The engines of the dwarf bolides of the Mini Cooper, NSU TT and Fiat-Abarth, which fight for every centimeter on the racetrack and often cause more of a spectacle than "full-grown" racing cars, are allowed a maximum of 1300 cubic centimeters. The "Battle of the Dwarves" has been a crowd-puller at various racing events in Germany and neighboring countries since the early 1990s. The successful event series has now completed its 25th season.
Once again at the Nürburgring
To round off the 2017 racing year, the dwarves once again took to the Nürburgring Grand Prix circuit. Two races were scheduled to determine the final ranking of the race participants.
After a Friday practice session in good dry conditions, the weather forecast for the two races on Saturday was less positive. This was quickly confirmed. The Eifel and the Nürburgring showed their wettest side in terms of weather. Continuous rain forced the race organizers to declare all races of the day as "wet races".
However, this did not deter the racers in the dwarves, and in the end the championship was still to be decided!
The "typhoon" tires were fitted so that some traction could be found at all. In the difficult conditions, the drivers drove like hell, which was not immediately obvious to the spectators on this large, wide track, but the little racers were really fast. However, those who overdid it could hardly make up for mistakes. A major slip was immediately noticeable in the form of many lost meters, and it was only possible to catch up with a lot of driving effort.
TT ahead of Mini
After the Minis of the British Classic Car Trophy had dominated the dry practice session at the top overall, they were clearly left behind in the wet race heats.
In pouring rain and, according to the drivers, "more than borderline visibility conditions", a large starting field of over 50 cars set off in pursuit of victory. In addition to the well-known participants, the guest starters from the Polish Maluch Trophy with their Fiat 128p were particularly striking. As many as seven of these cars had made the long journey from Poland to the Eifel.
The overall winner in the first race was Roland Müller in his NSU TT, followed by Herbert Wein jr. and Thomas Berg in the Mini.
But another Mini victory
In the second race, the Minis again dominated the lead. Thomas Berg won ahead of Damon Astin and Herbert Wein jr. All of them in a Mini. Championship contender Gregor Nick was unlucky. A mishap put him in last place on the grid.
During the flying start to the first race, he deviated too far from his starting position and was given a drive-through penalty. However, he was unable to recognize the flag signals in the spray.
As a penalty, he had to start from the very back of the field in the second race and thus roll up the field completely. This oversight enabled Thomas Berg to safely add to his points account and win the British Classic Car Trophy title.
The winners of the other series
The overall Abarth Coppa Mille was won by young Manuel Vizza in his FIAT Abarth 695.
In the NSU TT and its Trophy, it was Stefan Schmelter who took the overall winner's crown.
In the 1300 Histo Cup, on the other hand, there was a surprise. In his very first year, newcomer Frank Fiedler won the title in his Alpine A110.
And of course there was also a celebration
The weekend was crowned with a joint annual winners' party on Saturday evening. Here, all participants and their families and friends demonstrated the family cohesion that has been praised for many years and celebrated themselves and their winners until the early hours of the morning!
All reports on the dwarves can be found in the Battle of the Dwarves theme channel.
