Saturday’s 9th round of the Polish Hill Climb Championship (GSMP) brought at least three records. For pilots classified in GSMP, the race day included two practice sessions and one race, for pilots from the FIA EHC – FIA European Hill Climb Championship, all the climbs were practice sessions. A total of 111 drivers appeared at the start. The weather in the Beskid Wyspowy region was hot and sunny.
The first morning race climb brought emotions when the fire brigade had to intervene during a fortunately harmless fire in the Czech Jaroslav Surowka’s formula car. The fastest Poles in the climb – the leader of GSMP Grzegorz Rożalski and Michał Ratajczyk (both driving Mitsubishi Lancers) were separated by just 0.048 seconds. Equally interesting took place between Karol Krupa (POL, Skoda Fabia) and Nicolas Werver (FRA, Porsche 997 GT3 R.). Both compete in FIA EHC in group 2. In the morning, the Frenchman was 0.3 seconds faster. The training session belonged to the track record holder, Christian Merli (Italy, Osella FA 30 Judd LRM), who completed the course in 2:01.016, with an average speed of 170 km/h. In the second training run, a series of issues began when Adrian Król slid into a ditch on one of the corners, prompting the appearance of the red flag. The race was stopped eight more times, mostly due to breakdowns or minor collisions. Sebastian Stec (Poland, Mitsubishi Lancer) had bad luck when he hit the barriers at high speed. Medical and technical services intervened as he complained of chest pain. Fortunately, it was only temporary pain, but his damaged car would not return to the race. Finally, Petr Trynka (Czech Republic, Norma M 20 FC) collided with a protective straw bale. Michał Ratajczyk drove brilliantly, breaking the course record for Category 1 cars (closed body cars) with a time of 2:06.184. Unfortunately, the climb lasted a long time – over 3 hours, and the realization of the two race climbs of the 9th Round of GSMP was questionable. The first race climb was not without interruptions either. The red flag came out after Michał Jasłowski’s Renault Clio broke down, and the car had to be pulled off the track. After a few minutes, Damian Wirszewski’s BMW hit a straw bale, causing another interruption. Thousands of fans gathered on the track waited a long time for the favourites to run. Thousands of spectators waited a long time to see their favorite drivers. Grzegorz Rożalski did not disappoint, with his 1100-horsepower Mitsubishi Lancer taking just 2:04.317 to reach the finish line, setting a new course record for Category 1. The overall standings for Category 1 in the 9th Round of GSMP were:
- Grzegorz Rożalski 2:04.317
- Waldemar Kluza 2:07.142
- Michał Ratajczyk 2:09.260
Due to the three-hour delay, the Team of Sports Referees – the highest authority of the race, decided to cancel the second race run.
In Category 2 (open-body race cars), Paweł Rzadkosz (ADR 3 Mugen) stood alone on the podium as the only Polish pilot in this race with a formula car. In the National Category, the podium finishers were:
- Arkadiusz Borczyk (Honda Civic)
- Adam Garbacz (Honda Civic)
- Janusz Jania (Honda Integra)
In the Historic GSMP, Wojciech Myszkier (VW Golf 2 GTi) won again, ahead of Piotr Zaleski (Porsche 911 S.C. RS) and Michał Jaglarz (Honda Civic). The Ladies’ Cup went to Natalia Kluza in her Renault Clio III RS, with Martyna Serafin (Renault Clio) and Martyna Księżyk (Toyota Aygo) taking the next places on the podium. The awards ceremony for the 9th Round of the GSMP was preceded by the official start of the competition, in which Łukasz Smółka, Marshal of the Małopolska Province and the hosts of the Limanowa County area took part: District Governor Mieczysław Uryga and Deputy District Governor Ewa Filipiak. Live results are available on the website www.wyniki-online.pl, the independent association on Race Radio, on the frequency of 90.8 FM, and access to the video in the Race Studio can be watched on the website www.wysciggorski.pl.
The race is held under the honorary patronage of:
Ireneusz Raś, Secretary of State in the Ministry of Sport and Tourism,
Łukasz Smółka, Marshal of the Małopolska Province.
The Strategic Partner of the race is the Małopolska Province.
The main partner of the race is LOTTO.
Sponsors include ORLEN OIL and MASPEX Group with the TYMBARK brand.
[Press Release]
