Petit wins European Hillclimb Championship finale in Buzet

The 45th Buzetski dani hillclimb in Croatia concluded the 2026 European Hillclimb Championship season with competitive racing across multiple categories. Despite challenging weather on Saturday—heavy rain affected the 5km course—Sunday's race day delivered ideal conditions, though forest sections remained damp during the first run, causing multiple interruptions.

Kevin Petit of France claimed overall victory in his Nova NP 01-2 C Honda Turbo, delivering a standout performance that impressed spectators with his aggressive driving style. Petr Trnka (Czech Republic) finished second in an identically specified Nova, while Joseba Iraola Lanzagorta (Spain) completed the podium in third, also piloting a Nova NP 01-2 C Honda Turbo and securing the Proto Class 1 title.

In the touring car category, Reto Meisel (Switzerland) dominated in his Mercedes-Benz SLK 340 Judd, setting a new course record by improving the previous benchmark from 2022 by 1.2 seconds. Karol Krupa (Poland) finished second in a Skoda Fabia CT, while Nicolas Werver (France) rounded out the top three in a Porsche 997 GT3 R.

Matija Jurisic, competing at his home event, secured his second European Hillclimb Championship title in the PF Class 4 driving a Peugeot 308 TCR 1.6. In the historic categories, Christian Zaleski (Poland) won in a BMW 2002 ti to claim his first Historic European Hillclimb Championship, while Bostjan Urbancic (Slovenia) triumphed in Historic Category 2 with a Fiat 128 Coupe SL 1300.