Rubens Barrichello (Full Time) and Ricardo Maurício (RC) shared the victories in the second round - the third of the year - of the Stock Car in Santa Cruz do Sul, but who also had much to celebrate on Sunday in the countryside of the State of Rio Grande do Sul was Antonio Pizzonia from Amazonas. Punished with the last position of the grid in the first race, due to an accident earlier in the month at Velopark, Prati-Donaduzzi´s team race driver was forced to start a strategy that exclusively focused on completing the schedule. Even leaving the last few lines, having completed a few laps in the first heat to save tyres, the overtaking and fuel button, Pizzonia was only surpassed by Mauritius and, at the end of a sensational rush, won the first podium of the season for the organization commanded by technical director Rodolpho Mattheis.
Barrichello took pole position and calmly won the first race, followed by Marcos Gomes (Cimed) and Thiago Camilo (Ipiranga / A. Mattheis), exactly the top three on the grid. The biggest thrills, as expected, were left for the second race, as several drivers ended up changing their strategy based on the results of the initial battery - Mauritius also opted for sacrificing the first and was another that reaped the fruits of the decision.
Pizzonia was 28th among the 30 race drivers and still struggled in the opening laps when he picked up heavy traffic from the ones with more worn tyres but with several overtaking button loads. When he managed to get rid of them and after the obligatory refueling stop in which he only made a splash-and-go, he was retained by Felipe Lapenna (Cavaleiro Racing). Then, it was on the third last lap when the biggest moment of the day was provided: a spectacular overtaking at the end of the pit lane. "I had to risk everything at that moment, because we were just like push. Fortunately, it worked", he said, after descending from the podium next to his son Antonio Neto, properly dressed in Prati-Donaduzzi's purple jumpsuit.
Still on his return to the pits, however, Pizzonia made a point of praising the team's work. "Thanks to everyone, maybe it could be even better, but the way we got here, after Velopark, I think it's very good," he said. Former Formula 1 racer in the last decade, Pizzonia emphasized the importance of the result on the track where, in 2015, he won his first race in Stock Car. "We were not happy at the start of the championship, for a number of reasons, but we always had the speed." Now, I hope this is the beginning of a new phase, I have always believed in myself even when things were not well. I am pleased with giving the sponsor the first podium within the new structure", he concluded.
Julio Campos, Pizzonia's partner, finished in 13th and 22nd respectively, after reporting difficulties with the car's excessive headlining especially in the first heat. The next stage of the calendar is scheduled for June 11th in Cascavel, in western Parana, and is seen by Prati-Donaduzzi as the "home run", since the drug manufacturer is based in the nearby city of Toledo.
After six races, Thiago Camilo isolated in the lead of the pilots, now with 94 points against 86 of Daniel Serra and 79 of Átila Abreu. Pizzonia is in 15th place with 28, next to Rafael Suzuki, and Campos appears in 21st with 17.
