2010. September 3. 22:42 | no comments yet.  author: Viktor Adorján

Main championship rivals went up against each other on the free practices ahead the qualification for Race 1 of the 2010 SEAT Leon EuroCup in Oschersleben. Gábor Wéber and Michael Rossi shared the top spot on the timesheets but so far Wéber has been faster.

A close battle has evolved in Oschersleben as the field of the SEAT Leon EuroCup begun the preparations for the qualification and Race 1 of Round 6 in Germany. For Zengő-Dension Team, today is all about the single brand support series of the FIA WTCC as the world championship will start its program tomorrow.

60 minutes have been available for the drivers to adjust their cars for the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben, these sessions brought a close competition among the frontrunners who are also battling for the championship title. So far it is down between Gábor Wéber and Michael Rossi.

Free practice 1 begun at 9:45 AM local time and saw Wéber claiming 1st place with a 1:38.695 following 15 completed laps. Michael Rossi came 2nd with a 1:38.981 followed by  Zengő-Dension Team's Duarte Félix da Costa with a 1:39.035 and also frontrunner Eoin Murray.

Track conditions were straightforward but chilly with the air temperature reaching only 12 degrees and the track being 21 degrees.

Slight loss for Rossi and Wéber

Neither Wéber nor Rossi was able to put together three consecutive fastest sector times to do an ideal laptime on Free Practice 1 but they didn't leave a considerable amount of time in their laptimes. However we must see that only a slight margin has emerged between the two main competitors which makes the upcoming qualification a challenging session for Rossi and Wéber.

It was not a successful beginning in Germany for Andrea Larini and Imre Birizdó as they finished 11th and 16th respectively on Free Practice 1. Improvement was certainly needed on their side but the same applies for the frontrunners as well but for a different reason; the aim to save the lead.

Photos from Free Practices

Slowing down on Free Practice 2

Both Gábor Wéber and Duarte Félix da Costa posted slower laptimes on Free Practice 2 than they were able to put together in the morning which enabled Michael Rossi to take first on the second 30 minutes long session.

Rossi slightly improved his time for a 1:38.941 while Wéber did a 1:39.941 which was a result of three personal bests in a single lap. This fact indicates that it was the most Wéber could extract from the package but this is not the case for the other drivers of the Zengő-Dension Team as their laps were not perfect.

It was Diego Bravo who took third behind Rossi and Wéber but the Spanish driver managed to outpace 4th placed driver Alexey Dudukalo, Eoin Murray, Duarte Félix da Costa and and Pepe Oriola. Andrea Larini and Imre Birizdó couldn't make progress in terms of laptime and they finished 13th and 14th.

The 30 minutes long qualifying session is still remaining ahead Race 1 tomorrow but seeing the results so far on Saturday, it seems that qualification is likely to be a vital part of Race 1 tomorrow as the grid positions will be decisive at the start. 

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