First place in the regular NASCAR Brazil season, Gabriel Casagrande experienced a very challenging Saturday on the oval track of the Circuito dos Cristais, in Curvelo (MG), the venue of the last stage of the regular category championship before the playoffs. Winner of the last stage, the AMattheis Vogel team driver will start in the ninth row after having little oval track time, mainly due to the trip to compete in NASCAR in the USA last Thursday, in Bristol.
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“It was a marathon to arrive early today in Curvelo, but the experience in Bristol was unique and special. I believe that entering qualifying earlier and with the track hotter did interfere a bit, but it was not what made us fall so far behind. In free practice, I was not even close to being among the fastest. We tried to make a radical setup change from practice to qualifying and it didn’t work. Now we will try something else to see if we improve. It’s complicated because it’s a championship decision, the regular season ends tomorrow and we are not having the chance to compete up front. But we will do what we can, as always, and whatever is meant to be will be,” analyzes Casagrande, who is sponsored by Baterias Júpiter, Axalta, Cresol, OnPetro, STP, RP Info, UFI Filters, and Aeropark Camboriú.
Casagrande has 193 points and holds a 12-point lead over the competition’s runner-up. This Sunday, another 50 points will be at stake, with 25 points for the winner of the first race and another 25 for the winner of race 2. Three-time NASCAR Brazil Special Edition champion and overall champion in 2024, Casagrande outlined how he plans to try to gain positions in this Sunday’s races.
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“It’s a track where it’s possible to overtake, but I don’t know if it’s possible to make a big recovery race. If I continue with the car like this, it’s practically impossible to leave the zone I’m in and move forward. If we manage to have a performance difference, then yes, we will try to chase those overtaking points, which are not many, but try to induce other drivers to make mistakes so that we can climb the steps. I imagine that, obviously, there will be some confusion, which there always is, and we have to try to benefit from that, since the performance has not yet appeared,” explains Casagrande.
Race 1 will be held at 9 a.m. this Sunday and race 2 is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. SBT, ESPN, Disney+, and YouTube will broadcast the stage.
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