Flashback: When a 2nd place is like winning
2010. július 28. 01:28 | még nem szólt hozzá senki. szerző: Viktor Adorján
Victories make a driver successful but sometimes being the first of the beaten drivers means more than taking the top of the podium. Last year in Brno it was Norbert Michelisz who proved that not only the 1st placed driver can be victorious with his astonishing recovery on Race 2.
Automotodrom Brno has been a regular destination for the field of the WTCC since the championship was established but 2009 marked the maiden race for the SEAT Leon EuroCup as well. It was a perfect match as following an initial season Norbert Michelisz emerged as a title contender and came close to Hungary with good chances to take the WTCC seat offered by SEAT Sport in front of many Hungarian fans as the circuit near Brno is only 330 km away from Budapest.
With this in mind Michelisz did everything he could to make his fans and team happy in the Czech Republic. At first he took a commanding pole position which was his 6th pole on the row (!) which secured the first spot for the rolling start on Saturday's Race 1.
Everything was going well apart from a minor glitch at the start but according to the plan Michelisz kept his lead and successfully conserved it until the last but one lap when the Hungarian driver suffered a puncture and was forced to retire his car from the lead just a few kilometers away from securing 10 points and increase his chances of taking the WTCC car for Porto.
Michelisz's DNF brought a great disappointment and a limited amount of anger for the team members as this was not the first time that Pirelli then the sole tyre supplier of the series provided tyres that didn't last until the end of the race. The failure overshadowed the Saturday as only Andrea Larini was able to finish the race on 8th from Zengő Motorsport's 4 car fleet.
From hell to heaven
The retirement meant that Norbert Michelisz had to start Race 2 on Sunday from 13th on the grid, 5 places off the last point scoring position. The chances of taking the WTCC car for Porto have already disappeared but the championship was then only at its second round which meant that it was pretty much alive so there was a clear stake for Michelisz to race for.
Race 2 saw a recovery of a real racer as Norbert Michelisz started to attack from the beginning of the race and tracked down his opponents one after the other. As there was no live TV coverage from Race 2, many fans who watched the race from their homes on live timing thought that the service is showing false results because they only saw that an entry called Michelisz is making up grounds very fast.
Over the 10 laps distance Michelisz passed 11 cars on the track and took 2nd on the podium which tasted like a victory for him, the whole team and more importantly his supporters as well. Following the bitter Saturday it was time to celebrate on Sunday as Michelisz dazzled the people who saw what he did in Brno.
He may have not collected enough points to take the WTCC car again for a ride but everybody was adamant that it was only a matter of time for him to get a weekend when everything comes together as it was clear that Michelisz was there to succeed in the 2009 season of the SEAT Leon EuroCup.
Photos by SEAT Sport
WTCC 2010flashback
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