Arianna Casoli spoke to us to explain the important points that helped her to avoid the Big One at Vallelunga: Staying focused at what’s in front, always listening to the spotters, and developing a routine to study your competitors.
One of the biggest talking points from the 2023 edition of American Festival of Rome at Autodromo Vallelunga is the “Big One” that happened in the opening lap of the second race in the EuroNASCAR 2 division.
The Big One involved eight cars – Thomas Toffel, Melvin de Groot, Cesare Balistreri, Igor Sicuro, Riccardo Romagnoli, Max Mason, Claudio Remigio Cappelli, and Paolo Valeri – and all but the latter two would be forced to retire from the race in the spot.
One driver who escaped the Big One without any damage to their car is SpeedHouse Racing’s Arianna Casoli. Casoli, who started the race in 21st position, was able to slow down her No. 14 Ford Mustang in time to avoid the incident. She would survive the race to the end, eventually finishing 16th in a race that had three Safety Car periods.
Casoli’s experience in EuroNASCAR 2 speaks for itself. The driver from Reggio Emilia owns the current record for the most starts in EN2 with 85 and is competing on her eight season in the sport – the most out of any EN2 competitor in history.
What are the secrets for a driver as experienced as Casoli to be able to escape a multi-car incident like the Big One at Vallelunga? According to Casoli: “About what happened on the Big One in Race 2, I was able to avoid any contact thanks to staying in focus, listening to my spotters and a kind of routine.”
“The first is that I’m used to watching those in front of me!” explained Casoli. “I’m focusing as much as I can and if I see dust or chaos, I’ll be on the lookout and maybe lift off a bit as it helps to save the car.”
“I’m starting from the back so why destroy the car for one or two positions and ruin my race? EuroNASCAR races had many laps of racing and it often had restarts.”
“The second point is to always listen to my spotter live!” continues the driver of the No. 14 SpeedHouse Ford. “This is the key to survive in a grid of 25 to 30 cars like in our series. As a characteristic of the NASCAR cars, our side and back view is unfortunately poor due to the conformation of the car itself.”
“This is why spotters are so important for us because their information at any moment helps us prevent as many contact as possible. Over the years, I’ve learned that having a good spotter and working with him in the proper way has always helped me to keep the car safe when he had the chance to see what was going on on track and help me.”
“The third point is that I have probably developed a kind of instinct and routine that makes me and my spotter feel conscious about details and focus points,” said Casoli.
“It’s not so easy to explain, but it is a way to understand who is who and how they act on track. It’s like a way to analyze the background, the racing style, the story and ‘mood’ of a driver during the races.”
“We always studied the grid, who is around me at the start and restart and how they behave on previous races as this can help to prevent incidents. Drivers must be aware that sometimes they have to make a decision in a matter of split seconds to ‘survive’.”
“I watched the scene from all points of view and tried to understand where the cars were, the direction of the crashed ones, flying pieces and empty spaces. If you’re really concentrated and focus on key points and not just on gaining position, then you can do it.”
Casoli did admit, however, that Vallelunga’s layout makes it harder to do all three points at all times due to the position of the pits – where the spotters are stationed – to the furthest part of the circuit being further away than Valencia and Brands Hatch, the others tracks that had hosted a round in the 2023 season so far.
“I had to say that in Vallelunga, not all of this was possible at all times,” admits the SpeedHouse driver. “Valencia and Brands Hatch are perfect for the spotters, but in Vallelunga I knew that my spotter had blind areas and no or poor radio signal connection in the furthest part of the circuit, so I had to concentrate more and watch my surroundings more.”
“I just had a good start and was gaining positions when I arrived at Cimini, but as soon as I saw the dust I looked for any space to get through. There was none, so I had to lift off and brake! If you see in the video, I was completely blocked and I had to almost stop my car. I did lose many positions, but I passed around the crashed cars. Making the choice to survive always pays out.”
“I think you must train your instinct and you must always focus. Never underestimate the events and be conscious of what can happen and about the options you have. It is always a matter of a split second that can save or destroy your race.”
Last but not least, Casoli expresses the importance for the competitors to always respect not just the other drivers, but also to the rules and the life and well being of everyone that makes a race weekend a possibility.
“The last point to focus on I guess is respect,” concludes Arianna. “We play hard, we race, and we fight, but there should always be respect between drivers, respect for the rules and respect for others’ life and well being!”
“Race direction should work to make all the drivers be aware about this and control all events from the smallest to the bigger with the same attention. In addition to punishing bad habits, they must let everyone know that rules are made to be respected and to help us to be safe.”
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