Classics Series: Nizhny Novgorod Stage Completed

On June 27, the Classics Series held its second round of the 2026 season. The summer retro races took place at the Nizhegorodskoye Ring circuit and brought together fans of battle-ready classic Soviet and foreign cars on the track and in the stands.

Entry to the round was free, and anyone could watch eight racing heats across a wide variety of classes that day. In addition to the traditional competitions and “support races” for classes where drivers battle it out in Zhiguli, Moskvich, and Volga cars, the heats also held the status of the Russian Automobile Federation Cup.

Combined 1

The “support race” this time included four classes. In Open Class, Andrey Koshelev took an uncontested victory in both races. In Open Class Light, two drivers on Toyota Corolla Levin – Roman Skomorokhov and Ilya Gusev – fought for the win at this round. As a result, Roman Skomorokhov came first, beating his rival by less than a second from the fastest lap time. In the Line 2000 class, Ilya Kashin had an excellent first race, finishing first in class, but retired in the second heat and ended up third overall for the round. In the Tourism 1600 class, Vladimir Cherevan won both races.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in Open Class: first place – Andrey Koshelev, second place – Denis Brattsev, third place – Ivan Bozhedomov.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in Open Class Light: first place – Roman Skomorokhov, second place – Ilya Gusev.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in Line 2000: first place – Andrey Ponomarev, second place – Mikhail Tyurin, third place – Ilya Kashin.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in Tourism 1600: first place – Vladimir Cherevan, second place – Evgeny Sheklachev, third place – Alexander Belkov.

Combined 2

The mass heat of battle-ready classics is the Series’ calling card. The main surprises and tense moments went to the A5 class, where the battle for leadership is underway between Pavel Tseplyaev and the “old school” in the person of Vladimir Cherevan. The first heat ended with a frustrating technical retirement for Pavel, which meant he started the second race from the back of the pack. The driver immediately found a great pace and broke into the leading three, but the machinery let him down again one lap before the finish. Pavel managed to complete the heat, but did not end up on the podium for the round. In the A2/1-1600 class, the young debutant of the season, fourteen-year-old Zlata Sidorenko, managed to secure a winning double at the Nizhny Novgorod round. In the A2-1300 class, Valentin Konkov won the first race, but the second heat did not go as well for the driver, and he finished second overall for the round.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in A2-1300 (traditional competitions): first place – Sergey Chikunov, second place – Valentin Konkov, third place – Igor Tashaev.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in A2-1300 (RAF Cup): first place – Sergey Chikunov, second place – Valentin Konkov, third place – Igor Tashaev.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in A2/1-1600 (traditional competitions): first place – Zlata Sidorenko, second place – Daniil Gerasimov, third place – Ilya Gorin.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in A2/1-1600 (RAF Cup): first place – Zlata Sidorenko, second place – Daniil Gerasimov, third place – Ilya Gorin.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in A5 (traditional competitions): first place – Vladimir Cherevan, second place – Taras Laukart, third place – Gleb Semenov.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in A5 (RAF Cup): first place – Vladimir Cherevan, second place – Taras Laukart, third place – Gleb Semenov.

Combined 3

A combined heat featuring drivers in the iconic Volga cars and foreign classics. In Touring Classic 80, Evgeny Trushin secured a winning double for the round. For his two rivals, Georgy Romanov and Denis Kachura, the second heat did not go as well – both suffered retirements. In Touring Classic 90, Series newcomer Artyom Yagodka and driver Sergey Chikunov fought for the win. Artyom managed to win the first race, but in the second heat Sergey fought back and finished first, becoming the winner of the round. In the Volga class A2/1-2500, the undisputed leader of the previous round, Vadim Antipov, retired in the first race due to technical reasons. The driver was unable to start the second heat. Ruslan Tolokonnikov was first to the finish in both races and took the win for the round.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in Touring Classic 80: first place – Evgeny Trushin, second place – Georgy Romanov, third place – Denis Kachura.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in Touring Classic 90: first place – Sergey Chikunov, second place – Artyom Yagodka.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in A2/1-2500 (traditional competitions): first place – Ruslan Tolokonnikov, second place – Shamil Iksanov, third place – Irek Tenishev.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in A2/1-2500 (RAF Cup): first place – Ruslan Tolokonnikov, second place – Shamil Iksanov, third place – Irek Tenishev.

Combined 4

The heat of ShortCut Sports Prototype CN cars was not as numerous – six participants – but no less interesting. In the first heat, Igor Shunailov won, pulling substantially away from his closest pursuers. However, the driver was unable to take the start of the second race, thereby losing his place on the podium. The win for the round went to Artyom Viktorov.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in Sports Prototype CN: first place – Artyom Viktorov, second place – Ivan Gerasimov, third place – Kirill Zeilikman.

Winners and prize-winners of the round in the team standings: first place – RRG, second place – LEMARC, third place – ROCKET TIGERS.

Detailed results of the round can be found on the Series’ official website.

The third round of the Classics Series will take place on July 25 at Moscow Raceway. Guests can expect an entertainment program, a variety of delicious food, as well as a large retro exhibition of various car clubs and communities devoted to classic automotive heritage.

The seventh season of the Classics Series is held with the support of the Russian Automobile Federation (RAF).

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