For the very first time, the Mičánek Motorsport powered by Buggyra team appeared at the traditional Masters Meeting at the Sosnová proving ground near Česká Lípa. At an event built mainly around head-to-head duels of rally drivers, Jiří Mičánek dominated the GT category. The team’s Lamborghini Huracán ST EVO2 even drew the attention of Czech President Petr Pavel, who stopped by to take a look.
“It was a completely spontaneous meeting, the President came to the event privately, and we got the idea to invite him into our hospitality area. I was surprised by how much he knew about us and the team – where we race, and that we have a Czech-Slovak driver pairing,” says team manager Jiří Mičánek Jr.
President Petr Pavel ended up spending about half an hour with the team during the day he had set aside to visit the Masters Meeting in Sosnová as a motorsport fan.
On the track, Jiří Mičánek had to fight both the stopwatch and opponents who, in most cases, compete in rally specials, the type of car this event is primarily meant for. “Sosnová is a small, narrow and bumpy track, more of a training polygon. Big GT cars aren’t built for it – in one tight hairpin I almost didn’t have enough steering lock,” Jiří Mičánek laughs. In the end, he finished ahead of part of the rally field, and among the GT cars, where he met his usual rivals from hillclimb events, he won with a comfortable margin ahead of second-placed Zdeněk Kmínek.
“This event is really more about the show we put on for the fans. I have to say I was absolutely thrilled by the atmosphere, by the fact that the grandstands were packed to the very last seat. For me it was incredibly enjoyable, and I’m sure this wasn’t my last time here,” Jiří Mičánek concludes.
