C1 Racing Cup Zandvoort - 22 April 2022
Friday 22 April, just less than a month after the C1 Cup race on the Zolder circuit, Christophe Cagnina’s Mecaperformance team were in action on the Zandvoort circuit.
The format is different. Spread over two days, the race is divided into two 5-hour sessions.
And like all C1 Racing Cup races, the one at Zandvoort held a few surprises.
“After being completely revamped for Formula 1, the Zandvoort circuit in the Netherlands hosted the Benelux Open Races from 22 to 24 April 2022. The twisty, undulating course was ideally suited to the very agile C1 Racing Cup cars, including Christophe Cagnina’s No. 257 Mécaperformance, taking part in this second leg of the series.
On the programme for the weekend, two 5-hour races for a tight pack of more than 45 cars, including some thirty in the C1 class. The sun shone on this circuit in the middle of the dunes, a stone’s throw from the North Sea. But the wind was strong and was an important factor to be managed during the race, with suction playing a crucial role in lap times./em>
In both races, the C1 No. 257 was consistently in contention with the leaders, amongst a top 10 which included a number of well-known drivers. They had to fight over every inch of track and take advantage of the smallest opportunity to gain on their competitors. Take for example the finish of the second race where Christophe Cagnina crossed the line neck and neck with former rally driver Manuel Canal-Robles after an unbelievable battle for 6th place.
While No. 257 proved exceptionally reliable, numerous interruptions to the race, following various incidents (cars off the track, breakdowns) which dotted the course, and deployment of the safety cars did not do the team any favours, causing them to lose almost a whole lap on their immediate rival. Nevertheless, the team clearly enlivened the race, provided a magnificent show for the spectators and brought Mecaperformance important championship points (P10 and P7)”
