Zak Drummond in OK, Dean Hoogendoorn in OK-Junior, Niccolo Perico in Mini 60 and Josh Bergman in Mini U10: in Lonato, these four drivers climbed to the top of the podium by making the absolute best of the performance of their KR-IAME chassis. And in the provisional WSK Super Master Series standings, after three of the five events, Lucas Palacio remains a solid leader in OK-N Junior.
Complex racing management
At the South Garda Karting circuit in Lonato, the event saw a number of twists and turns, sometimes to the detriment of certain drivers. It's fair to ask whether it's possible to manage a meeting of over 400 drivers in six categories in a perfect sporting manner when the weather conditions are changeable, as was the case over the weekend?
As far as the Kart Republic factory's equipment is concerned, it proved to be extremely competitive, whether on slicks or rain tyres. The numerous performances recorded on Friday and Saturday on a dry track were transformed into podium finishes on Sunday on a wet track.
A third consecutive OK-Junior double
At La Conca and Sarno, and again at Lonato, the top two podium places were occupied by KR-IAME teams in the OK-Junior class. Dean Hoogendoorn (Prema Racing) scored a second consecutive victory and extended his lead in the provisional standings. This time he was ahead of Luka Scelles (VictoryLane). Noah Baglin (Prema Racing) and Drew Walz (KR Motorsport) finished in the top five. Mariano Lopez (Fusion Motorsport) lost all his chances during the start procedure, which would have deserved an extra formation lap.
Already a winner at La Conca, Zac Drummond (Fusion Motorsport) added another victory to his tally. Dries Van Langendonck (Prema Racing) was penalised (as were almost all the finalists!) for the position of his front fairing when he had crossed the finish line in the lead, but found himself P3, although he remains leader in the overall standings. Alp Aksoy (KR Motorsport) moved up from 22nd to 5th place, while Rocco Coronel (VictoryLane) moved up 16 places to 7th. Iacopo Martinese (Cetilar Racing), who won all three of his heats, started from pole position in the Final and led for a long time, unfortunately got caught up with four laps to go.
Lucas Palacio (KR Motorsport), who led the OK-N Junior class in the dry Qualifying Heats, lost his place at the top after the Prefinal, when he had to battle with the rain despite the fact that the karts were equipped with slick tyres. He then finished P2 in the Final and consolidated his leadership with two races to go in the WSK Super Master Series.
Mini domination
As at La Conca, the KR chassis won both Mini categories! Josh Bergman (Kidix Driver Performance) climbed to the top of the podium for the third time in a row in the U10 category, and logically leads the overall standings. In the Mini 60 'Group 3', Niccolo Perico (Team Driver Racing Kart) picked up his second win of the season and has every intention of fighting for the title in the forthcoming races.
Comments from Dino Chiesa, Head of KR Global Motorsport Company
"I'd like to congratulate the drivers and teams on their ability to react when the weather changed from Sunday onwards. It wasn't easy, because it often comes down to details: first of all when you have to define the best possible set-up in the paddock, then in terms of driving and strategy, but also on the track when the drivers are under the orders of the officials in a competition as important as the WSK Super Master Series, with so much at stake as well as significant human and financial resources committed. In the end, we managed to record some excellent results, with a total of eight podiums, including four wins. That's positive!”
Press Release © Kart Republic