Setback in Grobnik: Tobias Dauenhauer wants to strike back in Valencia
Tobias Dauenhauer actually showed a good performance during the EuroNASCAR race weekend in Grobnik – The German is still not satisfied and wants to fight his way back to the top in Valencia
“The guys from the team are working hard to get the car back in shape so that we can fight back and win the title in Spain,” Tobias Dauenhauer told ‘Leadlap.net’. Although the German scored five top 5 finishes in six races, he is not one hundred percent satisfied with his performances in the past races. In Valencia, the Vallelunga double winner is expecting an increase in pace in order to secure the EuroNASCAR 2 title.
Most recently, Dauenhauer collected a second and third place in Grobnik, Croatia. Two podiums should actually satisfy a racing driver. Not so Dauenhauer, who struggled with technical problems on his Ford Mustang during the races and therefore could not reach his full potential. “I’m not completely satisfied with the weekend,” said the birthday boy. “From Friday on, we had a lot of issues.”
Technical issues held Dauenhauer back
A bent valve rod forced the Hendriks Motorsport team to replace the engine on Friday, the race driver explained. “That’s why parts in the engine broke”, said Dauenhauer. After the night shift on Saturday, the 23-year-old struggled with the balance of his car: “I had extreme understeering. We also had to adjust our car completely differently than the sister cars, which was not explainable for us”.
The team wasn’t able to fix the balance during the race weekend, which is why the car will be completely checked again before the finale in Valencia, explained the youngster. Another problem was the failure of the power steering on Sunday, which caused Dauenhauer to fight with blunt weapons in the third race.
“Especially in the rain this is not an advantage because you have to give more steering angle there,” said Dauenhauer. “I’m glad that I was able to defend my position on the podium. But of course I also know what we could have achieved if we hadn’t had all the problems. That’s why I’m not completely satisfied with the weekend.”
Thrilling final races in Valencia
At Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, Spain, there are still four EuroNASCAR 2 rounds of the 2020 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series on the agenda – in the last two races double points are awarded. Dauenhauer is second in the overall standings behind his teammate Vittorio Ghirelli (-13 points). He also leads the Rookie Trophy classification.
“Everything is possible with the double points and four races in one weekend,” the rookie admitted with fighting spirit. All final races will be broadcasted live on the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series social media profiles free of charge.
