Reigning double-champion Jean-Philippe Dayraut clinched his third straight Andros Trophy title from Alain Prost in Lens-en-Vercors at the weekend having finished second on the opening day before winning day 2.
The BMW driver finished behind the impressive youngster Adrien Tambay, also driving a BMW 1 Series, on Saturday with Bertrand Balas in third, and then topped the rankings ahead of the Skodas of former F1 stars Jacques Villeneuve and Olivier Panis on Sunday.
Prost, who led the standings for much of the year, could only manage fifth and fourth places in his Dacia Duster.
Dayraut described the triumph as ‘his best yet’ having made the switch from Skoda to BMW during the off-season.
“This is the best because it was the most difficult,” he said. “It was a new challenge with a new car and a new team, while we also started the season with 40kg of ballast. Clearly this was the hardest yet.
“But by having a good car and not making any big mistakes, I knew it was possible. I said Alain Prost would be my toughest opponent and that was the case.”
Meanwhile, Tambay’s victory on day 1 saw the 19-year-old become the youngest driver to ever win an Andros Trophy race.
“I didn’t even know I would race until the team told me there might be a chance just before,” he said. “The tyres were good and I understood what was required to do well here.”
Despite his father’s disappointment, the Prost family enjoyed title success with son Nicolas, who clinched the Andros Trophy Electric title.
Three podiums and a victory from the four races saw Prost hold off the challenge of Christophe Ferrier, who won twice.
The series now moves on to the Stade de France next month for its annual ‘Super Final’ exhibition event.
Andros Trophy Final Standings
1 Jean-Philippe Dayraut, 843pts
2 Alain Prost, 823
3 Franck Lagorce, 812
4 Olivier Panis, 789
5 Bertrand Balas, 781
6 Evens Stievenart, 758
7 Jean-Baptiste Dubourg, 747
8 Pierre Llorach, 725
9 Jacques Villeneuve, 703
10 Benjamin Riviere, 693
Andros Trophy Electric
1 Nicolas Prost, 319
2 Christophe Ferrier, 313
3 Franck Lagorce, 307
4 Olivier Pernaut, 292
5 Stephane Ortelli, 277
Next round: 5 March, Stade France (Superfinal)
Watch highlights from Lens-en-Vercors on Thursday from 7:55pm (GMT) on Motors TV.
Andy Wilkinson
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