Petit wins 81st St. Ursanne hillclimb; Meisel dominates touring cars
The 81st Côte de St. Ursanne hillclimb in Switzerland delivered dramatic racing across two days of competition, with changeable weather on Saturday giving way to dry conditions on Sunday. The event, held over the 5km-plus high-speed course in the Jura, saw the popular upper section at Petit Susten reopened to spectators, restoring atmosphere to the classic venue.
French driver Kevin Petit claimed overall victory in his Nova NP 01-2 C Honda Turbo, securing his first full success in the 2026 European Hillclimb Championship season after a difficult campaign. Petit's decisive performance came in the second race run. Swiss driver Victor Darbellay finished second overall in his Nova NP 01-2 Hartley Turbo, also taking the national championship lead and winning the 2-litre E2-SC class. Spanish competitor Joseba Iraola Lanzagorta completed the podium in third, separated from Darbellay by just 0.4 seconds across both timed runs, and claimed second place in the Proto Class 1 European Championship category.
Further down the order, Swiss driver Joel Volluz (Norma M20FC Judd Evo C) finished fourth overall and won the 3-litre E2-SC sportprototype class, while Michel Zemp (Norma M20FC Honda Turbo) took fifth overall and second in the 2-litre E2-SC sportprototype category. Czech driver Petr Trnka (Nova NP 01-2 C Honda Turbo) secured sixth overall and third in Proto Class 1, with Luxembourg's Dany Demuth (Norma M20FC Judd) seventh overall and second in the 3-litre E2-SC class. German driver Benjamin Noll claimed ninth overall and victory in the 3-litre E2-SS formula class in his Osella FA30 Zytek LRM at his St. Ursanne debut.
In the touring car battle, Swiss driver Reto Meisel dominated in his Mercedes-Benz SLK 340 Judd, delivering a commanding performance despite pre-event technical issues. French driver Nicolas Werver finished second in his newly rebuilt Porsche 997 GT3 R, while Swiss competitor Roger Schnellmann (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8 Helftec) took third. Ludovic Monnier (VW Golf 2 R1170T 4×4) claimed fourth overall in the touring car standings and won the national hillclimb championship in the E1 class up to 2-litre displacement. Christoph Zwahlen (Porsche 911 GT3 R) finished fifth in the touring car order and won the E1 class for engines over 4-litres, securing second place in the national championship.