Oulton Broad

Date	Time
28th Apr	6.00pm
2nd May	12.00pm
12th May	6.00pm
19th May	6.00pm
26th May	12.00pm
9th Jun	6.00pm
16th Jun	6.00pm
23rd Jun	6.00pm
30th Jun	6.00pm
7th Jul	6.00pm
14th Jul	6.00pm
21st Jul	6.00pm
28th Jul	6.00pm
4th Aug	5.45pm
11th Aug	5.30pm
18th Aug	5.30pm
29th Aug	4.00pm
11th Sep	12.00pm

Hydroplane Meetings
2nd May	Round 1: Oulton Broad
11th-12th Jun	Round 2: Bodymoor
3rd-4th Sep	Round 3: Bodymoor
24th-25th Sept	Round4: Stewartby
6th-7th Aug	Sprints: Stewartby

European Formula 250cc
7th-8th May	R1: Boretto
1st-3rd Jul	R2: Baja
12th-14th Aug	R3: Bitterfeld
World Circuit 0-250
16th-17th Jul	Hirvensalmi

 

European Championship F-250: Round 3 - Auronzo, Italy

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The third round of the European Formula 250 series took place at the picturesque Auronzo Di Cadore circuit in Italy. The JC Racing Team had a weekend to remember by claiming their first podium in international powerboat racing, taking third place overall.

 

 

Saturday morning saw the lake at Auronzo flat calm with glorious sunshine beaming in between the valleys as the drivers went out for free practice and time trials.

 

Time Trials

Once again it was the impressive Rene Behncke (GER) who took pole position for the Demmler Racing Team with Salvatore Chiuri (ITA) having to settle for second place on the pontoon. Fellow Italians Luca Galaverna and Luca Bonassina took third and fourth place with JC Racing Team driver Julian Codling qualifying fifth. The starting line up was completed by Franceso Marsala (ITA), Andreas Otto (AUT), Christoffer Soderstedt (SWE), Joakim Nilsson (SWE) and Stefan Probst (GER).

 

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Race 1

With the lights disappearing the JC Racing Team flew away from the start and as they exited the first corner team driver Julian Codling had gone from fifth to second behind Rene Behncke. As they started the second lap there was a nasty collision at the pit turn between Christoffer Soderstedt (SWE) and Stefan Probst (GER) and the race had to be stopped. Thankfully neither driver was seriously hurt.

Race 1 Restart

The restart once again saw the JC Racing team get a lightning start and again team driver Julian Codling found himself in second place as they completed the first lap. Julian was unable to keep Salvatore Chiuri (ITA) behind him and it looked as though a third place finish would get the JC Racing team of to a good start for the weekend. However as the final lap started the 250cc engine died at the top of the course as Rene Behncke (GER) took the first heat race win with Salvatore Chiuri (ITA) second and Luca Bonassina (ITA) taking third.

 

 

On inspection in the pits after the race it was drive shaft that had snapped clean in two. With no further racing until the Sunday there was plenty of time for the JC Racing Team to repair the engine for the following day.

 

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Race 2

After a non-finish in race one the JC Racing Team found themselves starting from sixth place on the pontoon for the second race.

 

As the lights went out the noise of ten 250cc hydroplanes burst too life as they powered away up to the top turn. As they all raced down toward the pit turn it was once again Rene Behncke (GER) who had the clear water to control the race with Salvatore Chiuri chasing hard in second. Julian Codling found himself in between the Italians of Francesco Marsala, Luca Bonassina and Luca Galaverna. Luca Galaverna gearbox spectacularly exploded as all four raced towards the pit turn. With Luca Bonassina and Francesco Marsala on the outside Julian was able to hold third place, a position he held right until the chequered flag. The race win went to Rene Behncke (GER) for the Demmler Racing team with Salvatore Chiuri once again taking second place.

 

 

It was good to see both Christoffer Soderstedt (SWE) and Stefan Probst (GER) back on the water racing after their nasty collision on the Saturday.

 

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Race 3

Sunday afternoon saw the wind pick up around the valley of Auronzo as the water conditions changed.

 

The JC Racing team found themselves in contention lying in third after the first corner. However a couple of corners later team driver Julian found himself in fourth place when Luca Galaverna (ITA) came up the inside. Julian then found himself in a battle with Francesco Marsala (ITA) which eventually saw Julian drop down to fifth place. However Julian soon found himself finishing in third place as both Salvatore Chiuri (ITA) and Francesco Marsala (ITA) engines came to sudden stops.

