything and start anew in Spain,” added Jirka to his outcome.