EU Megane Trophy Valencia preview

This time it's for real--

After the two demonstration races at Zolder, the Eurocup Megane Trophy will start in earnest on the Spanish circuit of Valencia. And with a field of 32 cars, the weekend promises to deliver some truly exciting racing. Jan Heylen and Cesar Campanico, team mates at Racing for Belgium, left a strong impression on spectators in Flanders. But what will happen on the Iberian Peninsula?

Among the thirty-two starters, eight Spanish drivers will be keen to put in a good performance in front of their home crowd. Absent from the Zolder meeting, the prestigious Team Elias will be entering two cars entrusted to its favourite drivers, Luis Miguel Reyes and Marc Carol Ybarra. The Saragossa team has won the last two Supercopa Leòn titles with these drivers and is clearly looking to add the Eurocup Megane Trophy championship to an already well-stocked trophy cabinet--

Another newcomer to monitor closely is Santiago Porteiro (Porfesa Competicion), who moves over to saloon racing after a successful career in single-seater formulas, including the title of Formula Nissan champion in 2002. As for the "gentlemen drivers", Rafael Unzurrunzaga (Blue Jumeirah Team), Juan Morales Manrique (Hervas), Antonio Aristi (Epsilon Euskadi) and Victor Fernandes Roca (Saturn Motorsport), they will be looking above all else to enjoy themselves!

At Zolder, the Racing for Belgium team won both the demonstration races with Jan Heylen and Cesar Campanico, two "defectors" from F3 Euroseries, who are now enjoying themselves behind the wheel of the Megane Trophy. In contrast, Thierry Boutsen Racing -- the other Belgian team involved -- were not so successful in the two races at the first meeting. Jeffrey Van Hooydonk and Renaud Kuppens nonetheless showed that they are forces to be reckoned with--

With a total of eleven drivers taking part, the French delegation holds the numerical advantage. Major specialists in Renault 'saloon' categories, Frederic Gabillon -- on the podium at Zolder -- and Sebastien Dhouailly (Team Lompech Sport) will want to excel in their team's liveries.

Previously involved in single-seater formulas, Jean-Christophe Ravier (Epsilon Euskadi), Renaud Derlot (TP Competition), Ludovic Badey (Pouchelon Racing), Simon Abadie and Mathieu Lahaye (Tech 1 Racing) are all potential winners. And let's not forget about the excellent Mike Parisy (Gemo Sport), who was outstanding in last year's French Supertourism class.

Although representatives from France, Spain and Belgium make up two-thirds of the field, we should not overlook the other nationalities present in Eurocup Megane Trophy. From the Netherlands, the Verschuur team have two cars entered, driven by the "boss" Frans Verschuur and Bernhard Ten Brinke.

Czech driver Jiri Janak, Italian Nicola Gianniberti, Austrian Andreas Mayerl, Swiss driver Marc Benz, Portuguese driver Pedro Petiz and Jean-Yves Mallat from Lebanon will also want to hear their national anthems ring out on the podium at Valencia!

In an attempt to iron out the problems encountered at Zolder, several modifications, notably concerning the electrical wiring harness, will be made to the cars, ahead of the test day organised on the Valencia circuit this Tuesday.

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