Carrera 80: Qualifying Battle Goes Down to the Wire
- hace 1 día
- 2 min de lectura
Thirty cars took part in the qualifying session, a grid that brings together Carrera 80, the Mini Trophy and the Group 1 cars. One of the most eclectic line-ups of the Jarama Classic is also one of the most diverse in terms of technical characteristics.
With 30 machines on track, the Carrera 80, Group 1 and Mini Trophy field filled the 3,850 metres of the Circuito del Jarama with colour and action. The BMW M3 E36 of Killian Revuelta Rodríguez and Gustavo Castro Rodrigues (GT Copa) set the early pace, although the Porsche 968 CS of José María Pérez and Luis Tojeiro, in the same category, kept them closely in check.
João Mira Gomes and Nuno Afoito, in a Ford Escort RS2000 (H-81 2000), and Rubén Ferreira and Pedro Gordo, in a Porsche 928 S (H81-Max), were running just one second apart. However, the former would improve their lap time and finish with the third fastest time of the session.
Juan Alonso Borrás and José Antonio Zorrilla, in a Honda Civic (T 2000), and Manuel Cabral Menezes and Jorge Petiz, in a VW Golf GTI (H81-1600), were the fastest in their respective categories. António Reis and José Carvalhosa, in the Porsche 924 (924 Cup), initially rounded out the overall top 10, but would eventually drop to 16th position as the rest of the competitors completed their flying laps.
At mid-session, the pairing of Paulo Lima and José Paradela (BMW M3 E30, T Max) moved to the top of the classification, while Olivier Muytjens and Brice Pineau, driving a Shelby Daytona (GT Copa), climbed up to second place.
André Castro Pinheiro and Ernesto Silva Vieira, in the Jaguar XJS (H81-Max), were now in eighth position. César Freitas, in the BMW 323i (GR2), set the 12th fastest time. João Neves, at the wheel of the Toyota Starlet (T 1400), completed a strong session and managed to break into the top twenty.
Meanwhile, Félix Ribeiro, with the striking Alfa Romeo 1600 GT Junior (H75-1600), showed great consistency, as did João Vasconcelos and Rui Castro in the Datsun 1200 Coupé GX (H71-1300). Xavier was the fastest among the Datsun 1200 entries (Prod Cup 1).
In the Mini Trophy, the quickest was Filipe Ruão, with Rubén Veludo finishing in second place.