19 October 2014
Mikel Azcona ends the season in style
Starting from pole, Mikel Azcona (PCRSport) scored his second victory in the Eurocup Clio at the Circuito de Jerez. The Spaniard resisted pressure from Oscar Nogues (Rangoni Corse) to take the win ahead of the 2012 and 2014 category champion. Thanks to his success, Mikel Azcona finishes runner-up in the season ending general classification ahead of third place finisher on Sunday, Eric Trémoulet (Vic’Team).
This morning, Mikel Azcona claimed the final pole on offer this season, his second of the year. The Spaniard led from Oscar Nogues, who won the crown yesterday. Eric Trémoulet, Massimiliano Pedalà (Composit Motorsport) and Facundo Della Motta (Pujolaracing) were next on the starting grid.
Straight away Mikel Azcona pulled away from the field led by Oscar Nogues. In a battle with Massimiliano Pedalà, Eric Trémoulet held on third place, leaving the Italian to fend off Alex Morgan (Rangoni Corse), Facundo Della Motta and Pablo Martin (SMC Junior Motorsport).
As the laps ticked off, Oscar Nogues closed up to Mikel Azcona. While the young Spaniard resisted his older counterpart, the contacts and position changes were numerous further down the order. René Steenmetz (Pujolaracing) received a drive-through penalty following a collision, while Kenneth Ma (Monlau Competicion) and Ye Xing Ping (Monlau Competicion) saw their races end in the gravel.
Race leader Mikel Azcona kept his cool and went on for the win ahead of Oscar Nogues. Eric Trémoulet claimed the third spot on the podium and was followed by Massimiliano Pedalà and Alex Morgan. Sixth place Facundo Della Motta left seventh place Pablo Martin no opportunities to pass. Nikolay Gryazin (Composit Motorsport), Salvatore Arcarese (Rangoni Corse) and Ivan Pulic (Lema Racing team) all finished in the points.
Quotes
Mikel Azcona: “It is always special to win the last race of a season. I am very happy with my first year in an international championship. To finish second in a category as competitive as this is good and I can’t wait to comeback!”
Oscar Nogues: “It has been a very good season for me and the team. I am very happy to win the championship for a second time. In addition to the result, I had some good battles, always very correct, with Mikel and Eric as well as Massimiliano Pedalà. We had some intense fights, but it always clean.”
Eric Trémoulet: Oscar was fast and consistent all season. He didn’t make any mistakes this season and he earned the title. At the start of the year, the goal was to win both the French and European titles. I barely missed out on the French crown, while I lacked a bit of speed in the Eurocup. To finish on the podium is all the same a good performance.”
Provisional General Classification : 1. O. Nogues – 161 points, 2. M. Azcona – 121, 3. E. Trémoulet – 112, 4. M. Pedalà – 102, 5. A. Morgan – 59, …