Matějovský among the top three drivers of the 2007 Česká pojišťovna - Škoda Octavia Cup |
- 21. - 23. 9. 2007, Brno -Contested by twenty drivers, the final two races of this year of the Česká pojišťovna - Škoda Octavia Cup took place last weekend at the Brno Masaryk Circuit, within the Brno Autumn Prix. The stakes were really high as five drivers stood a chance to finish either in the second or third place of the overall standings and to take the prestigious silver or bronze medal. This was the situation on Friday, 21 September, and the drivers involved were Vorba, Dostál, Jirásek, Brejla and Matějovský. Among them, Václav Brejla had the best prospects, as he had held the second place of the overall standings before the weekend racing event. However, soon after the beginning, he came under pressure from Matějovský, who won the Saturday qualifying session in a fully competent manner, and moreover, became the first driver to clock a lap time below the limit of 2:24 with the new model of the Octavia Cup car! A similar situation occurred in the subsequent Super Pole session, that is, Matějovský won again, with Brejla, his greatest rival, coming in the remote eighth place. For Michal, this was a good starting position for the first race, which was held on Saturday afternoon. The actual start was kind of livened up by Vršínský, who made a jump start and, consequently, got ahead of Michal Matějovský. However, Vršínský's lead did not last long because, shortly after the start, in the first right-hand bend, the gradual one, he was caught up in an unpleasant collision involving the cars of Fulín and Navrátil. Consequently, the three of them had to retire from the race. Afterwards, Michal Matějovský took the lead and had the 13-lap race under control up to the finish. He won, having achieved the time of 31:51.287. The second race was more dramatic. It was held on Sunday, in beautiful weather that suggested the upcoming autumn, watched by thousands of spectators. According to the regulations, Matějovský, the winner of the first race, started sixth on the grid. Václav Brejla, to the contrary, had the advantage of the first position of the grid because he came fifth in the first race. Nevertheless, the directorate considered Brejla's start as the 'jump start' and ordered Brejla to drive through the pit lane. At that time, Michal Matějovský was struggling his way through the pack. He gradually passed all his rivals and it looked like he was going to win the valuable double victory. But than, suddenly, his car started to slow down. That is, at that moment, the bolt of the gearshift lever of the sequential gearbox of his car broke. So, Michal Matějovský had to retire from the race due to the same breakdown as last year, when he, on account of this component, had lost the title. The racing event at the Brno circuit was also contested by Laura Hájková, another driver of the O2 Motorsport team. She fared very well, particularly in the first race and, in the duels fought with Skalický, Pešková or Bareš, did not fall behind. In the first race, Laura Hájková came fourteenth. The CSMS team was represented by Marek Ďurovkin. In the first race, his car suffered damage in a collision with Bareš, and Marek Ďurovkin had to retire from the race. In the second race, Marek Ďurovkin claimed the twelfth place. Michal Matějovský took 25 points at the Brno racing event to confirm his third place of the drivers' final standings (122 points, after all additions and deductions were made). 'Up to now, this is my best placing in this prestigious competition and, as such, I regard it very highly. Naturally, I am extremely sorry for the misfortune which we have been confronted with for the second season running,' said Michal Matějovský in the pits after the races, a little bit sad, yet satisfied, after he had ranked among the top three drivers of the 2007 Octavia Cup, together with Erik Janiš (first place, 179 points) and Václav Brejla (second place, 134 points). |
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