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Maťo Homola, with his Hyundai Elantra, didn’t put a foot wrong at Slovakia Ring and won after starting from pole position, ahead of his championship rival Attila Bucsi with Hyundai i30N. Homola’s teammate, Jiří Zbožínek, achieved his first-ever podium in TCR Eastern Europe.
Teammates from Hyundai Janík Motorsport, Maťo Homola and Adam Kout, started from the front row with Martin Kadlečík and Attila Bucsi behind them.
Ivars Vallers jumped the race start and went into the lead, while Martin Kadlečík stalled the engine and dropped to last place. Vallers then moved over, expecting a penalty for the jump start, which he eventually received, with 10 seconds added to his final time.
Homola led the race after the first lap, with Kout behind him and Bucsi third, Kircher fourth, and Zbožínek fifth. In the second lap, Giacomo Ghermandi retired with problems with his car, which was smoking a lot.
Homola maintained a comfortable lead from his teammate, with Kout having basically the same gap to third-place Bucsi. Kadlečík soon caught up with the field, fighting with his rivals, and moved up to the top 10 after three laps.
The opening race at Slovakia Ring was pretty calm, with most of the drivers keeping their positions with small gaps in front of and behind them. Only Martin Kadlečík experienced the thrill of passing, taking one car after another, enjoying close fights with other drivers, but always keeping it fair and square.
Five minutes to go, Kout retired from second place in the first corner with a tire puncture. Kout’s retirement promoted Bucsi to second place, with Jiří Zbožínek, who is making progress in every race, moving to a podium finish.
Maťo Homola won on his home soil, with Bucsi second, Zbožínek third, and Kadlečík fourth. Žarko Knego finished fifth with his Hyundai Elantra. Petr Čížek brought his Cupra home in sixth place, with his teammate Vít Smejkal finishing seventh. David Kajaia with his Honda Civic scored points with eighth place. Radim Adámek with Audi, started for the first time this season, finished ninth, ahead of the penalized Ivars Vallers with Audi.