 

 

First place went to Rene Behncke (GER) who seemed untouchable all weekend, while second went to Luca Galaverna (ITA)

 

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Race 4

With a maximum score already Rene Behncke sat out the final race. JC Racing team driver Julian powered away from the pontoon with another impressive start to find himself in first place after the first corner, and as he raced down towards the pit turn he had Salvatore Chiuri (ITA) on the inside.

 

These two battled it out for a further lap until Salvatore Chiuri (ITA) overtook Julian on the inside. Chiuri used the clear water to his advantage to take the final race win, with Julian taking an impressive second place and Luca Galaverna (ITA) finishing third

 

 

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Overall Result

With three race wins it was Rene Behncke (GER) in the very quick 250cc VRP powered Trombetta hydroplane that took the overall win . Salvatore Chiuri (ITA) came second overall with a first and two second place finishes. Third was Julian Codling bringing the JC Racing Team their first ever podium place in International hydroplane racing.

 

EUROPEAN F-250 CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: ROUND 3 - AURONZO ITALY
Position	Boat No	Driver	Nationality	Race 1	Race 2	Race 3	Race 4	Total Points
1st	109	Rene Behncke	GER	400 PTS	400 PTS	400 PTS	DNS	1200 PTS
2nd	72	Salvatore Chiuri	ITA	300 PTS	300 PTS	DNF	400 PTS	1000 PTS
3rd	91	Julian Codling	GBR	DNF	225 PTS	225 PTS	300 PTS	750 PTS
4th	18	Luca Galaverna	ITA	169 PTS	DNF	300 PTS	225 PTS	694 PTS
5th	58	Luca Bonassina	ITA	225 PTS	95 PTS	DNF	169 PTS	489 PTS
6th	57	Christoffer Soderstedt	SWE	DNF	127 PTS	169 PTS	95 PTS	391 PTS
7th	17	Francesco Marsala	ITA	DNF	169 PTS	DNF	127 PTS	296 PTS
8th	15	Andreas Otto	AUT	127 PTS	DNF	95 PTS	71 PTS	293 PTS
9th	77	Joakim Nilsson	SWE	95 PTS	71 PTS	71 PTS	(40 PTS)	237 PTS
10th	49	Stefan Probst	GER	DNF	DNF	127 PTS	53 PTS	180 PTS

 

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European F-250 Championship Series Standings

After the third round of the series it is reigning champion Rene Behncke (GER) setting the target for every one to catch with a virtually unassailable lead. Second is Salvatore Chiuri (ITA) with JC Racing Team driver Julian Codling in third position with 39 Points.

 

OVERALL STANDINGS: EUROPEAN F-250 CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
Position	Boat No	Driver	Nationality	R1:Baja (HUN)	R2:Bitterfeld (GER)	R3:Auronzo (ITA)	R4:Boretto (ITA)	Total Points
1st	109	Rene Behncke	GER	20 PTS	20 PTS	20 PTS		60 PTS
2nd	72	Salvatore Chiuri	ITA	17 PTS	15 PTS	17 PTS		49 PTS
3rd	91	Julian Codling	GBR	11 PTS	13 PTS	15 PTS		39 PTS
4th	57	Christoffer Soderstedt	SWE	13 PTS	11 PTS	10 PTS		34 PTS
5th	17	Francesco Marsala	ITA	-	17 PTS	9 PTS		26 PTS
6th	15	Andreas Otto	AUT	-	10 PTS	8 PTS		18 PTS
7th	7	Dimitriy Gerasymenko	GER	9 PTS	8 PTS	-		17 PTS
8th	49	Stefan Probst	GER	-	9 PTS	6 PTS		15 PTS
9th	33	Peter Bodor	HUN	15 PTS	-	-		15 PTS
10th	18	Luca Galaverna	ITA	-	-	13 PTS		13 PTS
11th	58	Luca Bonassina	ITA	-	-	11 PTS		11 PTS
12th	42	Michal Kosut	SVK	10 PTS	-	-		10 PTS
13th	63	Jurgen Kostecki	GER	-	7 PTS	-		7 PTS
14th	9	Heiko Schmidt	GER	-	6 PTS	-		6 PTS

 

The final round is being held in Boretto, Italy and the JC Racing team will be looking to maintain the third position in the series. However their will be strong competition from the Italians on their home venue and also Christoffer Soderstedt from Sweden.