Sébastien Bedoret wins the 60th ConXioN Omloop van Vlaanderen

The 60th edition of the ConXioN Omloop van Vlaanderen, the oldest competition of the JobFIXers Belgian Rally Championship, was won by the 23-year-old Sébastien Bedoret, taking his first national victory. The young talent from Donstiennes kept a cool head in an exciting final phase to keep Kevin Demaerschalk behind him. Vincent Verschueren completed the podium.

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Fernémont retirement brings Bedoret to the lead

The second loop of the second leg of the ConXioN Omloop van Vlaanderen barely brought about any changes in the classification, despite an unexpected rainstorm in Rumbeke. But, just after the last service in Roeselare, the bad luck struck. Leader Adrian Fernémont, the authoritative leader since the start of the rally, had to park his Skoda Fabia R5 aside on the way to the start of the Passendale trial with mechanical issues. However, with a 22 second lead, he almost had the win in his second “home rally”. After all, Fernémont was for many years one of the drivers of Team Floral, the team that now houses the rally centre of the ConXioN Omloop van Vlaanderen.

Adrian Fernémont checks out at half race

After the first loop of the second leg, Adrian Fernémont continues to control the 60th ConXioN Omloop van Vlaanderen. After the rainy opening night, the sun shone over the region of Roeselare. On Saturday afternoon Adrian Fernémont expanded his lead to 27.6 seconds over Sébastien Bedoret and 29.3 seconds to Kevin Demaerschalk.

“We started well today,” laughed leader Fernémont. “Of course, I cut some corners a little extra here and there to make the cords more dirty for my pursuers. That is part of the game.”

Kevin Demaerschalk had to give up a bit of time: “On a dry course, the Fiesta R5 Evo is not precise enough yet. That is just a matter of refining the setup, which makes sense, because it is our first rally with this car. I am already very satisfied.”

Adrian Fernémont shoots to the lead

The weather seemed to have a positive change for the start 60th edition of ConXioN Omloop van Vlaanderen, but the competitors quickly came across rain. And it generated a new beginning, exciting and rich with twists. Four drivers shared the stage wins on the five specials that made up the evening’s program. Adrian Fernémont shot to the lead, beating Sébastien Bedoret by 1.9 seconds and Kris Princen by 2.2 seconds.

85 entrants start in TER / BRC

The start of the 60th ConXioN Omloop van Vlaanderen took place at 5.30pm as planned, under a slightly brighter sky than the afternoon. Of the 98 cars entered in TER / BRC, 85 finally took the start. Tomorrow Saturday, we expect another 35 cars in Criterium RACB.

Most of the non-starters are the result of mechanical problems (Cris Algoedt / BMW 1M, Guino Kenis / BMW M3, Nick Toorré / Ford Sierra Cosworth, Marc Maertens / BMW M3).

Historic to present a big fight

60 year anniversary for the Mini Cooper
The Historic field accounts for almost 30% of the starters in the ConXioN Omloop van Vlaanderen. The British have turned up in big numbers, specially to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the legendary Mini, which coincides with the 60th anniversary of the oldest rally in the Belgian Rally Championship. It promises to be a very exciting battle at the front and throughout the field.

Prospect for great fights in all the competitions

The entries for the ConXioN Omloop van Vlaanderen 2019 have been closed. With 136 entries in the various competitions, the West-Flemish classic can appropriately celebrate its 60th edition on 6 and 7 September. The last time we witnessed such a large field was in the last century – in 1999!