Kart vs F3. A madness came true thank to Gold Kart and Forè

Fans may like to dream “big”, it may be that as children a fascination with the racetrack has names like Monza or Imola ... the fact is that the thought of driving a kart in a real race track is something that, at least once, has touched the mind of all kart drivers.

Making it come true is not so impossible, because some of the racetracks allow you to drive on test days; to “raise the bar” of the dream and challenge, here is the idea to get on the track and challenge a Formula 3 car, which normally runs on that racetrack.

It was Gold Kart who thought of putting this in practice with an exceptional pilot: Davide Forè, or else the most successful kart driver who is still in the racing business.

A kart driver who, however, despite his enormous talent, never got the chance (except for one test) to make that leap to cars that others his age with whom he competed regularly, such as Trulli and Fisichella, instead made.

The real organisers of the test were the brothers Gianpaolo and Maurizio Righetti, owners of Righetti Ridolfi, the proprietor of the chassis brand Gold.

An idea that looks very much like a gift for the pilot who in 2016 wore the official Gold Kart tracksuit. However, nothing could be realised without the help of Bernardo Pellegrini, an F.2 Italian Formula Trophy driver, who has made his car and team available for the F3 vs Kart challenge.

The F.3 car used in the test is a Dallara F308 powered by a 2000 cc Toyota Piedrafita that delivers 216 hp.

The car used in the test is owned by Bernardo Pellegrini, an Italian rider who participates in the F2 Trophy

Forè concentrates before taking to the track. For the forty-two year old driver, a many times karting champion, this is his second test in a car

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The event, for everyone, is the Cremona Circuit in San Martino del Lago (CR); a 3,450 m long circuit with a maximum width of 14 m, with counter-clockwise racing, with a straight, almost a kilometre long and a guided part with fast bends. Surely the ideal environment for the F3 single-seater, equipped with a Dallara chassis and powered by a Toyota Piedrafita engine that delivers 216 horsepower, with a dry weight of only 495 kg.
When we arrive at the racetrack, the team is ready and committed to the preparation of the car for Davide who, despite all his experience, visibly betrays his excitement and the desire to get back on a track.
After a few seconds, a small adjustment, the time comes to start the 2000 cc 4-cylinder engine of the Dallara F308. And it is enough to hear the noise to understand that for a kart it will not be easy to keep up with such a “monster”.

Davide Forè on the track, at the steering wheel of the F3. What impressed him, in particular, was the car’s acceleration and braking

The study of telemetry and the advice of Bernardo Pellegrini and Engineer Matteo Cavedoni led Forè to improve in every round

Davide made several laps and, after returning to the pits, the first thing that he emphasized was the impressive acceleration and braking of the single-seater.

Just a few words, because the desire to improve immediately led him to sitting in front of the computer to study the telemetry and discuss trajectories, braking points, gear shifts and throttle use with Bernardo Pellegrini. The discussion obviously works, because Davide is back on track and constantly improving his best lap until he gets close to the time achieved by Bernardo the day before: only a few tenths separate the two drivers. Not bad for someone who practically knew nothing about single-seaters.

However, after other sessions in the car, it is now finally time for the other challenger at the San Martino del Lago racing circuit: the kart. For the occasion, Righetti Ridolfi has provided a Gold model GTR 30, chassis with tubes that are 30 mm in diameter, for the KZ class. Not surprisingly, it has a TM Racing KZ10B engine.

CHALLENGING A F.3 CAR WITH A KART