Ander Vilarino (2) passes Romain Thievin for the lead in the Elite Sprint portion of the Nogaro 200 Sunday in NASCAR Euro-Racecar opener. Photo by Mag Racing/Courtesy NASCAR
Ander Vilarino wrote his name in the history books Sunday, becoming the first Euro-Racecar winner under the NASCAR banner with his victory in the Elite Division Sprint portion of the Nogaro 200. The win came before a capacity crowd at Circuit Paul Armagnac in Nogaro, France, amid rain and cold temperatures.
Vilarino posted the top time in Friday’s practice and earned the pole position in Saturday’s qualifying.
But on the first turn of the 25-minute event, Romain Thievin jumped into the lead.
Vilarino finally took the lead back with a bold move in the hairpin of the aerodrome on Lap 10. Following a heated door-to-door exchange, Vilarino was able to pull away for the win by 1.543 seconds.
“I’m so proud to win the first ever NASCAR Touring Series race in Europe,” said Vilarino. “The wet conditions made the race more difficult than expected. In this championship, it is important to finish in the top 5 because the gap between drivers is so tight. A mistake and you lose lots of points. From the start I tried to come back to Romain but it was tough with the followers behind me. I succeeded at the end but only for a few.”
Thievin held off Dimitri Enjalbert and Javier Villa in the final meters for second.
“I live in Las Vegas for 2 years and I forgot what racing under the rain is,” joked Thieven, the 2011 series runner-up. “The start of the race was like a drift race. I had a good car and so I succeed in overtaking Ander and taking the lead. From mid-race, I was less easy with the car. When Ander overtook me he was a bit faster and so it was normal. We touched a little bit but this is NASCAR. I never gave up because I still targeted the podium. It will be a big fight all year long.”
Enjalbert finished third, followed by Javier Villa and Romain Iannetta.
Villa earned the Junior Trophy, given to the top drivers 25-years-old or younger, ahead of Romain Fournillier and Vincent Gonneau.
Fourniller was sixth overall, followed by Gregory Guilvert , Vincent Gonneau, Wilfried Boucenna and Harry Vaulkhard.
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Vilarino capped a sweep of the opening race event Monday by claiming the Elite Division Endurance portion of the event.
Vilarino rolled to the win in Monday’s finale – a 60-minute race in which the Elite driver who started the race receives points based on the running order at the midway time, where there is a driver change, and the teammate from the Open (or amateur) Division receives points based on the finish.
“What a great weekend,” said Vilarino. “It was a great fight against Romain Thievin and Dimitri Enjalbert. I’m so happy to have win all my races and especially here because it is the hometown of my team, TFT.”
Vilarino completed 35 laps on the 3.636 km (2.259 miles) road course 1.6 seconds ahead of Javier Villa. Villa earned the Junior Trophy as the top finishing driver 25-and-under.
“I’m satisfied but we have to not rush,” Villa said. “It is only the beginning and we have room to improve. We’ll move step-by-step and every point earned is good. By the end of the season, I would like to fight for the title.”
Thievin, who was second in the Sprint, finished third in the Endurance race. Gregory Guilvert and 2009 series champion Wilfried Boucenna were fourth and fifth, respectively.
Romain Fournillier, Antoine Lioen, Carole Perrin, Freddy Nordström and Valentin Simonet.
Martin Van Hove won the Open Division segment, beating Vilarino’s teammate, Eric Quintal by .8 seconds. Alain Grand was third and earned the Legend Trophy, given to the top driver 50-and-over.
Twenty-four cars took the grid for Monday’s race, which was run under sunny conditions after a wet weekend.
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