Just one week after the Federal Tyres King of Europe ProSeries began, we returned to the stunning Karpacz street circuit in the Polish mountains to launch the 2016 Federal Tyres King of Touge series. After their recent rare defeat on home turf in the ProSeries by Austrian driver Alois Pamper, there was no doubt that the local drivers were desperate to secure the top spot once again.
After the torrential downpours that had been experienced in Kielce, there was no doubt that drivers were hoping for substantially better weather despite the ever-changing extremes that happen in the mountains. As the sun created a warm surface for the drivers for practice, they’d immediately get to grips with the challenging layout surrounded by curbs which leaves absolutely no margin for error.
After a full day of practice to learn the incredibly challenging course, day two would see the drivers lay down their best possible efforts in the hope of impressing the judges during qualification.
There had been plenty of speculation before the event about whether Jakub Przygonski would be able to win his second event back-to-back in Karpacz, and he added fuel to the fire after nailing his qualification laps to take first place.
Fellow Polish driver Krysztof Romanowski would follow close behind after impressing throughout both days, taking second place.
After an unfortunate ending for his Nissan S12 here last year, Jerzy Teclaw certainly didn’t hold back in his new S13 build as he claimed third place.
Fourth place would go to Slovakian driver Norbert Kovacik after winnng the ProSeries title and claiming third place overall in the King of Touge series last year.
It would be an unfortunate ending for Swiss driver Swen Burkhard as he experienced engine issues in the final practice session before qualification which would force him out of the opening round.
As we entered the afternoon, the sun continued to shine down on the track which meant that the driving level was increasingly impressive as the drivers went head-to-head in the battles.
In the Top 16, Swiss driver Marin Morier would be edged out after an extremely close battle with an in-form Kornel Prus. Fellow Swiss driver Raffaele Rusca would also fall victim to Jakub Stepien after another intense battle.
As we advanced to the Top 8, Przygonski would continue his fight for the top spot on the podium after leaving Adrian Rudek in his smokescreen to advance to the Top 4.
Norbert Kovacik would also end the run of Kornel Prus as he too advanced to the Top 4.
Borkowski continued his fine form, and after an initial 10-0 battle, Jerzy Teclaw would suffer from severe car issues in the first corner, which forced him to end his weekend on an unfortunate note once again.
Przygonski would face up against Kovacik in the Top 4 battle, as the drivers, who had both shown some incredible driving throughout the weekend carried out their tandems, it would leave the judges at a deadlock which forced a one more time. It would eventually be Przygonski who once again advances to the final round!
In an all-Polish battle, Romanowski’s crowd-pleasing performances that he’d shown throughout would see him pass Borkowski to reach the final.
In the small final, Kovacik would narrowly squeeze past Borkowski to take an all-important podium spot in the first round, gaining vital early points in the season.
After last week’s disappointment, it was now concluded that there would once again be a Polish driver on the top spot of the podium, as Przygonski and Romanowski went head-to-head.
After two incredibly good runs, it was immediately clear to Przygonski that he had taken the win after a slight mistake from Romanowski. It was an incredible performance from both drivers throughout the weekend as they put on a great show for the crowd.
With the Top 3 drivers running Federal Tyres throughout the weekend, they would also take home the prize-money, with Jakub Przygonski also winning the customised Recaro seat.
Click here for the full event photo gallery!
Click here for official event video.
Next up, we return to the Touge, this time at an incredibly exciting downhill track in France, before returning to Anneau du Rhin for the ProSeries Round 2 with special guest Keiichi Tsuchiya just one week after!
