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Casper Elgaard is the new 2004 DTC Champion
Henrik Lundgaard lost championship lead after clash with Elgaard's team mate
For the first time in its history it was not a Peugeot driver who was crowned Danish Touringcar Champion this year. Instead BMW driver Casper Elgaard could lift the crown following a nail-biting final race weekend that looked as if the championship would be decided in the court room instead of at Jyllands-Ringen.
During Saturday's qualifying session three cars – including that of championship leader Henrik Lundgaard – could not pass the ground clearance tests. Initially the three drivers lost their recorded times and thus participation in the shoot out that will decide the top 12 grid positions, and they were initially sent to the back rows of the grid for the pre-final. However, following a series of protests and appeals, the trio was allowed to take part in the shoot out under appeals with the final decision being taken at a court hearing in the week after the meeting.
Neither of the championship favourites were impressive in the shoot out, and instead Jens Edman could claim pole position for the pre-final from Michel Nykjær and Jan Magnussen. The Swede converted his starting position to a race lead, but he was soon under attack from the reigning champion. Starting the third lap Jens Edman ran wide, making an opening which Jan Magnussen went for only to loose the car slightly, hitting the Swede and sending him into the guard rail and out of the race.
Jan Magnussen was immediately disqualified from the race, and thus it looked as if Pontus Mörth would take over the race lead. But before the Volvo driver could go into the lead, he was passed by a well driving Michael Carlsen, the former DTC champion taking his first race lead for three years. But also doing great things was Michel Nykjær, who was now moving up the ranks following a very tardy start, and with three laps to go he overtook Michael Carlsen to take his second pre-final win of the year.
Further down the field Casper Elgaard was doing his championship much good by having a steady drive to fourth, while things suddenly tourned sour for rival Henrik Lundgaard. The championship leader was lying in eighth place in front of John Nielsen and Jens Møller, when everything went wrong. John Nielsen's passing move was smooth and clean, but when Jens Møller tried to replicate, he collided with Henrik Lundgaard and sent the Toyota into eventual retirement with broken suspension.
"I elected to let John slip by, as he was clearly faster, and it was a fair passing manouvre, but then a second car drives straight into me so that I could not continue my race," Henrik Lundgaard explained afterwards. Naturally, Jens Møller had different version.
"When Lundgaard saw that John was pulling alongside, he made room for him. But as I was glued to John's rear bumber, I also went for the gap," the team mate of Casper Elgaard said. "I believed there was room, and I am extremely sorry that I took Lundgaard off, because Casper could have taken the championship on his own. I wasn't doing it because it was Lundgaard. I would have done it to any other driver, even though critics would say that I did it on purpose, but I definitively didn't."
The incident and ensuing repairs forced Henrik Lundgaard to start the final from the pit exit, and as Casper Elgaard made yet another brilliant getaway to lead, the Toyota driver had to pray for miracles to swing the balance. Still, he set in a steady drive to move his way up into ninth place, but as Casper Elgaard won the race, the championship was also secure, his first after five years of trying.
Initially Kurt Thiim held second place in the final, but first the Renault driver was reeled in by Michel Nykjær and with just three laps to go he was also passed by John Nielsen, who had worked his way up from eighth at the end of lap one. Michael Carlsen also did his best in order to get by the Renault, but in the end Kurt Thiim held on to fourth place.
Even though the final was not as accident prone as the pre-final, there were several incidents, as a brake disc exploded on the car of Jan Magnussen, sending the now former champion into a near roll as the collected the unlucky privateer Jørgen Weinreich at the end of the main straight.
Although the court of appeal still has to look at the three appeals, the outcome of their decision will not change the final positions of the top three drivers, only the amount of points the trio will finish with. However, the outcome of the teams' championship is still undecided. Racing under appeal Toyota Castrol Racing 'won' the title with a mere point from Team Essex Invest, but if the court hearing will overrule their appeal, Team Essex Invest will take the title for the second year in a row.
