Race two of the Castellet Heat this afternoon was just as hotly contested as the morning event, with tonnes of overtaking, lead changes and varying strategies.
At the end of the one-hour race, Theo Micouris and Haydn Chance in the #1 Team Virage won in the JS P4 category, and Clément Moreno won the JS2 R category for the second time in the day with the #31 from ANS Motorsport.
JS P4 category: Victory for Team Virage, Theo Micouris and Haydn Chance
The start of today’s second race went off without contact. Iko Segret got off to an excellent start in the ANS Motorsport #6 JS P4, taking the lead from pole-sitter Pedro Moreno in the #66 of Team Virage. Race 1 winner Romain Favre, in the #7 from Inter Europol Competition, took the lead on lap three but soon slowed down and was forced to pit with a technical issue. Iko Segret (#6 ANS Motorsport) retook the lead, which he would hold for much of the race.
Just behind, the battle for second place between the #77 of RLR M Sport in the hands of Ian Aguilera and the #71 Monza Garage driven by Chun-Ting Chou was on the boil. After the driver changes and compulsory pitstops, Iko Segret in #6 was still in the lead, but Theo Micouris in Team Virage’s #1 was reeling him in. James Winslow, now in the #71 from Monza Garage, spun after contact with Ian Aguilera in the #77 in their duel for third place. Ian Aguilera later received a drive-through plenty for colliding with James Winslow.
Theo Micouris maintained a steady pace, took the lead and pulled away, taking the chequered flag more than 6 seconds ahead of Iko Segret ANS Motorsport’s #6. James Winslow in the #71 Monza Garage JS P4 completed the podium.
Umberto d’Amato and Paschalis Paris Stavrakidis finished first in the PRO-AM category in Team Virage’s #32. Yuki Tanaka finished top of the AM category in Pegasus Racing’s #16.
Haydn Chance, Team Virage, Ligier JS P4 #1, winner, race 2: “I think I got a fairly good start and I made through with no damage thanksfully. I tried to start building up the pace but I struggle a little bit as there is such a long straight and without any slipstream it was hard. I brought the car to the pits in P4 and then handed it to Theo.”
Theo Micouris, Team Virage, Ligier JS P4 #1, winner, race 2: “I came out of the pits I think in fourth, and then I was told on the radio that the gap between the second and third was good, so I was straight onto the game which was fun. I had some good little battle right at the start of my stint and then got onto P2 and I kept pushing. I could see P1 ahead and the gap coming down so I kept pushing and pushing, as much as I could. I eventually went into the slipstream and was able to took the lead. And I then built a gap until the end.”
JS2 R category: Clément Moreno and ANS Motorsport double up
From the start, race 1 winner Clément Moreno in the #31 ANS Motorsport JS2 R took the lead from pole-sitter Noé Da Cuhna in the #50 of Les Deux Arbres, who quickly lost ground. Just behind, Tomas Granzella in the #69 from M Racing and his teammate Cindy Gudet in the #53 car both put in an excellent start and moved up to second and third place, respectively.
For his part, Noé Da Cuhna gradually made his way through the field to quickly claim second place, while Matteo Pianezolla, in the #60 of Iron Lynx by LRMotorsport, took the lead from Clément Moreno in the #31 JS2 R.
After the pitstops, ANS Motorsport and Clément Moreno were again the fastest. They returned to the track in the lead, ahead of the #18 of Pegasus Racing driven by Paul Lanchère and Louis Stern and the #29 of the same team in the hands of Julien Schell and David Caussanel.
Thus, the podium was sealed, and Clément Moreno took his second win of the day with the #31 of ANS Motorsport. He was also victorious in the AM category. As in Race 1, Paul Lanchère and Louis Stern finished second in Pegasus Racing’s #18, followed by teammates Julien Schell and David Caussanel in the #29. The duo also claimed victory in the PRO-AM category.
Clément Moreno, ANS Motorsport, Ligier JS2 R #31, winner race 1 & 2: « Everything went very well of course, it was a great weekend. We started a bit slowly but we built the pace throughout the weekend and the sessions and then during the race I tried to not make any mistakes and I to have a good pace from beginning to the end. The car was pretty well, and we were well prepared which is very important. The team did an amazing job like always”
The next round of the Ligier European Series is the long-awaited Le Mans Heat on 9 June, which will be the curtain raiser for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
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