ESET CUP SERIES Slovakia Ring Race Report

The traditional August Slovakian Grand Prix welcomed a strong field of the ESET Cup. This year, the championship visited the Slovakia Ring for the second time. Here is the report on the weekend’s 3 GT races.

ENDURANCE RACE :

Local racer Adam Konopka dominated the ESET Cup endurance race at the Slovakia Ring, leading from the start all the way to the finish. He crossed the line first under the chequered flag, claiming victory in the GTX category.

Starting from the front row were Stanislaw Jedlinski and Miro Konopka, followed by another sixteen competitors who lined up during the formation lap before embarking on the hour-long endurance challenge. The crucial first corner was navigated without incident, allowing the drivers to continue their battles on track.

Adam Konopka took the lead in the race, while behind him, a fierce contest for overall second place unfolded between Miro Konopka and Gregor Zsig. Meanwhile, Jedlinski began to slip down the field and had a minor collision with another car, resulting in damage to the rear left wheel arch, which his mechanics later taped up.

The duo of Jakub Knoll and Josef Záruba led the GTC category in a Lamborghini SuperTrofeo, followed by the RTR Project team’s KTM GT2, driven by Tomáš Miniberger and Dan Skalický. Right behind them was another KTM, piloted by Viktor Mráz.

The first half of the race proceeded at a steady pace, with the order of the field only starting to shuffle after the pit stops and driver changes. Before this, however, there was a collision between Miro Konopka and Antal Zsig, forcing both drivers to retire from the race.

In the pits, Jedlinski was replaced by Saturday’s sprint race winner, Krystian Korzeniowski, who immediately set some of the fastest laps on the track. He worked his way up to overall second place and took the lead in the GT3 category, ahead of Gregor Zsig and Dennis Waszek in the BMW M6 GT3.

However, it was Adam Konopka who saw the chequered flag first, being one of the few drivers to complete the evening endurance race without a driver change. With a flawless drive, he built up a lead of over a minute on his competitors in the GTX category, comfortably securing the victory. Second place in the GTX category went to Viktor Mráz and Maťo Homola in a KTM GTX, while third place was claimed by Tomáš Miniberger and Dan Skalický in a KTM GT2.

In the GTC category, the pairing of Jakub Knoll and Josef Záruba took the win in their Lamborghini SuperTrofeo. The GTC1 category saw Petr Brecka and Karel Neffe triumph in a Porsche 992 Cup, with Radim Adámek and Bartosz Groszek finishing second after Groszek managed to overtake Franz Lahmer in the final corner of the last lap.

Rudolf Beňo emerged victorious in the GT4 category, driving a BMW M4 GT4.

SPRINT RACE 1 :

Polish driver Krystian Korzeniowski, representing the Olimp Racing team, steered his Ferrari 296 GT3 to victory in the first sprint of the ESET Cup at Slovakia Ring. In the overall standings, it was Miro Konopka who crossed the finish line first, driving a Ligier LMP3 prototype.

Konopka and Korzeniowski started the afternoon sprint from the front row, with local drivers Maťo Homola and Štefan Rosina lining up behind them. Korzeniowski made the best start, taking the overall lead. Several drivers managed to overtake Konopka initially, but the LMP3 prototype’s strength lies in its performance through the corners, allowing Konopka to gradually reclaim the overall lead, which he held onto until the finish.

Trailing behind him for most of the race was Korzeniowski, who marked Olimp Racing’s return to the ESET Cup with a win. The Polish driver is competing in the GT Open series this year, and the race at Slovakia Ring was used by Olimp Racing as a test session.

SPRINT RACE 2 :

Miro Konopka and his son, Adam Konopka, finished first and second in the final sprint of the ESET Cup at the Slovakian Grand Prix, held at the Slovakia Ring. Additionally, Antal Zsigo secured the championship title in the GT3 category.

Miro Konopka, driving an LMP3, and his son Adam, behind the wheel of a Lamborghini Huracan GTX, started the race from the front row. They were followed by Štefan Rosina in a Lamborghini SuperTrofeo GTX and Antal Zsigo in a BMW M6 GT3 during the formation lap.

At the start of the race, Adam Konopka took advantage of his car’s higher power to take the lead. In the third corner, Štefan Rosina managed to overtake the yellow prototype driven by Miro Konopka, but Miro regained his position by the sixth corner.

The race continued at a steady pace, with only Stanislaw Jedlinski fighting off competitors behind him to defend his position on the track.

The final sprint at Slovakia Ring ended with Miro Konopka claiming victory in his Ligier LMP3, while Alex Tlustý, driving a Praga, finished behind him in the D5 category.

In the GTX category, Adam Konopka emerged victorious, followed by Rosina and Tomáš Miniberger, who drove a KTM GT2.

Antal Zsigo won the GT3 category and secured the 2024 GT3 championship even before the final race in Brno. Martin Hudec, driving an Audi, finished second, with Stanislaw Jedlinski in a Ferrari coming in third.