Unpredictable weather did not stop Thomas Krasonis and Martin Doubek’s charge to the lead in free practice – Gathering extra experience proved to be their key
- Thomas Krasonis led the way in PRO ahead of Gianmarco Ercoli
- Martin Doubek showed his expertise at Autodrom Most in OPEN
- Changing weather conditions made for a challenging practice for both PRO and OPEN
The heat is ramping up once more as NASCAR Euro Series returns from the summer break with the final round of the 2025 regular season: NASCAR GP Czech Republic. Autodrom Most welcomes the official European NASCAR championship for an important event which will determine the competitors’ rankings before the Playoffs in Germany and Belgium. Early rain made conditions tricky in free practice for PRO and OPEN drivers, but Thomas Krasonis and Martin Doubek adapted perfectly and found an advantage heading into qualifying on Saturday.
PRO: Krasonis starts on the right foot
Thomas Krasonis and PK Carsport came well prepared for Most and started the NASCAR GP Czech Republic on the right foot. The Greek was able to find the extra edge around the beautiful Bohemian track and beat Gianmarco Ercoli in PRO’s final practice session with a time of 1:41.534. This session in particular was the only dry track time for the NASCAR Euro Series elite drivers, making this achievement all the more important for the young Greek star.
Running close to the top-2 was Krasonis’ Junior Trophy rival Paul Jouffreau, who finished third overall and second in the special classification. Martin Doubek’s fourth place result represented a strong start as he aims to secure his first PRO win in front of his home fans. Fresh from his appearance in the NASCAR Canada Series at Trois-Rivieres was championship leader Vittorio Ghirelli, who completed the top-5 in the combined times.
Liam Hezemans completed the Junior Trophy top-3 in sixth with only 0.030 seconds separating him from the ever improving Scotsman Jack Davidson. Fabrizio Armetta was eighth ahead of Claudio Cappelli, who led the Challenger Trophy classifications ahead of American hybrid talent Garrett Lowe. Davit Kajaia and Michal Makes rounded out the top-3 positions in Challenger Trophy in 15th and 16th respectively.
OPEN: Home crowd hero delivers
Martin Doubek understood the assignment in his hands for the 2025 NASCAR GP Czech Republic. All eyes will be on the Hendriks Motorsport driver during his first home event since he clinched his historic second OPEN title in 2024 and he answered to the pressure with a commanding performance in OPEN’s two practice sessions. A blisteringly quick lap time of 1:41.473 gave Doubek a big advantage of 0.806 seconds to championship rival Thomas Krasonis with Master Trophy leader Bruno Mulders not that far behind in third overall.
Gil Linster made his return in fourth place after illness sidelined him from the NASCAR GP UK at Brands Hatch. He led the first practice session by timing his switch to slicks to perfection. Melvin de Groot came close to winning in Most in 2024 and a fifth place result represents a strong start for the Legend Trophy leader who aims to find his way to the Victory Lane once again.
Thomas Dombrowski and Sandro Tavartkiladze filled the top-3 positions in the Master Trophy in sixth and seventh respectively. 2024 winner Patrick Schober will have his work cut out from eighth, ahead of the Italian duo of Valerio Marzi and Valentino Gambarotto who completed the top-10. Claudio Cappelli and Michael Bleekemolen chased overall championship leader de Groot in the Legend Trophy battle in 15th and 17th overall on the practice times.
Qualifying signals the beginning of NASCAR GP Czech Republic’s Saturday running at 09:35 CEST, followed by the first PRO race at 13:40 CEST and then OPEN’s first race at 17:25 CEST. Autodrom Most always delivered both excitement and drama and a packed crowd is expected to make the 2025 edition the best one yet. Tune in to the action from EuroNASCAR’s YouTube channel and TV channels all around the world.
Featured Image: NASCAR Euro Series / Bart Dehaese
