Attila Tassi wasn’t fazed by Turn 9 despite high-speed crash on Friday

M1RA’s Attila Tassi said he wasn’t worried about Turn 9, the Fahrenlagerkurve, on race day at the Salzburgring, despite a scary high-speed crash in testing which severely damaged his Honda Civic TCR in Friday testing.

The 17-year-old bounced back to qualify fourth in a brand-new car which was only shaken down in the two free practice sessions. Although he had to start Race 1 from the back of the grid after effectively changing engine, he broke through into the points in Race 1 with ninth, before finishing second behind team-mate Roberto Colciago in Race 2, holding off the Audi of Stefano Comini, to keep right in touch with the championship battle.

“We had a big crash on Friday, and we weren’t sure if we’d make qualifying or even the races, so a huge thanks to my family, my team and JAS Motorsport for bringing a new car for me,” said Tassi.

“I had a good start in Race 2, I was up to P3 and had a little fight with (James) Nash, and after that I was looking after my tyres and defending from Stefano Comini as he was really fast in Turn 9. It worked out well, and I’m really happy and it’s a great result for me and the team.”

When asked if he had any doubts heading into Turn 9 during the rest of the weekend, the young Hungarian was undaunted.

“(I felt) nothing special,” said Tassi. “After the first two or three laps it was fine. I was racing as I wasn’t scared; if I was scared I wouldn’t have got back in the car.”