---S28 Elite Review: Scott ‘Sox’ Robinson---
Elite in S28 was always likely to be a defining moment for at least one person. Four former champions lined up on the grid, two of whom were vying for the Holy Grail fourth GPRO Title, another was going for a natural hat-trick and the other was a seasoned veteran and one of the all-time greats.
Elite in S28 was always likely to be a defining moment for at least one person. Four former champions lined up on the grid, two of whom were vying for the Holy Grail fourth GPRO Title, another was going for a natural hat-trick and the other was a seasoned veteran and one of the all-time greats.
Race 1
A rainy first race in Bahrain was unlikely to make the situation any clearer. A few wily managers saw the early chance to claim some points, and smartly chose to go with Badyears. This gamble paid off, indeed 4 of the top 10 finishers all had Badyear tires fitted. For Mindaugus Sarocka, Marek Marchewka and Vsevolod Demydov the early season points meant the remaining sixteen races could be enjoyed relatively worry free. Meanwhile the podium was filled out by the usual suspects, Justinas beating out Toygun and Wojciech for top spot.
Race 2
Staying in the Middle East and a relatively mild Yas Marina was the first real chance for managers to show their hands. The top seven finishers would be the same top seven managers in the final standings; however it was Toygun who survived the dust to claim top spot. Triple Champion Zdenek Hladik, who was relatively nowhere during race 1 would demonstrate his legitimate claim as a front runner by claiming third. Wojciech split them in second and Justinas was a lowly fifth.
Race 3
Staying in the Middle East and a relatively mild Yas Marina was the first real chance for managers to show their hands. The top seven finishers would be the same top seven managers in the final standings; however it was Toygun who survived the dust to claim top spot. Triple Champion Zdenek Hladik, who was relatively nowhere during race 1 would demonstrate his legitimate claim as a front runner by claiming third. Wojciech split them in second and Justinas was a lowly fifth.
Race 3
Singapore – MORE RAIN! Once again, the Badyear runners must have been rubbing their hands together with glee when the news filtered through that the rain was here for the whole race. Marek and Vsevolod took full advantage once again, claiming yet more valuable points finishing fifth and sixth respectively. Veteran Daneks Briatale also took full advantage of the rain to claim his first points of the season finishing a very creditable fourth place. The main shock was Zdenek who simply couldn't get to grips with the wet track, a lack luster Thirty-First place will be a result best forgotten. It was Justinas that was still the man to beat though; a solid performance saw him claim his second win of the season. Wojciech finished second, Leandro scored his first podium of the season in 3rd and, winner in Abu Dhabi, Toygun took a weak seventh.
Race 4 took the drivers to India. The main story here was a puncture mid race for Championship leader Justinas, the history books will show a fortieth pace finish, Justinas had this to say:
Race 4 took the drivers to India. The main story here was a puncture mid race for Championship leader Justinas, the history books will show a fortieth pace finish, Justinas had this to say:
“I felt quite bad because I lost 8 points probably, but s**t happens and it meant I started to fight even harder!”
Either way the race was wide open. In dry conditions, Toygun once again simply too fast, notching his second win of the season. Justinas failing to score allowed Wojciech to leap frog him into first overall, despite finishing second for the fourth race in a row. Evaldas Ruseckas took a very strong third, with Zdenek fifth and Leandro tenth.
Race 5
The final race of the Asia tour was at the Fuji Speedway in Japan. Evaldas continued his strong form by following up his third in India with a phenomenal first place here. Straight up beating Justinas, Toygun and Leandro who finished second, third and fourth respectively. Zdenek continued his inconsistent results by scraping eighth, while Elite rookie Alan Tansley claimed his best result of the season, and ultimately allowing him to retain, by finishing eleventh.
Race 5
The final race of the Asia tour was at the Fuji Speedway in Japan. Evaldas continued his strong form by following up his third in India with a phenomenal first place here. Straight up beating Justinas, Toygun and Leandro who finished second, third and fourth respectively. Zdenek continued his inconsistent results by scraping eighth, while Elite rookie Alan Tansley claimed his best result of the season, and ultimately allowing him to retain, by finishing eleventh.
Races 6-8
The next set of races saw the tams head to the Americas, Firstly Brazil, then the USA and finally Canada. Zdenek's roller coaster season continued again as he struggled to find any consistency. A win in front a 130,000 strong Brazilian Crows could was only followed up with a humbling seventh at the Oval and an even more puzzling tenth in Montreal. Justinas, on the other hand, was really starting to turn the screw, two second places saw him retake the lead from Wojciech, but a twelfth in Montreal saw him lose it once again, this time to a flying Toygun who finished fourth, first and second in Brazil, USA and Canada respectively to take a single point lead into the midpoint of the season. Leandro also refused to lie down, scoring two fifth places and a third. The on again off again rain at Indianapolis allowed Dmitiry Kautsou and Alexey Domarev to secure their retention in Elite for another season by finishing sixth and eighth respectively.Race 9 in Australia saw Justinas restate his claim as favorite, a dominant win saw him hold off the ever up and down Zdenek who played the conditions well to come in second, Toygun claimed third and the extremely consistent Aleksej Sutkin took fourth.
Race 10 in South Africa saw Leandro bounce back from a disappointing eighth and capitalize on a random for Justinas to secure his first win of the season and become the sixth different winner in ten races – The first time that has happened in an Elite season since Season 6. Aleksej continue to impress by finishing second, with Justinas only able to recover to third. Toygun kept the pressure on by finishing fourth, but Wojciech would record his worst result of the season, and also see him not score points for the first time this season.
