52 points. The maximum achievable over a single race weekend. That’s the tally for Mičánek Motorsport powered by Buggyra, which dominated the third round of the GT2 European Series held as part of the 24H Spa event. The duo of Bronislav Formánek and Štefan Rosina managed to win both races despite a handicap, while also securing two bonus points for taking pole position.
„We’ve just completed the third round of the GT European Series, and for the third time we leave as the most successful team. This time, however, with maximum points,” stated Jiří Mičánek Jr., team manager of Mičánek Motorsport powered by Buggyra. The experienced duo, Bronislav Formánek and Štefan Rosina, first mastered the wet qualifying session under challenging conditions and then went on to dominate both races.
The path to victory and consolidating their position in the GT2 European Series wasn’t easy for the team. On the iconic seven-kilometre circuit, which simultaneously hosted the GT2 European Series and the 24H Spa, the largest GT race of the season, typical Ardennes weather prevailed — unpredictable showers swept across the track, affecting both qualifying and the first race.
„The result confirmed that we can handle these changes very well, both technically and tactically. And the key factors are the driving experience of Broňa and Štefan,” said Jiří Mičánek.
Although the Formánek–Rosina duo dominated both races on track, their weekend was complicated by penalties. In the first race, the team received a 13-second penalty for a shortened pit stop, while in the second race, race direction penalised Štefan Rosina for an illegal manoeuvre in the formation lap.
The first race was started by Bronislav Formánek, who quickly built a significant lead over the LP Racing Maserati duo of Mauro Calamia and Roberto Pampalini. This pair is the biggest rival to Mičánek Motorsport powered by Buggyra in the fight for this year’s European title. “We had a comfortable post-pit stop lead of around twenty seconds, but we had to factor in a 13-second penalty,” explained Štefan Rosina, who only learned about the penalty while on track. What had been a comfortable cushion suddenly shrank to just a few seconds, as the gap between Jiří Mičánek’s Lamborghini Huracán ST EVO2 and their rivals could not exceed 13 seconds at the finish. During the second stint, light rain began to fall at Spa, significantly complicating track conditions. Rosina gradually saw his crucial advantage diminish, but in the final laps, the track started to dry. The experienced Slovak driver then delivered an incredible performance “against the clock” — setting the fastest lap of the entire race weekend in the final lap and comfortably maintaining the vital lead over LP Racing at the finish.
In the second race, race direction penalised Štefán Rosina for failing to maintain formation just before the start. A five-second penalty was added to the pit stop time, which was already ten seconds longer — as per the rules, the winner of the previous race receives such a handicap. “I managed to drive through the penalty, and it worked out I handed the car over with a six-second lead over second place. But due to the post-victory penalty, we returned to the track in third,” Rosina explained.
Formánek tak měl před sebou Roberta Pampaniniho i Davita Kajaiu na KTM s náskokem víc jak 5 vteřin. „Byl jsem nervózní, moc jsem nevěřil, jestli se můžeme dostat zpět do vedení. Broňo ale předvedl heroický výkon, určitě nejlepší z celého víkendu. Myslím, že překvapil nejen mě, ale celý paddock,“ říká Rosina.
Formánek first overtook Pampalini within a few laps and then, in the final ten minutes, launched a charge after Kajai. He passed him several laps from the end and crossed the finish line with a six-second lead. “We knew we had the pace, and I believed we could get back into first place. The great thing is that these results have extended our lead at the top of the championship,” said Formánek. Pampalini crossed the line third, behind Kajai, meaning the Czech team secured an additional three points over a key rival.
Mičánek Motorsport powered by Buggyra boasts an impressive record so far in the GT2 European Series season. Of six races in the elite Pro-AM class, they have won five and finished second in one. On top of that, they claimed pole position in five of the six qualifying sessions. Out of a theoretical maximum, they have dropped just eight points, and with a 47-point lead over the Calamia–Pampanini duo, they head the championship convincingly at the halfway mark.
„The penalties complicated our race weekend, but on the other hand, we proved just how strong we are by winning both races. The second half of the season will be tougher for us, and it will depend on the Balance of Performance we receive for the next round. I expect that both the championship lead and our rivals will do everything they can to make things as difficult as possible for us,” says Jiří Mičánek.
The GT2 European Series continues with its fourth round in less than three weeks at the Marco Simoncelli Circuit in Misano.
