Oberhallau: Sad victory for Marcel Steiner
MOUNTAIN RACING OBERHALLAU The fifth round of the Swiss Mountain Championship in Oberhallau was overshadowed by the fatal accident of touring car driver Martin Wittwer. The winner of the day without joy was Marcel Steiner from Bern. The so-called Wäldchen, a fast short left-right corner combination, is considered the trickiest part of the 3000 m long race track in Schaffhausen's Klettgau region. For spectators who are a few hundred [...]
The so-called Wäldchen, a fast short left-right corner combination, is considered the trickiest part of the 3,000-meter race track in Schaffhausen's Klettgau region. It is considered a no-go zone for spectators, who enjoy a great view of the racing area a few hundred meters below in the Tarzan curve.
Martin Wittwer, who took 12th intermediate place in Group E1 up to 2000 cc after two races, lost control of his Peugeot 205 in this passage in the third and final run shortly after 6 p.m., crashed into the crash barrier on the left with great force and was catapulted over it roof-first into the trees. For the 33-year-old Bernese, any help came too late.
The popular event, which has been impeccably organized for years by the private association Bergrennen Oberhallau, was then canceled. The Reitnau hill climb had already had to be ended prematurely on July 2 after a serious accident involving production car driver Chris Steiner in a Porsche, who suffered the most serious leg injuries.
Cruel coincidence of events: Down at the start, his younger brother Daniel Wittwer was ready to go. With his always fast and spectacularly piloted VW Golf 16V, Daniel led this competitive class up to two liters of displacement of the group E1 after two races. AutoSprintCH extends its deepest sympathy to him and the whole family.
Marcel Steiner can become champion at home game at Gurnigel
With the exception of Group E1, the historic vehicles and the racing sports cars, all categories had already completed three race heats. The exciting battle for the day's victory was thus brutally decided in favor of Marcel Steiner in just two race heats.
In the first race run, Eric Berguerand was still ahead by 36 hundredths in the Lola-Cosworth thanks to the fastest running time of the day. However, the Valais native failed in the second run, whereupon Steiner took the lead with a new sports car record in the LobArt-Mugen by 25 hundredths of a second.
The decision would undoubtedly have been made in the third race - in whose favor remains to be seen, and in view of the tragic events is now only a secondary matter. For Steiner, however, it is a preliminary decision, as he can now prematurely become the 2017 Swiss mountain champion of racing sports cars at the next race on September 10 at Gurnigel, virtually on his doorstep. It would be his fourth title after 2010, 2011 and 2012, after which it was Eric Berguerand's turn until 2016.
The touring car champion, on the other hand, will probably not be decided until the final round on September 17 at the Châtel-St-Denis-Les Paccots hill climb. Frédéric Neff from Moutier again won the Interswiss group with his 500-hp Porsche, while Roger Schnellmann also won the E1 group and the overall touring car classification with his 700-hp Mitsubishi. Both drove a fantastic running time in the first race run in the morning, with which they outclassed their opponents.
The season is over for Reto Meisel. The Mercedes SLK 340 burst into flames after crossing the finish line of the third practice run on Saturday. The fire in the rear area could be extinguished, but the damage caused to Meisel's home-made car is enormous.
A week ago, the Aargauer had made history at the European Championship round in St-Ursanne with the first touring car time under two minutes. This was the only problem-free Swiss race in the current season for last year's champion.
