Roberts Vitols claims the most difficult victory of his career

Provento Racing team driver Roberts Vītols won the first round of the Latvian Rallycross Championship held over the weekend in Riga, at the Biķernieki track. This was the most difficult victory for the young, yet experienced athlete, as the final finish was reached with a significantly damaged car. At the beginning of the last lap of the final, the car’s gearbox broke again, which also caused a clutch defect. In such a situation, finishing the race is close to a miracle, but the lead accumulated during the race allowed Vītols to even maintain the leading position. The gearbox defect ruined the fourth qualifying race, after which the team found that two holes had formed in the gearbox. A decision was made to dismantle the broken gearbox during the break between qualifying and the final, take it to a welder who would weld the holes, and try to have time to attach the assembly back in place. The task was difficult, both technically and in terms of the time required, and there was a risk of not making it to the final. However, the precise work of the Provento Racing team allowed us to achieve the planned result. Roberts Vītols: “This was my most difficult victory, which I didn’t even believe for a moment, but the team pulled off this miracle! Overall, it was a tense weekend. I was the fastest in the first qualifying, but I still felt that there was a lot of potential to be discovered in both my driving and the car. In the second and third races, in changing conditions, we wanted better stability for the car on the road, so we looked for adjustments. In the fourth race, the big smoke behind the car was a surprise to me. After the race, we concluded that the gearbox was seriously damaged, which for a moment made me think that the fight was over. However, excellent teamwork, and shortly before the final, we were able to develop a strategy to fight for victory in this stage. I stepped onto the beam with the thought that the team had done the most work of this race, all I had to do was have a perfect ride and get to the finish. I realized that after what I had done, I couldn’t let the team and my family down. And I succeeded!” “When I realized on the last lap of the final that the gearbox defect had recurred, and the clutch was also not working, I quickly thought of solutions – what and how to engage to hit the gears and find some grip on the gears. The last corners were the scariest in my career, because the car was rolling more towards the finish than being steered. I made it to the finish, which was the main thing!” This was the first Provento Racing race when another strong mechanic joined the team. This stage and its outcome turned out to be a difficult, but passable exam for the entire technical team. Team manager Uģis Vītols: “This was the victory that made us not jump in the air, but breathe a sigh of relief – finally! Last year in the Latvian Championship we struggled with technical problems, our start in the British Championship also has great potential, but recently the victory slipped out of our hands due to a technical defect. Therefore, this success, no matter how dramatic, came as a great relief for breaking the series of failures. And yes,We have significant additions of specialists in the team, combining the enthusiasm of young people with the cunning of experienced masters. It was useful today more than ever! The stage in Riga was mega-heavy, but we are leaving it with a victory. Speaking of the car defect – we will send the gearbox to its author, who himself is very keen to find out the reasons for the defect. It also seems that this season’s engine power increases and the driver’s skill in using it are starting to have an impact on the other components – Roberts has become faster than his car! Lots of conclusions and emotions!” The NEZ Northern European Cross-Kart Championship also took place in Biķernieki. Roberts also once competed in this race, but there have been several talks with one of the Finnish teams about the possible debut of Roberts’ sister Laura Vītola at the wheel of a cross-kart. Laura is gaining experience by watching and evaluating her brother’s performance: “After the fourth qualifying, I was very worried about the serious car defect, but when the car was ready to start again, my brother told me: “I will win, you’ll see!”. And he did!”