For the first time in its history, the Coupe de France Promosport set up shop at the Anneau du Rhin, a little gem nestled not far from Mulhouse. The promotion formula kept all its promises: CThis is an opportunity to look back on this event which was, to say the least, eventful.
Created to promote amateur drivers in several categories, the Coupe de France Promosport has been a great success. At each meeting, more than 200 amateurs compete on the track, divided into nine categories.
Rain, wind and cold: Everything a pilot fears most. The weather conditions this weekend of September 26 and 27 were far from optimal. However, the show was there.
En Promosport 1000, race 1 seemed to be given to pole sitter Lothaire Hemmer before the latter fell at the start of the race. This racing event offered victory to
Benjamin Fontanelle and his Yamaha not without having battled with Loïc Gros, also on Yamaha. A late red flag stops the debate and seals the podium, completed by Maxime Gucciardi in third place. Race 2, complicated by the state of the track, benefited a vengeful Hemmer who won on the Ring ahead of Régis Stoltz (Honda) and Cyprien Schmidt (BMW).
The first round of Promosport 600 was calmer, and saw Ludovic Rizza win on his Yamaha. Behind him, Killian Aebi is ahead of the third, in this case Loïc Meunier, with a comfortable lead. Race 2 was one of the highlights of this weekend. An absolutely Dantesque 4-way battle enlivened this category. Vincent Carrie and the three drivers from the previous podium fought hard until the checkered flag ended the debate. For 136 thousandths, Aebi takes his revenge and wins. Rizza and Meunier cross the line in a pocket handkerchief.
En 500 Cup, a similar battle pitted favorite Baptiste Vaucher and Willem Zimmerman, both on Honda. Vaucher won by a whisker while a third Honda, that of Patrice di Gregorio, completed the podium. Vaucher took the victory as boss during race 2 ahead of the Honda of Paul Feultz, unleashed. Grégoy Debaix finished third.
In the pre-grid, we find calm drivers. Everyone wants final victory, regardless of the weather conditions.
An interesting battle pitted Gabin Cazard against Alexy Negrier and the promising Diego Poncet. It is also in this order that race 1 ended in 400 Promo, quite eventful and disputed. The second round, contested in the rain, was masterfully dominated by Diego Poncet on Kawasaki.
From the height of fifteen years, he confirmed his talent and crossed the line more than ten seconds ahead. Cazard and Aymeric Clément, on Yamaha, complete the podium.
Le Sidecar Promo is a category of its own, unique in its kind. Here, we find F600 (long) but also F2 (short) and F1 (1000cc). The two races were similar and overall crushed by the F600 LCR chassis prepared by Périllat Motorsport & Classic and powered by Yamaha. The Doubs company confirms the quality of its preparations by achieving two doubles, each time led by the father and son duo Ted and Vincent Peugeot (cover photo). By beating the Périllat/Arifon team twice, they consolidated their lead in the general standings and confirmed their status as rising sidecar stars. The Guignard/Poux duo finished third in both races, quite far behind each time.
Sidecar races, so rare these days, impress every time.
En Promosport 125, Evann Plaindoux on Suzuki crushed the weekend by winning both races. The podium for race 1 is completed by Enzo Dahmani and Ryan Chauveau, also on Suzuki. In race 2, only Gaëtan Prunier changes the order by taking Chauveau's place.
The two Promo Master races were very interesting. Daniel Denis, serene on Yamaha, rode in race 1 and was ahead of Gerald Muteau and Olivier Ulmann, who battled fiercely. Surprisingly, Denis failed to confirm in the second round. Ulmann, on the other hand, responded in the rain and beat the Kawasaki of Fernando Dos Santos as well as Lionel Ancelin and his Yamaha.
The promotion formula reserved for women kept all its promises : In the Women's Cup, the favorite Gaëlle Remy won ahead of Nordhall Andersson and his Suzuki at the end of a shortened race. Cindy Vannoni completes the podium.
To finish, the two races of Discovery Promo. During the first round, Xavier Bullard won ahead of Yann Frossard and Jonhatan Kummer. The podium for race 2 is made up of the same drivers, not in the same order! Kummer confirmed his good form and remained third while Frossard, with a vengeance, won the race ahead of Bullard.
A weekend full of emotions which saw a staggering number of red flags. More fear than harm, however, despite a terrible accident in Race 2 of Promo Sidecar involving champion Estelle Leblond, who was hit in the foot. Congratulations to the organization for this difficult event to manage. See you on October 10 and 11 for the penultimate round of the championship in Pau Arnos.