Race 11 saw the GPRO circuit reach Europe. Spa and the subsequent three races (Austria, France and would see five managers start to pull away. Zdenek would at last start find some consistency, recording a first and three straight third places to move above Wojciech into third overall. The real talking point though was Justinas, a fourth in Spa, followed by three straight wins would see him establish the largest lead held by anyone during the whole season, hitting form at just the right time gave him the psychological advantage that made the tire blowout in India seem like last season. Toygun and Wojciech were simply unable to keep up with Justinas, both held good form, and recorded impressive results, but Toygun's third, fourth, second and fifth, and Wojciech's sixth, second, fourth and second were simply not good enough, and Justinas now looked uncatchable. Leandro continued to make up the numbers, going second, fifth, fifth and fourth to cement his place in the top five. One final mention to Atis Praudins who started fulfilling the potential he'd shown earlier in the season, and from Race 8 onwards never finished outside the points.
Taking an eight point lead into race 15, it was Justinas' to throw away, though Toygun just wouldn't give up. A tepid Estoril would see “TopGun” storm to the top of the podium. Wojciech would record his seventh second place of the season which meant Justinas was relegated to third. Unfortunately for Wojiech, Justinas' third place meant his title bid was mathematically over. Leandro could only muster fourth place which would also mathematically end his hopes for recording that elusive fourth title.
Race 16
With the race for the championship now down to two, the last two races were lined up to be something special. The penultimate race in Finland saw the cruelest fate dished out to Toygun. Having been out qualified by Justinas, he chose to use a high starting risk though this caused him to be involved in a crash at the start, meaning he would finish thirty-eighth and last. When asked about the incident, Toygun had the following to say:
Race 11 saw the GPRO circuit reach Europe. Spa and the subsequent three races (Austria, France and would see five managers start to pull away. Zdenek would at last start find some consistency, recording a first and three straight third places to move above Wojciech into third overall. The real talking point though was Justinas, a fourth in Spa, followed by three straight wins would see him establish the largest lead held by anyone during the whole season, hitting form at just the right time gave him the psychological advantage that made the tire blowout in India seem like last season. Toygun and Wojciech were simply unable to keep up with Justinas, both held good form, and recorded impressive results, but Toygun's third, fourth, second and fifth, and Wojciech's sixth, second, fourth and second were simply not good enough, and Justinas now looked uncatchable. Leandro continued to make up the numbers, going second, fifth, fifth and fourth to cement his place in the top five. One final mention to Atis Praudins who started fulfilling the potential he'd shown earlier in the season, and from Race 8 onwards never finished outside the points.
Taking an eight point lead into race 15, it was Justinas' to throw away, though Toygun just wouldn't give up. A tepid Estoril would see “TopGun” storm to the top of the podium. Wojciech would record his seventh second place of the season which meant Justinas was relegated to third. Unfortunately for Wojiech, Justinas' third place meant his title bid was mathematically over. Leandro could only muster fourth place which would also mathematically end his hopes for recording that elusive fourth title.
Race 16
With the race for the championship now down to two, the last two races were lined up to be something special. The penultimate race in Finland saw the cruelest fate dished out to Toygun. Having been out qualified by Justinas, he chose to use a high starting risk though this caused him to be involved in a crash at the start, meaning he would finish thirty-eighth and last. When asked about the incident, Toygun had the following to say:
“It was worth the gamble and was very exciting to watch, but [the start crash] cost me my hopes for the title”.
He went on to say,
“I would do the same thing again though if I had another chance, No risk, No fun!”
Justinas cruised home in second place to score 8 points and wrap up his third GPRO title. It was all too little too late for Wojciech, finally getting that elusive first win meant he secured third place overall, and set himself up nicely for the S29.
Race 17 in Germany saw a bitter sweet race win for Toygun. Matching the result of Estoril, Wojciech finished second and Justinas was once again third.
A hearty congratulations to Justinas Smysliajevas on his third GPRO crown, though Toygun must have been left wondering “what if”? Had the race in Finland gone to form, then surely he would have been celebrating a truly famous fourth GPRO title. Season 28 will go down in history as one of the most hotly contested and hardest to predict of all time. Let's hope Season 29 is just as exciting and open. Can Justinas be the first to get 4 GPRO titles, or will the 'curse of three' strike yet another manager? Will Toygun or Zdenek be the first to record the feat or will Leandro or the newly back in Elite Heidi Aareskoski complete their own hattricks. Will a new manager bring home the title, look out for Wojciech, Atis, Evaldas and Aleksej, or will there be a complete unknown?
This is Sox, reporting for the GPRO Newspaper.
Race 17 in Germany saw a bitter sweet race win for Toygun. Matching the result of Estoril, Wojciech finished second and Justinas was once again third.
A hearty congratulations to Justinas Smysliajevas on his third GPRO crown, though Toygun must have been left wondering “what if”? Had the race in Finland gone to form, then surely he would have been celebrating a truly famous fourth GPRO title. Season 28 will go down in history as one of the most hotly contested and hardest to predict of all time. Let's hope Season 29 is just as exciting and open. Can Justinas be the first to get 4 GPRO titles, or will the 'curse of three' strike yet another manager? Will Toygun or Zdenek be the first to record the feat or will Leandro or the newly back in Elite Heidi Aareskoski complete their own hattricks. Will a new manager bring home the title, look out for Wojciech, Atis, Evaldas and Aleksej, or will there be a complete unknown?
This is Sox, reporting for the GPRO Newspaper.
