Mangold on a Mission

E365 -- Mike Mangold is hoping Europe will once again prove to be the tonic he needs to jump-start his campaign to defend his Red Bull Air Race World Series championship after Europe turned out to be a magic place for the American in 2007.

He won three of the five European races last year and overtook Britain’s Paul Bonhomme with victories in Istanbul, London and Budapest. The Californian, now in a three-way battle for second, five points behind Bonhomme, wants another winning streak to take him back on top when the World Series moves to the 'Old World' with the first of five European races in Rotterdam on 19 and 20 July. It is the perfect location for the American to get back into the battle - Mangold won the Rotterdam race when it was last held in the Dutch city in 2005. Bonhomme was back in seventh place.

"I just want to win a race right now," said Mangold, who registered a disappointing fourth in Detroit after getting second in San Diego and third in Abu Dhabi.

Mangold has had a long dry spell - six races without winning. That’s hardly an inspiring performance for the winner of two of the last three championships. His last win was in Budapest in August and it’s clear the losing streak is starting to eat away at the highly competitive former U.S. Air Force pilot.

"My motivation is to win a race. What we have to do is start knocking Bonhomme off the top. Someone else has to start winning races consistently. I’m gonna step up and do the job if Kirby, Hannes and Peter can’t do it. I’ve got to make the plane faster and beat him."

Mangold said the advantage of racing in Europe - nine time zones east of his home in Victorville, California - is that he can concentrate on the race and not have to worry about anything else. "The good thing about getting away from home is that there is less distraction. In Europe, you can settle in and focus on racing."

But Mangold, who oddly enough had one of the worst races of his career in San Diego in a race near his home last year when he got 5th, also pointed out that an early-season shoulder injury and illness in 2007 had caused him problems in the first three races - in Abu Dhabi, Rio de Janeiro and Monument Valley.

It was not until the series moved to Europe where his season started coming together. Aside from the three wins, he also was second in the other two European races last year - Interlaken and Porto. He was clearly the dominant pilot in Europe last summer; Bonhomme only won in Interlaken and gave up the lead to Mangold with two second places (Istanbul, London) and two thirds (Budapest, Porto) in Europe.

"Last year I had been injured early in the season and then sick," Mangold said. "And then it just so happened that I got better in time for Europe. It all came together then. I like Europe. Obviously I’m looking forward to getting back."

The competition has crystalised into a four-way battle after three races. With two podiums and 21 points in the first three races, Mangold is in a three-way draw with Austria’s Hannes Arch and American Kirby Chambliss. But the standings can change quickly this season due to an elevated risk of being penalized or even disqualified for infractions. A nine-point lead could, in theory, be wiped out by one DQ.

"If you get disqualified, if you make one big mistake, you’re out of it," said Mangold, who suffered two 3-second penalties for smaller blunders in Detroit.

Mangold said he will do all he can to beat Bonhomme in Rotterdam and said he fears the series could become dull if Bonhomme keeps winning. "If he wins two more now it’s over, nobody will be able to catch him. It’s nice when you’ve got a 6-point lead. You got a cushion. You can fly more cautiously. You know, not so fast, just guard what you have, go into a defensive mode. I’m not saying he will. It’s just that it’ll be tougher for the rest of us because we’ll have to hang it out more and more. So we gotta stop him now."

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