The NASCAR Whelen Euro Series will head to Circuit Zolder in Belgium on October 14-15 for the 2023 EuroNASCAR Finals. For the sixth time in NWES history, champions will be crowned at the track in the woods of Limburg and the EuroNASCAR 2 championship promises to be a thrilling triple-threat match for the overall win with three drivers from three different countries and three different teams separated by just four points. Academy / Alex Caffi Motorsport’s Vladimiros Tziortzis from Cyprus leads CAAL Racing’s Albeto Naska from Italy by three points while RDV Competition’s Paul Jouffreau from France follows in third place, just four points behind the championship leader. After the NASCAR GP Germany at Oschersleben, all drivers dropped their two worst results of the regular season.
Tziortzis won five races to open the season and seemed to dominate the EuroNASCAR 2 season, but the unpredictability of the championship struck again when the Cypriot had technical problems at Autodrom Most and Motorsport Arena Oschersleben. This gave his pursuers a chance to close the gap before the EuroNASCAR Finals, where double points will be at stake. The driver of the #5 EuroNASCAR FJ will have to find the strength of the first half of the season if he wants to win his maiden EuroNASCAR 2 championship, but it will not be an easy journey as his rivals are ready to knock him off his throne.
Having lost the championship battle to Liam Hezemans in the final race of the season in 2022 Naska knows the importance of the double-point races. In his new role as the top chaser, the CAAL Racing driver will do everything he can to overtake Tziortzis and win his first international auto racing championship. Jouffreau made incredible progress over the course of the season and the Frenchman has reached a whole new level since expanding his effort to the EuroNASCAR PRO. As a result, the youngster will play an important role in the battle for victory in the most unpredictable championship in the world of EuroNASCAR.
A maximum of 168 points are up for grabs at Circuit Zolder and the top 14 drivers are separated by just 98 points. Dark horses like “Mr. Consistency” Gil Linster, Patrick Schober or 2021 EuroNASCAR 2 Champion Martin Doubek could get back into the mix with a strong result on Saturday, but all of them have to hope for tough races for the top-3 drivers in EuroNASCAR 2. Schober scored his first NASCAR win at the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben and is looking to keep the momentum going with Double V Racing. Other drivers such as Claudio Cappelli and Thomas Dombrowski, the leaders of Legend Trophy and Rookie Trophy, should not be left off the list of title contenders as they are only within 60 points from Tziortzis.
The NASCAR Whelen Euro Series returns to the Circuit Zolder on October 14-15. The decision in the battle for the 2023 championship will be broadcast live on EuroNASCAR’s YouTube channel, Motorsport.tv and multiple television services around the world. The two EuroNASCAR 2 races promise plenty of action in front of tens of thousands of fans at one of Europe’s most legendary tracks.
Featured image by NASCAR Whelen Euro Series / Bart Dehaese
