Translated from the Dresdner Neuste Nachrichten:

And here we are, at the end of the line. The season ends today, and the race couldn't be more exciting, because Jorge Manuel Russo, a native of Argentina, is closer to victory than ever. As the winner, he would automatically advance to the professional league of motorsports, if Germany had no say in the matter.

Siegfried Happe is only one point behind Russo and will have to prove himself today in the Maserati 6CM against the lightning-fast Talbot 700. The 3.5km track will be driven for 30 laps today, and in qualifying, Happe already placed (closely) behind the Argentinian. However, the start will be on the same row, so anything can happen today. The official handshake this morning gives a clear message: This will be a battle between friends, between comrades, not between enemies!

Happe himself explained to the Dresdner Nachrichten that he wishes for "everything to happen as it happens, instead of wishing to win. The well-read Siegfried Happe thus demonstrates that even greek authors are close to him. And with that we dismiss Happe with the words: 

“Γνῶθι σεαυτόν” = "Know yourself".

To make a case with data – Happe is 1 second behind Russo, but that doesn’t say much about the actual race strategy. Guy Don, the french driver might have a chance to win the championship aswell, if Russo and Happe have huge issues. As we see it right now, the chances for the championship are:

• Guy Don will be champion if he wins the race AND Jorge Manuel Russo finishes 4th or worst.,
• Siegfried Happe will be champion if he wins and Jorge Manuel Russo finishes 3rd or worst OR if he finishes 2nd and Russo 4th or worst and Don doesn’t win,
• Jorge Manuel Russo will be champion if he finishes 2nd, OR he finishes 3rd and Happe doesn’t win the race OR he finishes 4th and Happe doesn’t finishes in 1st or 2nd and Don doesn’t win the race.

While the Maserati has better handling in the turns for todays race, the Talbot has the clear advantage on the straights. Happes 6CM can’t push much above 190km/h without putting unnecessary strain on the engine. Happe, a usual suspect for stress before the race, seems suprisingly calm and collected on this day – is that a winning confidence or is he really prepared to finish anywhere today?

We even caught Russo and Happe sitting together for a hot brew, discussing the setup of the car. It seems, every sense of secrecy and team tactics have subsided. What’s left is only open talk, on who can drive the car the best and may be the luckier party in terms of reliability. As Russo hasn’t seen much reliability issues in the past 3 Gentlemen races, the Talbot can still suffer a problem, that might leave Russo stranded on the track or make him lose valuable time.