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published: 2012-07-11 19:13:22 (59515) Author: Oli_M

Lee Martin Defends European 2WD Title!

British driver Lee Martin makes it three consecutive 2WD EFRA titles
Lee Martin wins his third 2WD European title after three amazing A Finals. Lee took a fairly easy win in Leg 1 when David Ronnefalk, starting second on the grid, crashed on the opening lap. That allowed Neil Cragg up to second from his sixth place grid slot, with Hupo Honigl taking third.
In the second Leg, with Lee knowing a win would seal the title, he made an uncharacteristic mistake and dropped down the field. This meant Ronnefalk led the early stages, racing against Jorn Neumann as the two drivers built a lead over Lee Martin. The crowd got to experience some great racing, with the leading two drivers frequently swapping places. On the final lap, Jorn made a move coming across the triple jump before the finish line to snatch the lead from David, however the officials ruled that Jorn had landed outside of the track edge, making a pass by cutting the track, and thus awarded the win to David. Jorn was placed second with Lee Martin picking up third.
So, into the final leg and any one of about five drivers could take the title. Lee Martin had a good start, as did David behind him. But a few laps into the race, Lee made a mistake landing the corner tabletop jump, handing David the lead. But later in the lap, David made a mistake on the triple jump before the finish line, handing the lead back to Lee. David then had to defend firstly from Jorn Neumann, and then Neil Cragg as the British driver again worked his way up the field. But out front, Lee Martin cruised home to take the third leg, and with it the 2012 European Title.
2012 2WD EFRA European Champion
LEE MARTIN - GB - Tamiya / Speed Passion (2 points)

2nd DAVID RONNEFALK - SE - Kyosho / Orion (3)
3rd NEIL CRAGG - GB - Associated / LRP / Reedy (5)

4 Jorn Neumann - DE - Durango / Speed Passion (7)
5 Peter Pinisch - AT - Associated / LRP (8)
6 Hupo Honigl - AT - Durango / LRP (9)
7 Tom Cockerill - GB - Schumacher / Speed Passion (12)
8 Darren Bloomfield - GB - TLR / Orion (13)
9 Paul Bradby - GB - Associated / Reedy (15)
10 Rene Trauner - AT - Yokomo / Vampire (18)
That concludes our coverage of the 2WD event. Congratulations to Lee Martin on defending his title. We hope you've enjoyed the coverage and our live streaming. Don't forget, we're here all week as the 4WD event kicks off tomorrow with a day of controlled practice. You can catch it all right here at www.EFRA.ws. See you tomorrow!