[Translated with Google Translate]
The OK World Championship, held over the weekend of 29-31 October 2021 on the Spanish circuit of Campillos, brought a Brazilian rookie to the fore: Gabriel Gomez. At the second race in the category and aboard an official CRG Racing Team kart, he was one of the main favorites to win since qualifying. To get to know him better, we talked to CRG owner Giancarlo Tinini (who wanted him here in Europe), who also revealed to us that the World Championship tires …
There are those who say that talent is within everyone’s reach, but knowing how to concentrate and exploit it at all times is a more than rare gift, for a select few. The FIA Karting World Championship is the race that all kart drivers dream, at least once in their life, of being able to win, but only a few have the privilege of succeeding. Especially if you face it as a rookie in the category. There is someone, however, who this year risked realizing his great dream at his first appearance in the OK class in a world championship. We are talking about Gabriel Gomez, who arrived in Europe directly from Brazil – where, by chance, the World Championship was initially to be held – thanks to the CRG Racing Team, by the will of the owner Giancarlo Tinini. Pole position in qualifying, two podiums and a victory in the qualifying heats: these are the results obtained by the Brazilian who, hear hear, was in his second presence in the category, with the first one dated only a week earlier for the Champions of the Future. Only an unfortunate collision in the final put an end to an exciting story, despite everything. But who is this Gomez, hurriedly catapulted to Campillos and already among the stars of the international scene? We asked Giancarlo Tinini precisely.
Let’s start from the beginning of this story: who is Gabriel Gomez and how did you find out?
Gabriel has already come to Portimão last year (on the occasion of the World Championship, ed) and raced in the OKJ class. He is the official driver of the DTR, our representative in Brazil, and he races alongside Olin Galli, the veteran of the team. They consistently dominate the league standings in Brazil and again this year they hit first and second place.
How did you get the chance to bring Gomez to the OK World Championship in Campillos? Did you get to see him in action in the tests or did he really wear a helmet and suit for the first time in Spain in this category?
Olin is already the third year he comes to the World Cup and has always reached the final. This year, he and Gomez took part in more races in Brazil, in preparation for the 2021 edition that was originally to be held there. Being a DTR official driver and teammate Olin, we helped him too.
On Friday night, Gomez’s surname was on everyone’s lips. A driver who, at his debut in the category and even in a delicate stage like the World Championship, put everyone behind in qualifying. What struck you the most, besides of course the pole position?
Mostly, it struck us that, with any tweaks you made, he was consistently blazing fast. Even with any type of rubber, used or new. If we also look at the week before, at the Champions of the Future, he set the fastest time in his qualifying group and was third in the overall standings. It should be borne in mind that, on that occasion, he raced with engines that he brought from Brazil, obtaining two victories in the heats and a break. While at the World Cup we had official support from IAME.
Speaking of your weekend, the final has, let’s face it honestly, delivered a very disappointing result for you. What did you lack to realize the chances of victory, especially with Gomez?
Unfortunately it was the rain. Gomez does not have a good feeling in the wet, he is still missing something. We advised him, when he has the opportunity, to try the wet in Brazil, because here the rain is quite frequent. So much so that in the warm-up on Sunday morning, which took place on a wet track, we understood that in those conditions we would have had no hope.
The voices in the paddock have spoken insistently of the “tire problem”, according to which the tires did not offer homogeneous performance between trains. Have you registered any differences?
Rumors in the paddock were constantly talking about these problems, but the tires were not a problem for us. Our problems were of a different nature. We, in the OKJ, were not technically in place to be able to aim for the title. We did several tests, every time we heard in the paddock talking about the differences between the tires and the barcodes that marked them, but we never highlighted any differences that could justify all the talk that has been made about this issue. I can not say that the others were not right, I can only say what was the reality for our Racing Team: we have not found any differences.
