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2024 UIM-ABP European Continental Aquabike Championship
HAMELIN, DRYJAK, CALMELS, VANNI, ARTHEBISE, GURKŠNYS AND JÁSZAI EARN MOTO 2 WINS IN VICHY
Friday, July 26: A series of seven Moto 2s were held in the Ski GP3, Runabout GP4, Ski GP4, Runabout GP4 Ladies, Ski Junior 3.3, Runabout GP4 Junior and Ski GP2 categories at the Grand Prix of Vichy on Saturday afternoon, in addition to the second Moto for the Ski Expert (not UIM) and Veteran GP1 classes.
Belgian Yoni Hamelin, Czech Petr Dryjak, Frenchman Baptiste Calmels, Italian Ilaria Vanni, Belgian Maxime Arthebise, Lithuania’s Grantas Gurkšnys and Hungary’s Csongor Jászai secured Moto 2 successes in their respective heats, while Hamelin and Frenchman Anthony Errecart topped the standings in Ski Expert (not UIM) and Veteran GP1.
Second successive Ski GP3 Moto win for Hamelin
Belgium’s Yoni Hamelin had won the opening Moto to lead the European Championship and he lined up on pole for Moto 2 from Michael Van Reybroeck, Phil Segers, Loris Lambert and Manuel Leite.
The in-form Belgian made another good start and had moved over eight seconds clear of Van Reybroeck after laps, as Leite, Lambert and Dutchman Bram Hoeke settled into third, fourth and fifth of the 15 entrants. Hungary’s Lajos Komonyi began to climb through the field into sixth behind Segers, as Hoeke dropped back to an eventual seventh heading into the remaining minutes of the Moto.
Hamelin kept his cool and coasted to a 13.53-second win over Van Reybroeck with Leite, Lambert, Segers and Komonyi filling the remaining places in the top six.
Two out of two Moto wins for Dryjak in Runabout GP4
Czech Petr Dryjak lined up on pole for Moto 2 having won the opening tussle with Ibiza-based Spaniard Alejandro Prats Palau to lead the European Championship. Pole Juliusz Roman, Dovydas Kutra, Christian Cagnard and Adrien Bussolon started alongside.
Dryjak maintained his advantage through the opening lap but Kutra overtook Prats Palau and slotted into second. The Ibiza racer was not to be denied, however, and he regained second place on lap two as Cagnard overhauled Roman to take fourth. The Pole then made a mistake and slipped to the foot of the rankings as Prats Palau closed to within 1.22 seconds of Dryjak heading into lap seven.
But the Czech managed to stay in front to claim a slender 3.15-second win and earn a second successive Moto win to extend his European Championship lead and strengthen his chance of winning the Grand Prix of Vichy. Kutra, Cagnard, Bussolon and Roman rounded off the six finishers.
Calmels earns second successive Ski GP4 Moto
Baptiste Calmels had beaten European Championship leader Yoni Hamelin to Moto 1 spoils and the Frenchman lined up on pole from Hamelin, Mathys Mezière, Mickael Traclet, Jennifer Poret and Grantas Gurkšnys.
Calmels led Hamelin through the opening lap with Mezière, Traclet, Poret, Philippe Achard and Latvia’s Daniils Potrivailo holding top seven positions. Having missed last weekend’s opening round in Hungary, Calmels was concentrating on earning Grand Prix of Vichy honours and the Frenchman began to edge away from Hamelin as the Moto progressed.
Calmels secured a second Moto win to take a six-point lead over Hamelin into Sunday’s final Vichy Moto, but the Belgian increased his European Championship lead. Mezière, Traclet, Poret, Potrivailo, Valentine Coutier and Coralie Labateux rounded off the top eight finishers in the unofficial results after late issues for 10th-placed Achard. Grantas Gurkšnys was ninth. Both Mezière and Achard incurred 25-second penalties for not maintaining their lanes at the start.
Vanni closes in on Bramm with second Runabout GP4 Ladies Moto win
Ilaria Vanni had beaten European Championship leader Cyrielle Bramm to Moto 1 honours and sat on pole for Moto 2 from Bramm, Nikola Dryjakova, Nicole Cadei, Markéta Hollerová and Volia Dzikovich.
Vanni stayed ahead of Bramm and Hollerová through lap one as Arianna Urlo began to climb through the field into sixth. Dryjakova overhauled Hollerová and grabbed third as Vanni began to pull away from Bramm in her quest for a second win of the weekend.
The top six held station through the next few laps and Vanni managed to hang on through the latter stages of the Moto to record a win by 4.62 seconds from Bramm. The win gave her a useful six-point lead in the Grand Prix, although Bramm continued to head the European Championship. Dryjakova, Hollerová, Cadei, Luísa Beja, Dzikovich, Astra Gurkšnytė, Ludovica Urlo and a troubled Arianna Urlo rounded off the 10 finishers.
