Formula Renault 2.0
As the winners of 11 of this season’s 12 races between them, Daniil Kvyat (Koiranen Motorsport) and Stoffel Vandoorne (Josef Kaufmann Racing) have been in a league of their own in Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0. The Belgian heads into the final weekend of the 2012 campaign with an 11-point advantage over the Russian, exactly the same cushion he enjoyed going into Paul Ricard, leaving the battle for the title wide open. Whoever takes it will also pocket a cool €500,000 prize to help them make the move into the Formula Renault 3.5 Series next season.
Though the 20-year-old Belgian, who drives for the Royal Automobile Club of Belgium National Team, and the 18-year-old Red Bull Junior Team member might possess different personalities and driving styles, they do have one thing in common: they are both rising stars of motorsport. The duo have enjoyed a stunningly successful year in Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0, though only one of them will be crowned champion come Sunday evening.
Holding an 11-point lead over his Russian rival, Stoffel Vandoorne looks the man most likely to take the championship, though Daniil Kvyat knows that victory in both races in Barcelona will give him the title, no matter how the Belgian fares. And that is not beyond the realms of possibility, with Kvyat having already secured doubles at Motorland Aragon and Moscow Raceway this season and taken the chequered flag on three other occasions, ensuring he will end the season with the most race wins.
On pole for half of this year’s Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 races, Stoffel Vandoorne has won just four times, though he has been nothing if not consistent, finishing on the podium 10 times in 12 outings, with two fourth places his worst finishes to date. His task at Catalunya will be to stop Daniil Kvyat adding to his tally of wins.
The rest of the field could well have something to say as to how the championship picture pans out. A winner at Spa-Francorchamps, Norman Nato (RC Formula) is the only man other than Vandoorne and Kvyat to have topped the podium and lies third in the standings, a position that both Nyck de Vries (R-ace GP) and Oliver Rowland (Fortec Motorsports) still have designs on taking. Sixth overall, Paul-Loup Chatin (Tech 1 Racing) was back in the points in Race 2 at Paul Ricard after drawing a blank in his previous three races, and will need to be there or thereabouts again if he is to sneak into the top five.
Catalan drivers Alex Riberas (Josef Kaufmann Racing) and Javier Tarancon (RC Formula) will not need much motivation to perform on their home track, where they both won last year. The two will be out to repeat the feat this time as they look ahead to 2013.
In the team championship Josef Kaufmann Racing and Koiranen Motorsport are not surprisingly fighting it out for top spot, while R-ace GP will be hoping to hold off RC Formula, Tech 1 Racing and Fortec Motorsports in what is a close race for third.
Official Renault Sport Press Release.