Michel Tooren resets personal best at Santa Pod Raceway

The 2025 drag racing season has kicked off for Michel Tooren and his team Pro Dutch Racing. It wasn’t an easy start, but with 5.812 seconds, a new personal best was set at Santa Pod Raceway, and Tooren finished the first round of the FIA European Championship with a third qualifying position and two consecutive 5.91-second ETs. The Pro Dutch Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 is now ready for the two July races of the Motorsport UK Pro Modified Championship.

Pro Dutch Racing kicked off the 2025 season with the Festival of Power, round one of the Motorsport UK Pro Modified Championship at Santa Pod Raceway. Unfortunately, the English weather was not with the racers. Low temperatures and rain showers were, at least to say, not the best conditions to test the Pro Dutch Racing Camaro.

Next on the calendar for Michel Tooren and his team were the Doorslammers. As a stand-alone race, this event would be a perfect test for Pro Dutch Racing for The Main Event, the opening round of the FIA European Championship, to be held at the same track one week later. With a good 5.88 seconds on the first qualifying run, qualifying started really well. The next couple of runs did not show remarkable ETs, but on Sunday afternoon, the Pro Dutch Racing Camaro stormed to a great 5.812 seconds, an improvement of Tooren’s former personal best of 5.814 seconds. The weekend ended with a 5.84-second ET. With that in mind, Pro Dutch Racing were pretty sure that they had the right set-up for The Main Event, quick, fast and consistent.

However, a week later an unexpected problem arose before qualifying for the first round of the FIA European Championship had even started. The software required by the FIA, which can be used to check whether a car is according to the applicable technical regulations, did not work well with the modern software in the Pro Dutch Racing Camaro, causing all kinds of problems when shifting gears. The problem was circumvented by an emergency solution, but then, after two aborted runs, the first qualifying day was already over.

On qualifying day two, after a good 5.93 seconds on the first run, the second run was an even better 5.88 seconds. With that ET, Tooren moved up to the third qualifying position in the, with sixteen drivers from eight different European countries, competitive Pro Modified field! Due to this result, Tooren had to face Marcus Hilt in the first round of eliminations. With 5.91 seconds, Tooren was not only quick again, he also defeated the Swiss driver and advanced to the quarter finals, where he had to face home favourite Andy Robinson. With another 5.91 seconds, the Pro Dutch Racing driver was also too quick for the driver from the UK, who recorded 6.15 seconds. But Tooren had pulled a 0.02-second red light, and was out of competition. For the championship standings, it was a blessing in disguise that the race had to be stopped after the quarter finals due to rain, thus Tooren’s competitors were not able to gain more points. In the intermediate standings of the FIA European Pro Modified Championship, Tooren is in fifth position, only 24 points behind the leader.

The second race of the FIA European Championship is not until the second weekend of August at Tierp Arena in Sweden. However, that does not mean that Pro Dutch Racing will not be racing in the meantime. Before the race in Sweden, there are two rounds of the Motorsport UK Pro Modified Championship on the calendar at Santa Pod Raceway. From 4 to 6 July, it is time for the Summer Nationals, followed by the Bug Jam from 25 to 27 July. With drivers such as David Vegter and Andres Arnover, the numbers two and three from last year’s FIA European Championship, and Andy Robinson, there is a competitive field in the UK Championship rounds as well. After these two races, the focus will go back to the FIA European Championships, because with the Summit Racing Equipment Internationals, the NitrOlympX and the European Finals there are three races for that championship in a short period of time.

Calendar 2025 Pro Dutch Racing
July 4-6, Summer Nationals, Santa Pod Raceway, Motorsport UK (3)
July 25-27, Bug Jam, Santa Pod Raceway, Motorsport UK (4)
August 7-10, Tierp Arena, Sweden, FIA European Championship (2)
August 29-31, NitrOlympX, HockenheimRing, Germany, FIA European Championship (3)
September 4-7, European Finals, Santa Pod Raceway, FIA European Championship (4), Motorsport UK (5)
September 19-21, National Finals, Santa Pod Raceway, Motorsport UK (6)

Pro Dutch Racing are supported by:
Arton USA Cars & Parts, Breko Shipbuilding & Repair, Burger Ferry Agencies, Dockmarks Signs BV, Dockside Shipfacilities B.V., Driemaas Shipping, Duraship BV, DW Pumps, Electric Marine Support BV, European Techsupply, F.E.M.M. Rotterdam BV, Flanto Shipping BV, Heftronics, Hoogendoorn Maritieme betimmering en interieurbouw, Horrel Shipping, Micana Holding BV, Maritiem Media, Noordtrans Scheepvaartbedrijf, Oonincx Scheepsonderhoud BV, Petrostar AG, RBC Nederland BV, RTR Barging, Solution Maritiem BV, Tristan Shipping BV, Verhaar Omega, VKV Service BV, Vrooam Powersports Lubricants International BV, Waterpoort Tankvaart and WB Scheepsservice BV.

For more information about Pro Dutch Racing, also see www.produtchracing.nl, Facebook and Instagram.

Text and photos: Remco Scheelings