The American pulled off a perfect event in the most crucial phase of the season by grabbing the pole position, winning his Heat race and dominating the 30-minute double-points Main Event race on iRacing. The DF1 Racing driver scored his second win of the season after the one at Daytona in the ENES Prologue – he tied Michal Smidl for the most wins so far – and took over the championship lead ahead of the July 14th season’s Final at Circuit Zolder.
SEMI FINAL 2 RESULTS|POINTS STANDINGS
"It feels really good. Traffic was challenging but I managed to keep rhythm and I’m really glad to bring home the virtual trophy for my family, all the people supporting me, Whelen of course and DF1 Racing," said Castro. "I like Zolder and we have a good chance to win the title. Fingers crossed!"
Castro led flag-to-flag in the Main Event race around the Roval, besting a strong Tobias Dauenhauer, who scored his second podium finish of the season, by more than 8 seconds. The German Hendriks Motorsport driver had to defend his second place from the attacks brought by two-time NWES champion Alon Day, who took the checkered flag in third place ahead of Ulysse Delsaux and reigning EuroNASCAR champion Loris Hezemans. With the sixth top-5 finish in as many events, the Dutchman held onto the second place in points.
Credits: NASCAR Whelen Euro Series / Guillaume Hesnault
Braxx Racing’s Bryan Crauwels was the best team member in sixth place, ahead of Not Only Motorsport’s Davide Dallara and Circuit Ricardo Tormo’s track marshal Claudio Sabatini, who led the NWES track partners in eighth place. With a huge comeback from 27th on the grid, Feed Vict Racing’s Marijn Kremers grabbed ninth place and eight bonus points for the biggest mover in the race. Technical issues kept both DF1 Racing contenders Lasse Soerensen and Andreas Jochimsen out of the event, ending their title chances.
While Castro will enter the final event of the season as the main favourite ad strong of a 12-point advantage on Hezemans, both the Dutchman and his teammate Dauenhauer still have the chance to bring the Tijey championship ring – together 40 points for the NWES Teams Championship – to Hendriks Motorsport. Braxx Racing’s Bryan Crauwels and RDV Competition’s Ulysse Delsaux round out the top-5.
The Final of the first ever EuroNASCAR Esports Series will take place on Tuesday, July 14th, at 8:00 pm CEST at the famous Circuit Zolder in Belgium – the home of five consecutive NWES Finals. The three 10-minute Heats, the 10-minute Last Chance Qualifier and the 30-minute Main Event race will all be streamed live on EuroNASCAR’s YouTube channel, Facebook page and Twitch profile as well as on Motorsport.tv.
Credits: NASCAR Whelen Euro Series / Guillaume Hesnault
Original Article: https://www.euronascar.com/2020/07/01/castro-dominates-and-grabs-the-championship-lead/