20th WORLD CHAMP ES24 SCALE RACING - Malta, Oct. 13-14

VLADIMIR HORKY FOR THE 5TH TIME!

Czechia rules once more - Horky first to win 5 Worlds!

Oct 14 - Czechia's Vladimir Horky is the first racer in the history of slot-racing to have won five world championships. In Malta he was by far the best racer of all since he won not only the ES24 Scale Racing World Championship, he won also the ES32 Scale Racing EuroNats (twice with country mate Tomas Rosenberg as runner-up), and in 132 F1 he came only 6 metres short to beat Paolo Trigilio (I). He could have been the first racer in history having won the three major races at the ISRA World Championships.
Of course, we all know that ISRA organises no real world champion-ships, only a kind of fake worlds. That's due to ISRA's policy refusing to invest in plane tickets of the best racers of the world. The list with top-racers missing at the ISRA Nats is much longer than the entry list, where more than half of the entrants were certainly not at their place. Tell me what Andy Brown-Searle has to search at a so-called world championship, when he's unable to reach simply the top-25 at the BSCRA Nats. Or what has Jason Stone lost at the ISRA worlds. His poor results are just a shame for his country, the United States. Missing in Malta, among others, were Paul Ciccarello (USA), Salvatore Noviello (I), Paul Gawronski (USA), Jaroslaw Recek (CZ), Mikail Radkovic (CZ), Dave Gick (NZ), Greg Gilbert (USA), Gustav Heymann (RSA), Peter Dimmers (AU), Giovanni Montiglio (I), Tracy Chin (USA), Ernie Mosetti (CDN), Philip Helmuth (USA), Jiri Micek jr (CZ), Jiri Micek sr (CZ), Jozef Miskolci (SVK), Olivier Demoget (F), Kurt Rölli (CH), Ulli E. Pietsch (D), Heiko Thinschmidt (D), Jozef Lapcak (SVK), Henrique Dehais (F), Jorge da Cruz (PT), Michael Krause (D), Ulisses Relvas (PT)

Kieran Dale (NZ), Kimmo Rautama (SF), Roberto Rotoni (I), Chris Radisich (NZ), Simas Nemira (LT), Aruna Leonavicius (LT), Kieran Dale (NZ), Geoff Mitchell (GB), Charlie Gooding (GB, the ISRA president by the way!), Paul Harwood (GB), James Cleave (GB), the ISRA #1 Einari Fyhr (SF), Douwe Banning (NL), etc., etc. Eventually the so-called ISRA Worlds are hardly any more than a half-European Champion-ship: half, since more than half of the top-racers are missing. That: all entrants know very well, even if they behave as ignoring it.

ENTRY - In total 63 racers showed for the 20th Scale Racing World Championship (sic). Among them 10 racers from Czechia, 10 racers from Sweden, 9 racers from England, 9 racers from Malta (of them only Mario Azzopardi, Alfred Gatt and Charles Pace have some international reputation), 8 racers from Italy (where only Trigilio, Castricone and Sanarelli where at their place) and 4 racers from Finland - what makes already 50 entrants, spread over as few as 6 nations. The 13 others came from Russia (1), USA (1), Brazil (1), Slovakia (2), Ukraine (2), Denmark (3), Latvia (3). Admit that only a person, ran totally nuts, will admit that this is representative for the whole world of scale racers. I think only Charlie Gooding can be such a person.

QUALIFICATIONS - Fastest qualifier was Lasse Åberg (S), last year runner-up to ISRA world champion Petr Krcil, in 3"399, ahead of Matti Fyhr (SF) in 3"426, Brian Saunders (GB) in 3"433 and Petr Krcil (CZ) in 3"442. Those four were free from the Quarter Finals (in fact Consis). Of Vladimir Horky (CZ) and Josef Korec (CZ) we know that they always try to avoid top-4 qualifying ranks, since it offers them a chance to test their car during the Consis, so that they can still modify it slightly if necessary on entering the Semis. Great performance of good old Andy Brown-Searle who succeeded to let one racer behind: one more of Andy's spectacular successes in international racing.

