Exhilarating battle between Merli and Faggioli
Christian Merli has pushed hard in Ascoli, behind the wheel of his Osella FA 30 Zytek LRM. The first race heat is his, and in the second run he is just a few hundredths of a second behind Faggioli. On accumulated times, he takes second place only 0”664 behind his opponent. The 60th edition of the Coppa Paolino Teodori comprises two competitions: it is the fourth round of the European Hill Climb Championship and it also counts for the Italian hill climb championship CIVM. Two race heats of 5.031 km each.
Christian’s comments at the finish
“We won the first race heat. Before the second heat we stood at the start for a long time due to interruptions. Then we went all out. There was just a slight glitch towards the end, where I lost a few thousandths. But we’re first among the single-seaters.”
Practice
On Saturday Merli tops the timesheet in 2’09”373. Faggioli in his Norma M20 FC is 3”364 behind. In the second practice run Merli comes in first in 2’08”058, followed by Faggioli.
Different regulations
The European and Italian competitions are governed by different regulations. In the European championship the times of both race heats are added together to determine the winner. In the Italian championship the two runs count as separate races. In addition, no tyre change between the two races is permitted under CIVM regulations.
The race
In the first race heat Merli stops the clock at 2'05”692: a new track record. Faggioli is 0”216 behind. Towards the end of the second heat there are many interruptions. Faggioli establishes another new record. Merli is the last to start. He pulls out all the stops, and he is very fast, keeping up with his opponent, until a slight mistake towards the end costs him a few hundredths. He crosses the finish line only 0”880 behind Faggioli.
The podium on accumulated times
1st Faggioli (Norma M20 FC), 2nd Merli (Osella FA 30) 0”664 behind, 3rd Cubeda (Osella FA 30) 11”550 behind.
The European Hill Climb Championship calendar
9 May: 54th Rampa de Boticas (Portugal), 16 May: 49th Subida al Fito (Spain), 30 May: 40th Ecce Homo Sternberk (Czech Republic), 27 June: 60th Coppa Paolino Teodori (Italy), 18 July: 37th Dobšinský kopec (Slovakia), 25 July: 12th Hill Climb Limanowa (Poland), 15 August: 77th Course de Côte de Saint Ursanne (Switzerland), 29 August: 27th GHD Ilirska Bistrica (Slovenia), 19 September: 40th Buzetski Dani (Croatia).
The calendar of the Italian hill climb championship CIVM
23 May: Trofeo Scarfiotti, Sarnano – Sassotetto (Marche), 30 May: Verzegnis – Sella Chianzutan (Friuli Venezia Giulia), 13 June: Trofeo Vallecamonica (Lombardy), 27 June: Coppa Paolino Teodori, Ascoli Piceno (Marche), 4 July: Trento – Bondone (Trentino), 18 July: Alghero – Scala Piccada (Sardinia), 1 August: Trofeo Luigi Fagioli, Gubbio (Umbria), 8 August: Morano – Campotenese (Calabria), 22 August: Trofeo Silvio Molinaro, Luzzi – Sambucina (Calabria), 5 September: Pedavena – Croce d’Aune (Veneto), 19 September: Monte Erice (Sicily), 26 September: Coppa Nissena, Caltanissetta (Sicily).
Ruth Scheithauer