Photo: ETCC Media

Kris Richard wins Race 2 in Vila Real and takes the points lead

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Rikli Motorsport’s Kris Richard won the second race of the day at Vila Real in his Honda Civic TCR, and with title rival Petr Fulín receiving a drive-through penalty for an incident with Richard’s Honda team-mate Peter Rikli, the Swiss finds himself in the lead of the Super 2000 Trophy drivers’ standings.

Three Super 1600 cars started from the first three positions on the grid courtesy of the reversed top eight grid and a damage-heavy Race 1, however the two TCN2 class Hondas of Kris Richard and Peter Rikli blasted through into the first two positions as the lights went out at the standing start.

The other TCN2 cars quickly worked their way through the S1600 field, with the two Hondas leading ahead of Petr Fulín’s Krenek SEAT León TCR, with Manuel Pedro Fernandes’ Speedy Motorsport SEAT fourth from eighth on the grid by the end of lap one.

In the S1600 class, Kevin Hilgenhövel hit pole-sitter Tomas Koreny at the chicane on lap two and was handed a drive-through penalty, with Mackschin making his way back to his customary position in the lead of the class.

Richard began to build a lead over Rikli, who was defending against the SEAT of title rival Fulín. Rikli was then spun around by Fulín on lap five, which allowed Fernandes through into second, while Fulín gave the place back to Rikli, however he’d later retire with damage to his Honda.

The stewards decided the fault sat with Fulín and gave the Czech driver a drive-through penalty which dropped him down to sixth at the finish, collecting just six points in the race on a double-points weekend.

Richard’s lead was slowly broken down by Race 1 winner Fernandes, but the Swiss driver held on to take the win by just three-tenths of a second, and with 20 points added to his tally, now ties with Fulín on 72 points, but leads the championship on countback of victories which stands at four this season.

Niklas Mackschin won the Super 1600 class race again and now has an almost unstoppable lead in the drivers’ standings heading to the next round at Magny-Cours in France in two weeks’ time.