The Igora Drive circuit saw dramatic scenes: heavy rain, accidents, technical failures and unexpected twists of fate. The main heroes of the day were Mikhail Aleshin and Denis Remenyako from the CapitalRT team, who prevailed in the most difficult conditions and won the overall standings. This stage of the series was historic for Russian motorsports, with seven GT3 cars of Mercedes-AMG, Lamborghini Huracan and Porsche making their debut in the GT Pro class.
Start under the sign of prototypes
The first places on the starting grid were taken by crews in light and fast sports prototypes. The French Ligier No. 31 *SVL CSKA Racing (Alexey Khairov / Alexey Chernov) took pole position, breaking the hegemony of the No. 111 Blackthorn crew in the series. However, already at the beginning of the race, Konstantin Tereshchenko (No. 29 TEAMGARIS), masterfully driving the Ligier JS53 prototype, took over the lead. But then the weather intervened…
Rain, accidents and the fight for survival
The third sector of the track turned into a rain trap: Alexander Maslennikov (KTM X-Bow) and Denis Bulatov (Audi R8 LMS) of the GT class collided, both retired. The Blackthorn #111 crew lost their chances due to the prototype going off the track on a slippery surface and then getting stuck in the gravel, as did one of the contenders for the class and overall victory – the Lamborghini Huracan GT3 of the #37 crew.
Yellow flags, restart – and another blow for TEAMGARIS #29: Tereshchenko’s brake light failure forced him to stop in the pits for a long time. This opened the way for CapitalRT: Aleshin and Remenyako, who had already won in the junior GT class, were now heading for an absolute triumph in the Mercedes AMG GT3 GT Pro class.
Finish to applause
Despite two collisions with back-up drivers, CapitalRT retained the lead in the peloton of the four-hour race. Sergey Stolyarov and Rinat Salikhov No. 16 YADRO Motorsport in a Mercedes AMG GT3 finished second in the overall standings, and the No. 8 DRT crew in a Porsche 911 GT3 came in third.
Class winners:
Overall – Capital RT No. 013 Remenyako/Aleshin, Mercedes-AMG GT3
CN Pro – TEAMGARIS No. 29 Tereshchenko / Zakharevsky / Sidoryuk), Ligier
GT Pro – No. 013 CapitalRT, Remenyako/Aleshin, Mercedes-AMG GT3
GT Light: Club SEAT RT #444 Gorbatenko / Pryamichkin / Pismarov
GT Pro (Touring sub-class): #86 SU RT Memetov / Raichinov on SEAT Cupra TCR
Regulations and scandals
The race was approaching the finish line, but then the judges penalized Three crews at once had a 5-minute stop&go (pit lane downtime). Strict punishment was given for exceeding the pilot’s time behind the wheel (according to the regulations – no more than two hours continuously for a pilot). Moreover, two of them, crews No. 777 and 53 Mazda Karting Academy, were clearly contenders for prize places.
Igor Ermilin, the founder of REC, acknowledged the need to revise the rules, but emphasized:
In the race, everyone must play by the established rules.
Results
Rain, adrenaline and the skill of the pilots made this stage of REC unforgettable. The race at the Igora Drive circuit attracted full stands of spectators who followed the marathon for all four hours. Aleshin and Remenyako proved that even in chaos it is possible to keep cool and achieve victory. The next stage on August 9 at Moscow Raceway — new challenges!
