Jensen retakes the lead after controversial Padborg Park Night Race
Kasper H. Jensen won the first two races and Michael Markussen the third and final race of the day at TCR Denmark penultimate event that was filled with controversy. Pole-sitter and Race 1 winner Mike Halder was disqualified for a ride height failure, then him and title rival Jensen came together while fighting for the lead in the final race. The incident resulted in penalties that dropped Halder from second to fourth.
Jensen, who was victorious in the first two races, has retaken the lead in the championship by three points over Halder, heading to the season finale which will be held at Jyllandsringen on September 28/29.
Race 1 – Halder had claimed the pole by just over a tenth of a second over Markussen, while Jensen had qualified fourth behind Halder’s teammate René Povlsen. Jensen launched up to second behind Halder on the opening lap, while Povlsen was shuffled down to the pack, with Markussen holding third. The race was largely a procession, with Halder pulling out a 4.5 second margin to claim a comfortable victory ahead of Jensen, but drama followed during scrutineering when Halder’s car failed the ride height check. This gave Jensen the win ahead of Markussen and Gustav Birch.
Race 2 – With the top six reversed on the grid, Philip Lindberg would start from pole, but he bogged down as the lights went out and was luckily avoided, then Jacob Wunderov and Povlsen came together at T1 as they battled for the lead with Wunderov coming out ahead and Jensen passing Povlsen. Jensen then took the lead from Wunderov at T11, while Halder was fast working his way up the order after starting last. Markussen took second from Wunderov on lap 4, then Halder overtook Wunderov a lap later. With six laps to go, Halder overtook Markussen and closed in on Jensen, but ran out of time to mount an attack, crossing the line 1.1 seconds behind.
Race 3 – Jensen started from pole based on the points from the first two races, with Markussen alongside him and Halder in P6. Wunderov made a good start from third and got ahead of Markussen, while Jensen built a small gap in the lead. Halder forced his way past Markussen for third on the opening lap, before getting ahead of Wunderov at the end of lap 2. Then the race turned into a two-man battle between Jensen and Halder. Despite light contact early on, the racing was clean right up until lap 10, when Jensen appeared to leave a gap on the inside at T11 which Halder made a lunge for and the two made contact. Jensen was off into the gravel, while Halder moved into the lead. The safety car was called with action resuming for one last lap; Halder was handed a double drive-through penalty, and he served one on the final lap dropping to second behind Markussen who was promoted to the victory. After the race Halder was imposed a three-second penalty for the unserved drive-through, which demoted him to fourth.
Padborg Park – Race 1
- Kasper H. Jensen (Mascot Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R FL5), 16 laps
- Mikael Markussen (Markussen Racing, CUPRA Leon VZ), 3.557
- Gustav Birch (Mascot Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R FL5), 8.910
Padborg Park – Race 2
- Kasper H. Jensen (Mascot Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R FL5), 15 laps
- Mike Halder (TPR Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R FL5), 1.166
- Mikael Markussen (Markussen Racing, CUPRA Leon VZ), 4.316
Padborg Park – Race 3
- Mikael Markussen (Markussen Racing, CUPRA Leon VZ), 13 laps
- Jacob Wunderov (Wunderov Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R FK7), 2.082
- René Povlsen (TPR Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R FL5), 2.455
Championship points
- KH. Jensen, 349 pts; 2. M. Halder, 346; 3. M. Markussen, 257
Picture: TCR Denmark/Stumpphoto