Hamelin and Errecart on top in GP1 Expert and Veteran GP1 classes in Moto 2
Yoni Hamelin and Eddy Godon had won the opening Motos in their respective GP1 Expert and Veteran GP1 categories and had pole positions for the second of the Vichy Motos that combined both classes.
But Robin Sylvester and Anthony Errecart made the next starts in the two categories and led after the opening lap, with Alex Barret, Hamelin, Jeremy Rathoin and Alexandre Girel running in the top five in the GP1 Expert section and Gabor Szabo, Godon and Virginie Morlaes trailing Errecart.
Hamelin displaced Barret to snatch second place and began to apply fierce pressure on the Frenchman but the Veterans were holding their positions into the closing stages of the Moto. The Belgian found a way past on lap five and began to pull away. He reached the finish with a 11.67-second advantage, as Rathoin, Csongor Jászai, Daan Hoeke (25-second start penalty), Sylvester, Girel and Barret finished behind, the latter being penalised one lap for not maintaining his lane at the start. Hamelin takes a 10-point lead over Hoeke into the final Moto.
Errecart hung on to beat Szabo, Morlaes and Godon to Veteran GP1 honours. He now leads Godon by four points and Szabo by five with one Moto to run.
Ski Junior 3.3 Moto 2 success for Arthebise
Quentin Duporte had benefitted from Maxime Arthebise’s disqualification to win the Ski Junior 3.3 Moto and the Frenchman headed Mio and Via Petrovic, Mansour Abuljadayel, Adrian Kristoffersen and Pelle Stenborg from the start of Moto 2 with Arthebise and Lajos Komonyi running at the rear of the field.
Abuljadayel made the best start and the Arab racer snatched a surprise lead from Komonyi, Arthebise and Stenborg with Moto 1 winner Duporte down in seventh place. Abuljadayel kept his lead through halfway as Arthebise displaced Mio Petrovic to snatch third. But the experienced European trio found a way through on lap four and Abuljadayel slipped to fourth behind Komonyi, Arthebise and Mio Petrovic with Duporte holding fifth.
Arthebise then overtook Komonyi with less than three minutes on the clock and the Belgian stayed ahead to take the chequered flag by 18.24 seconds. Komonyi and Mio Petrovic rounded off the podium places from Grand Prix leader Duporte, Kristoffersen and Via Petrovic. Stenborg retired after six laps and Abuljadayel was penalised one lap for missing a turn buoy and slipped to seventh.
Gurkšnys confirms second Runabout GP4 Junior Moto win
Grantas Gurkšnys had beaten Erikas Butkus and Aurora Filiberti to Runabout GP4 Junior honours in Moto 1 and the Lithuanian lined up on pole for heat two with Adas Zalagaitis and Dovydas Kutra starting behind the leading trio. Gurkšnys made the best start and kept his advantage through the opening turn buoys to lead Butkus by 2.59 seconds after lap one. Zalagaitis, Kutra and Filiberti were third, fourth and fifth.
Gurkšnys fended off the challenge from his three Lithuanian rivals and crossed the finish with a 14.72-second advantage to secure a second 25-point haul from the first two Motos. Butkus, Kutra, Zalagaitis, and Italy’s Filiberti rounded off the finishers. Butkus now trails Gurkšnys by six points in the battle for Grand Prix honours.
Csongor Jászai leads Euro series after second Ski GP2 Moto win
Csongor Jászai had narrowly beaten Dutchman Daan Hoeke to the opening Ski GP2 win and the result saw the pair tied in the European Championship. The Hungarian started Moto 2 ahead of Hoeke, the Portuguese pairing of Matteo Valente and Manuel Leite, Lionel Bourrel and Luuk Hoeke with Jerry Olin running behind after his Moto 1 disqualification.
Jászai held off his Dutch rival through the opening twists and turns on the first lap and emerged from lap two with a 2.34-second advantage. Valente, Luuk Hoeke, Leite and Bourrel filled the remaining places in the top six with Olin running down in seventh. The Finn then passed Bourrel and moved into sixth as Jászai and Daan Hoeke pulled away from the chasing quintet.
The Hungarian was able to fend off Hoeke’s advances over the closing laps to earn a 42.17-second win, a 10-point lead in the Grand Prix over Valente and the outright advantage in the European Championship. A resurgent Olin passed a troubled Hoeke on the penultimate lap to finish second with Valente, Leite, Bourrel and Luuk Hoeke rounded off the finishers. Daan Hoeke failed to cross the finish line or score points.
Ends
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