Result of race 1 – Pre Final of round 8 of 8 – Jyllands-Ringen – 10 laps of 2.300 kms:
1. Michel Nykjær Seat Racing Team Seat Toledo 12.20,442
2. Michael Carlsen Carlsen BP Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 12.22,359
3. Pontus Mörth Volvo Motorsport Danmark Volvo S60 12.23,031
4. Casper Elgaard Team Essex Invest BMW 320i E46 12.23,446
5. Kurt Thiim Renault Sport Renault Megane Sports Hatch 12.26,440
6. Martin Jensen Peugeot Statoil Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 12.28,295
7. Jason Watt Peugeot Statoil Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 12.28,413
8. John Nielsen Team Essex Invest BMW 320i E46 12.28,757
9. Jørgen Weinreich Team Zulu Racing Toyota Corolla T-Sport 12.32,808
10. Jesper Sylvest Sylvest Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 12.35,120
Result of race 2 –Final of round 8 of 8 – Jyllands-Ringen – 14 laps of 2.300 kms:
1. Casper Elgaard Team Essex Invest BMW 320i E46 17.04,705
2. Michel Nykjær Seat Racing Team Seat Toledo 17.07,085
3. John Nielsen Team Essex Invest BMW 320i E46 17.14,902
4. Kurt Thiim Renault Sport Renault Megane Sports Hatch 17.17,380
5. Michael Carlsen Carlsen BP Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 17.17,570
6. Martin Jensen Peugeot Statoil Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 17.19,546
7. Jason Watt Peugeot Statoil Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 17.19,736
8. Philip Andersen K-motorsport Honda Civic Type-R 17.31,354
9. Henrik Lundgaard Toyota Castrol Racing Toyota Corolla T-Sport 17.32,227
10. Jens Møller Team Essex Invest BMW 320i E46 17.36,900
Championship positions – drivers (provisional pending appeal):
1. Casper Elgaard Team Essex Invest BMW 320i E46 212 p.
2. Henrik Lundgaard Toyota Castrol Racing Toyota Corolla T-Sport 196 p.
3. Martin Jensen Peugeot Statoil Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 170 p.
4. Michel Nykjær Seat Racing Team Seat Toledo 165 p.
5. Jens Edman Toyota Castrol Racing Toyota Corolla T-Sport 145 p.
6. Pontus Mörth Volvo Motorsport Danmark Volvo S60 139 p.
7. John Nielsen Team Essex Invest BMW 320i E46 126 p.
8. Kurt Thiim Renault Sport Renault Megane Sports Hatch 117 p.
9. Michael Carlsen Carlsen BP Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 115 p.
10. Mike Legarth Connection Racing BMW 320i E46 108 p.
11. Jan Magnussen Peugeot Statoil Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 101 p.
12. Jason Watt Peugeot Statoil Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 94 p.
13. Jens Møller Team Essex Invest BMW 320i E46 60 p.
14. Jesper Sylvest Sylvest Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 59 p.
15. Philip Andersen K-motorsport Honda Civic Type-R 51 p.
16. Jørgen Weinreich Team Zulu Racing Toyota Corolla T-Sport 45 p.
17. Martin Pedersen Team Peugeot DTC Køge Peugeot 406 Coupé 35 p.
18. Gunnar Kristensen Team Sturup Raceway BMW 320i E46 29 p.
19. Tom Pedersen K-motorsport Honda Civic Type-R 28 p.
20. Carsten Leveau Team Sturup Raceway BMW 320i E46 26 p.
Michael Schröter Team Volkswagen/Castrol Volkswagen Golf GTI 26 p.
22. John Hansen JHI ATS Motorsport Alfa Romeo 156 7 p.
23. Jacob Kristensen K-motorsport Honda Civic Type-R 6 p.
24. Michael Klostermann Klostermann Racing Nissan Primera 2 p.
Championship positions – privateers (provisional pending appeal):
1. Mike Legarth Connection Racing BMW 320i E46 240 p.
2. Michael Carlsen Carlsen BP Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 232 p.
3. Jens Møller Team Essex Invest BMW 320i E46 181 p.
4. Jesper Sylvest Sylvest Motorsport Peugeot 307 GTI 173 p.
5. Jørgen Weinreich Team Zulu Racing Toyota Corolla T-Sport 139 p.
6. Gunnar Kristensen Team Sturup Raceway BMW 320i E46 126 p.
7. Martin Pedersen Team Peugeot DTC Køge Peugeot 406 Coupé 122 p.
8. Carsten Leveau Team Sturup Raceway BMW 320i E46 113 p.
9. Michael Schröter Team Volkswagen/Castrol Volkswagen Golf GTI 101 p.
10. John Hansen JHI ATS Motorsport Alfa Romeo 156 38 p.
11. Michael Klostermann Klostermann Racing Nissan Primera 20 p.
Championship positions – teams (provisional pending appeal):
1. Toyota Castrol Racing 339 p. 2. Team Essex Invest 338 p.
3. Peugeot Statoil Motorsport 282 p.
4. Seat Racing Team 165 p.
5. Volvo Motorsport Danmark 139 p.
6. Renault Sport 117 p.
7. Carlsen BP Motorsport 116 p.
8. Connection Racing 108 p.
9. K-motorsport 85 p.
10. Sylvest Motorsport 59 p.
11. Team Sturup Raceway 55 p.
12. Team Zulu Racing 45 p.
13. Team Peugeot DTC Køge 35 p.
14. Team Volkswagen/Castrol 26 p.
15. JHI ATS Motorsport 7 p.
16. Klostermann Racing