CONSIS - The Consis were totally free of surprises. Except for Luis "Gugu" Bernardino, George Kimber, Andris Podosinoviks and Miroslav Vadlejch we lost no top-guns. Unlucky was Malta's Mario Azzopardi, being the first to miss the move. Four fastest racers at the Consis were Josef Korec (CZ) with 379 laps, Vladimir Horky (CZ) with 376 laps, Jiri Karlik (CZ) with 374 laps and Tomas Rosenberg (CZ) with 373 laps. Then came Anders Gustafson (S), Piero Castricone (I), Michael Landrud (S), Paul Shepherd (GB), and surprisingly Charles Pace (MT) as ninth. Paolo Trigilio - never convincing at ES24 Worlds - was only twelfth. Malta's Alfred Gatt was twentieth and the last to make the move.

SEMIS - Of Semi C, won by Vlado Okali (SVK) ahead of Alfred Gatt (MT) and Graham Woodward (GB), nobody made the move to the Main Final. Ihor Kuropiy (UKR) caused a stir by finishing fourth, good for a sixteenth place overall. Nikolai Dolzanskij was victim of mechanical woes, taking away all his chances. Of Semi B only winner Antónin Vojtik (CZ) was fast enough to make the move. Anders Gustafson (second), followed by the Italian trio Trigilio-Santarelli-Castricone, were all out, proving once more that after the withdrawal from Salvatore Noviello, Italians are no longer among the best scale racers of the world. The seven first of Semi A made all seven the move to the Main, nl. 1. Vladimir Horky  (CZ), 2. Lasse Åberg (S), 3. Brian Saunders (GB), 4. Matti Fyhr (SF), 5. Josef Korec (CZ), 6. Petr Krcil (CZ), and 7. Tomas Rosenberg (CZ). Only Jiri Karlik missed the move. 

MAIN FINAL - In the main final the Czech quarter Horky-Korec-Krcil-Rosenberg was pulling away from the rest of the field, despite heroic defence of Brian Saunders and Matti Fyhr. After 440 laps Petr Krcil had to retire with a broken car. In front a superb Vladimir Horky (CZ) was digging the gap with his two country mates Tomas Rosenberg (CZ) and Josef Korec (CZ), involved in a gruelling combat for the second place. Behind them young Antónin Vojtik (CZ) could pass Brian Saunders (GB) and Matti Fyhr (SF) to make the Czech train one of four units. Lasse Aberg, last year still second, disappointed, coming not further than to a seventh place. Order was now definitive.
If one compares the finalists of this year's ISRA ES24 Worlds with those of last year's, it stirs that 7 of the 8 finalists were already finalist in 2004. Only Michael Landrud was missing. That proves that there is no innovation at all in ISRA racing, that ISRA's Worlds are just a small club of top-racers, letting the rest of the field far behind. [for JPVR]

11th ISRA 1/32nd F1 European Championship - Malta, Oct. 12

PAOLO TRIGILIO DOES IT AT LEAST

Fabulous last rush of Horky fails: he comes 6 metres short

October 14 - 53 racers showed for the 11th ISRA 1/32nd F1 European Championship. One other racer, Kaspar Duburs, subscribed, but finally did not enter. F1 slot-racing is a typical British form of slot-racing, having originated in the late 1950s. Nevertheless never a Britton could win the ISRA 1/32nd F1 event. In 1997 James Cleave finished as second to Paul Gawronski. Since that date no British racer even reached the podium. A fifth place for Paul Harwood in 2000 was the best the Brittons performed. Apart from England, 1/32nd F1 racing has most adepts in Czechia, Italy, Finland and the Baltic States. Sweden discovered the speciality last year. [ISRA F1 slot-racing dates from 1993, but nobody could help me to find top-8 results, prior to 1997, back.]
Fastest qualifier was "Il Bandido" Piero Castricone (I) in 4"910, followed by Nikolai Dolzanskij (RU) in 4"953, by last year's winner Matti Fyhr (SF) in 4"993 and by Petr Krcil (CZ) in 5"013. Those four racers were free from the Consis. At those Consis we lost Martin Borch (DK) and Janis Rage-Ragis (LV) on mechanical woes. The Brittons lost Steve Sargent, Keith Gibson and Andy Brown-Searle. Of the racers from Malta none could survive the Consis (called here: Quarters). Czechia lost surprisingly Pavel Flaisig and Milos Hojer. America's Jason Stone finished as low as 44th and was out. Despite a fast car Sweden's Janne Ekman failed to move up to the Semis. Fastest man at the Consis was Vladimir Horky (CZ), followed within the same lap by Paolo Trigilio (I) and Brian Saunders (GB). Then followed Andris Podosinoviks (LV) at one lap, Antónin Vojtik (CZ), Tomas Rosenberg (CZ), Anders Gustafson (S) and Lasse Åberg (S), all at five or six laps.

