The Eurocup Mégane Trophy looks like being a very close contest this season. After Michaël Rossi's (TDS) clean sweep at Spa-Francorchamps, Maxime Martin (Boutsen Energy Racing) then took maximum points at Silverstone. Hot on the heels of these two men, Dimitri Enjalbert (Tech 1 Racing) would dearly love to do the same at Budapest.
Making predictions especially reliable ones is a fine art in Eurocup Mégane Trophy. There is little to choose between the top drivers and consequently there are many drivers in with a chance of winning. After a perfect weekend at Spa-Francorchamps, Michaël Rossi looked to have established himself as the big favourite. In Silverstone, however, he was far from the dominating figure he had been in Belgium, both in qualifying and in the races. Another driver stepped into the limelight, a certain Maxime Martin...
Disappointed by his weekend at his home track, Spa-Francorchamps, the Belgian driver hit form at Silverstone, winning both races. Maxime Martin is now only three points behind Rossi in the Eurocup Mégane Trophy standings and he has no intention of stopping there.
The two leaders are pursued by the Tech 1 Racing squadron. Matthieu Cheruy currently lies third, ahead of his team-mates Dimitri Enjalbert and Jonathan Hirschi. Runner-up in 2007, Dimitri Enjalbert knows just how important it is to start making up the ground on the leaders. Although consistent, he is still looking for his first win. Mathematically speaking, there would be a certain symmetry if Enjalbert were to mimic Rossi and Martin's faultless performances this weekend!
The Hungaroring circuit is however a favourite of Michaël Rossi as it was here that he recorded his first ever win in motorsport last season. Fabrice Walfisch (Oregon Team), still among the leading group but yet to secure a podium finish so far this season, also drove well in Hungary last year, finishing second in race one. So, don't be surprised to see him right up there fighting for the win.
Boosted by their first podium finishes of the season at Silverstone, Sébastien Dhouailly (Team Lompech Sport) and Bernhard Ten Brinke (Equipe Verschuur) will also be right up there.
In the Team standings, things are pretty much as you'd expect as the teams of Rossi, Martin, Cheruy and Enjalbert occupy the top three positions. They are however in reverse order in comparison to the drivers' championship. This is largely due to the consistency of Tech 1 Racing's two drivers, who lead the standings for the moment, ahead of Boutsen Energy Racing and TDS.
Meanwhile, Hoevert Vos (Equipe Verschuur) leads the standings in the Gentlemen Drivers category. Not quite as impressive at Silverstone as he was at Spa-Farncorchamps, where he totally dominated, Vos must watch out for his improving team-mate Harrie Kolen, tied on points for second with Pierre Hirschi (Team Lompech Sport). A consistent top-three driver this season, Bernard Delhez (Tech 1 Racing) is also a potential race winner in this category.
Nº Team (NAT) Driver (ASN) Gentlemen
1 Tech 1 Racing 1 (FRA) Dimitri ENJALBERT (FRA)
2 Tech 1 Racing 1 (FRA) Matthieu CHERUY (FRA)
3 Tech 1 Racing 2 (FRA) Jonathan HIRSCHI (SUI)
4 Tech 1 Racing 2 (FRA) Bernard DELHEZ (BEL) G
6 Equipe Verschuur 1 (NED) Harrie KOLEN (NED) G
7 Equipe Verschuur 1 (NED) Bernhard TEN BRINKE (NED)
8 Boutsen Energy Racing (BEL) Maxime MARTIN (BEL)
9 Boutsen Energy Racing (BEL) David DERMONT (ACM)
10 Race Performance (SUI) Ralph MEICHTRY (SUI)
11 Race Performance (SUI) Andreas MAYERL (AUT)
12 TDS Racing (FRA) Michäel ROSSI (FRA)
14 TDS Racing (FRA) Jean-Philippe MADONIA (FRA) G
15 Team Lompech (FRA) Sébastien DHOUAILLY (FRA)
16 Team Lompech (FRA) Jean-Charles MIGINIAC (FRA) G
17 Team Lompech (FRA) Pierre HIRSCHI (SUI) G
18 Blue Jumeirah Team (ESP) Rafael UNZURRUNZAGA (UAE) G
20 Equipe Verschuur 2 (NED) Wim BEELEN (NED)
21 Equipe Verschuur 2 (NED) Hoevert VOS (NED) G
22 Boutsen Energy Racing (BEL) TBC
24 Oregon Team 1 (ITA) Fabrice WALFISCH (FRA)
25 Oregon Team 1 (ITA) Giuseppe TERMINE (ITA)
26 Oregon Team 2 (ITA) Erik VAN LOON (NED) G
73 Oregon Team 2 (ITA) Angelo BAIGUERA (ITA) G
-Blanca de Foronda-
