Vladimiros Tziortzis completed a positive weekend in France on May 23-24, securing a podium finish and valuable championship points in the second round of the 2026 NASCAR Euro Series at the Paul Ricard circuit. According to an announcement, the Cypriot driver collected important points in the OPEN category, remaining close to the leading positions in the standings, while also adding to his tally in the V8GP category.
The weekend began strongly for Tziortzis, who claimed pole position in the OPEN category on Saturday before driving the Capital.com Ford Mustang V8 to third place and a spot on the podium. On the same day, he started third in the V8GP race and finished fifth, narrowly missing out on another podium place. On Sunday, he recorded another top-five finish in the OPEN category and a top-ten result in V8GP.
“Everything went well, I am satisfied. I believe we could have taken the win, but given how things developed I am completely satisfied,” Tziortzis said. It was the first time this season, and the first time since 2023, that he had started from the front row in the OPEN category.
After the start of Saturday’s OPEN race, Tziortzis dropped to second place, but two laps later a wheel rim broke, causing the front right tyre to lose air. Despite the problem, he managed to hold on to third place until the finish. “The tyre was deflating until the end of the race. On the final lap I was at risk of losing third place, as the car would not turn right at all,” he said.
Tziortzis added that Jens Beeusaert was closing in on him before the two made contact. “Jens Beeusaert was chasing me, he went wide into a corner, we touched, and I was lucky because he was on the outside and his tyre was damaged,” he said.
On Sunday, Tziortzis started fourth and finished fifth in the OPEN race. In V8GP, he started seventh and completed the race in tenth place. According to the announcement, he faced a clutch problem during the V8GP race. “With every gear change, the engine was not reaching the required revs,” he explained. “I feel lucky and grateful that I managed to finish this race and that we collected more important points.”
The championship continues on June 6-7 at Brands Hatch in the United Kingdom.
Source: CNA
