The race of the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series at the Circuit Zolder was a very special one for the young Belgian Simon Pilate. Not only was it his home round, but also the first time on the track as well as his first experiences in wet conditions. Although the start into his home round could have been better, the weekend ended quite promising.
“I arrived at the circuit on Friday and had 60 minutes of practice to learn the track and get up to speed. Not only had I never ridden at Zolder before, but also in the rain with my powerful Chevrolet . One hour to get my bearings and learn how to control my car under the rain. With a stable rear end but a slightly capricious front end in the fast corners, this dance of the rain allowed me to learn different techniques and settings adapted to its dantesque conditions. Finally 10th in free practice I joined the paddocks confident, and the objective to qualify in the top 5 was realistic”, Pilate said confident.
During the qualifying of the EuroNASCAR 2 it was raining a lot, which made it difficult for the drivers. Simon Pilate was able to achieve his goal and put his car on P5 for the first race. “I qualified 5th from less than a tenth of a second from P4 under heavy rain”, Pilate continued. Due to a penalty for Julia Landauer, who was supposed to start from P4, he moved up to P4 on the starting grid. Pilate was highly motivated to start into the first race of the weekend, but unfortunately he was hit by another car in the first lap under green in the Villeneuve chicane. It was impossible for him to restart his car and he had to retire. With no lap completed under green, he had to start from the last position into the second race on Sunday.
“In spite of a ruined first race, my motivation for the second round was multiplied tenfold! No time in the first race, that means starting last in the second race! Was I capable of a fantastic comeback in this second race on a very tricky track, half wet and half dry? The choice of tires was agonizing. Either with rain tires on a dry track or slicks on a still wet track”, Pilate said. By choosing rain tires he made the right decision for the race. “A few slick riders caused some style figures. The result was 3 safety-cars in the second round, and at each restart I nibbled a few places. Proud of my comeback on the few real laps of the real race, because I started 19th and finally crossed the line 7th. For my second round in EuroNascar I was on the third step of the rookie podium”, Pilate told, happy with the outcome of his second race.
“This weekend, full of ups and downs, made me even stronger mentally. You have to appreciate the ups and learn from the downs. A big THANK YOU to the whole team and the mechanics who did an incredible job repairing the whole rear of the car in record time after the Pro round. A thousand thanks to Patrick Lemarié who supported and guided me during the whole weekend, and who never stopped believing in me just like Jacques Villeneuve. See you at Most in November with a super sharp fighting spirit!”
The next round of the EuroNASCAR is scheduled to take place on November 14th and 15th at Autodrom Most.