Among the 24 survivors of the Consis we found only four racers from England (Brian Saunders, Graham Woodward, Paul Shepherd and George Kimber). Czechia was present with seven racers (Vladimir Horky, Josef Korec, Petr Krcil, Tomas Rosenberg, Antónin Vojtik, Jiri Karlik and Miroslav Vadlejch). Italy had four racers in the Semis: Piero Castricone, Paolo Trigilio, Guido Santarelli and Claudio Battistini. Sweden had four racers too in: Michael Landrud, Lasse Åberg, Anders Gustafson and surprisingly also Tobbe Wågman. From the Baltic States only Andris Podosinoviks (LV) survived the Consis. Other qualified racers were Matti Fyhr (SF), Nikolai Dolzanskij (RU), Luis "Gug" Bernardino (BR) and Vlado Okali (SVK). 
Semi C saw Jiri Karlik (CZ) winning with 355.96 laps, ahead over Claudio Battistini, Graham Woodward and George Kimber. None of them should make the move. Miroslaw Vadlejch was out after 169 laps with a bent chassis.
Semi B was a disaster for Anders Gustafson (S), loosing it all up from the fifth segment. Here victory went to Tomas Rosenberg (CZ) with 364.38 laps, ahead of Michael Landrud (S) with 361.05 laps, and Luis "Gugu" Bernardino (BR) with 358.80 laps. Those three should make the move, whilst Antónin Vojtik came less than a lap short to do the same. That we lost also the IOC #1, Josef Korec (CZ), was a big surprise for everybody ... except Josef himself. At no moment his car seemed able to follow the pacesetters.
Semi A was won superbly by Matti Fyhr (SF) with 374.80 laps, followed by Vladimir Horky (CZ) with 368.00 laps, Peter Krcil (CZ) with 366.32 laps, Brian Saunders (GB) with 366.04 laps, and Paolo Trigilio (I) with 362.55 laps. Out were Nikolai Dolzanskij (RU), Andris Podosinoviks (LV) and "Il Bandido", Piero Castricone (I).
That means that we went to a Main Final with three racers from Czechia (Horky, Rosenberg, Krcil), with only one Swede (Landrud, since Åberg and Gustafson failed at the Semis), with only one Britton (Saunders), with last year's winner Matti Fyhr from Finland, with only one Italian (Trigilio, after we lost TQ-er Castricone) and with the lonely Brazilian ("Gugu", who nobody expected being able to do thàt well in F1).
At the start of the Main Czechia's Vladimir Horky, having won earlier four times in a raw the European 1/32nd F1 Championship (1998-2001) and Matti Fyhr (very outstanding at the Semis) were undoubted-ly the main favourites. It were, however, Saunders and Landrud setting the pace, followed after the first segment at one lap by Horky and Rosenberg. Then came Trigilio at two laps and Fyhr at three laps. Bernardino, having lost more than twenty laps in the pits, was already out. During the second segment Saunders took the lead, three laps ahead over his runner-up Michael Landrud. Saunders could keep the lead until the one but last segment, where he lost eight full laps on the new leader: Paolo Trigilio. With an advance of three laps over Horky the Italian went to the last segment. Here Horky could unlap himself three times, to finish only 6 metres behind the winner, Paolo Trigilio.  Horky's final rush thus came too late.