Marlboro Masters 1998:

The Auto Trader Dutch Touring Car Championship (1/2)

The top of the bill in Dutch touring car racing is oddly called the "DUTCH". In the Netherlands there's no touring car championship with expensive, special built (group A) cars like in England, Germany or even Belgium. The Dutch use almost standard production saloon cars. The tuning of the cars is strictly regulated and resembles the FIA group N specifications.

The racing in this class is not of the "bump and grind" type. The drivers like to preserve their cars and keep the damage to a minimum. The drivers themselves are often successful businessmen who have taken up racing as a hobby.

The race at Zandvoort was the sixth in a series of eleven. The most important makes in the championship are Renault, BMW and Mitsubishi; the championship tables were led by Renault at the time of this race. Winner of the race at Zandvoort was Sandor van Es in a BMW 320i.

One of his teammates in the H&P Panorama team is Duncan Huisman, the younger brother of Patrick Huisman who won the famous Porsche Cup last year. Duncan drove a remarkable race: he managed to finish in the top 5, despite a broken leg.
Last year Duncan was the winner of the Dutch Touring Car Championship, also in a BMW 320i.

Second an third in the race were the Renaults Mégane Coupé 2.0 of Donald Molenaar and Frans Verschuur, here pictured during their victory lap. In this particular race they couldn't match the speed of van Es's BMW. Their cars are more nimble than the BMW's, but this time the setup of van Es's car proved to be superior.

Frans Verschuur has a long history racing Renaults in Holland and internationally, but the younger Donald Molenaar is quicker this year. Donald drives for Verschuur's team which has succeeded in putting together a competitive package for them both.

Go to the second page about this race by clicking the arrows pointing right...