nascar finals - zolder
The final race weekend of the season is done.
Well, well, well… where do I even start? The last race weekend of this season took place at Circuit Zolder, where we were part of the NASCAR Finals event.
My weekend kicked off on Thursday with practice.
Let’s just say, it didn’t go exactly as planned.
It was raining, and I wasn’t familiar with the track yet, so I was basically feeling out how far I could push it in the wet conditions. What seemed like a harmless mistake turned out to be not so harmless. I misjudged my braking, slid off the track, and went straight into the gravel. I hit the barrier at relatively low speed, so initially, it didn’t seem like much damage was done. But after trying to drive a bit further, it became clear that something wasn’t right.
The car needed repairs, and my Thursday was over. Luckily, my team worked super hard, and by Friday, I was back on track!
Friday practice? Not much to report there. I got to know the track, though with less time than I had hoped because of Thursday’s incident. But all in all, Friday went fine!
Saturday: By now, I think you know how Saturdays go—qualifying and Race 1.
Qualifying was pretty solid. I was putting down decent lap times. Towards the end, another driver went off the track, causing a red flag, so all cars had to come off the circuit. With only 3 minutes left, the red flag was lifted. At that point, my times had me starting 11th in Race 1 and 4th in Race 2.
Unfortunately, everyone else went back out to improve their times. We didn’t factor in the fuel situation, and I didn’t have enough to go back out, so I ended up starting 7th for Race 2.
Race 1:
Hmmm… a few small mistakes here and there. Overall, the race was okay. I started in 11th and quickly overtook a few cars, moving up to 8th. The midfield is always tricky—so much happens, and to move forward, you have to overtake. Lucky for me, I’m not shy about overtaking. But in my enthusiasm, I sometimes get ahead of myself, focusing too much on overtaking instead of thinking through when and where the best move is. This led to some small errors, which is a learning curve for me.
I ended up finishing 12th, not my best result, but these things happen in racing.
Race 2:
This one was tough.
I started 7th and quickly moved up to 6th after the start. Then my enthusiasm kicked in again—I wanted to push forward! I saw an opening to overtake the car ahead but didn’t notice the wet patch on the track. My brakes locked up, and I went straight off. Since it was just after the start, everyone was bunched up, so I had to wait for all the cars to pass before I could rejoin. That left me dead last.
But I didn’t let that get to me. Time for a change of mindset—let’s focus on overtaking!
Not long after, the safety car was brought out due to an accident. It lasted quite a while, but it gave me a chance to catch up with the pack. With 15 minutes left, the safety car pulled off, and I started making my way forward, overtaking one car after another. Before I knew it, I was back in 12th. I almost got 11th but ran out of time before the race ended.
Overall, I’m pretty happy with the performance. I didn’t finish high, but I got to do what I love—racing.
Was it a disappointing weekend? Nah, not really. I learned a lot, and I raced hard.
The season is over now. I’ve raced all the circuits, gotten to know the car well, and I’m feeling super positive for next season.
I’ll be practicing in the off-season and coming back stronger.
Next season is my time. See you then!
Cheers,
Dréke
