WSK INTERNATIONAL SERIES LONATO, MAY 10 -11 - ROUND 3

BIREL ON THE PODIUM IN KF2 AND KF1

The WSK International Series reaches its halfway point in Lonato with the KF1 and KF3 classes, both with 3 races finished while the KF2 drivers went to the track for their 2nd seasonal meet. In the KF1, those in the field prove themselves to be even more equal with the third different winner out of the three races. After the success of Stevens (Tony Kart – Vortex) at the opening of the season in Lecce and Parrot’s win in France (Birel-Iame), Kozlinski (CRG-Maxter) took command in Lonato. But in the Lombard race, the Birel colours again achieved great success with the 2nd place finish by Michael Ryall (Birel-TM). The GKS team flag-bearer jumped from 4th position after having won 8th place in the pre-final (won by Convers) and ran an exceptional race, always having a spot in the head group. Even Cesetta was able to aim at the podium but some set up problems plagued him during the 2nd part of the race when he had to give up his position, making do with 7th place. Of note in the KF1 was Giugnet’s 3rd place and some contacts, among which was the one between Convers and Ardigò, both ending outside of the top ten, along with the one which took place during the 2nd lap that eliminated Parrot and Bressan. For the Birel driver, it was a very negative blow from the viewpoint of the championship after which, in the Pre-Final, he took 9th place and occupied the 6th position. Worse happened to Bresson who had to undergo a medical check-up after an accident which also kept the race in “Slow” time for 5 laps. Stevens leads the championship with 50 points, but the Birel drivers, Cesetti and Ryall, are in 2nd and 3rd place respectively with 44 and 40 points. In the KF2, the Birel drivers’ weekend was influenced by some technical problems. This also greatly influenced the set-up research work in view of the race and, in fact, compromised the races of the “official” drivers, Harvey and Amberg, both with Iame engines, as well as Paolo De Conto’s race. Among these three, only Harvey went on to the Final but did not succeed in obtaining enough points for the championship. Viganò (team MGM) did better in the elimination runs, gaining first line-up in the Pre-Final, as well as Hauke (team KSB) and Frijns (team GKS), both among the top ten. In the Pre-Final, misfortune again penalized Viganò: the MGM team driver was forced to withdraw during the course of the 1st lap due to engine trouble. The race was won by Suvanto over Rowland, while Hauke was classified in 7th place with Frijns immediately behind him. In the Final the victorious couple did not change, exactly confirming the Pre-Final results, while the Birel colours made it to the podium due to a fantastic race run by Hauke who made 3rd place maintaining the leaders’ pace up to the finish line. Frijns also had a positive race, ending in 8th place. In the championship, Smarrazzo maintains his leadership with 57 points while Suvanto and Rowland jump to 2nd and 3rd place with 41 and 37 points respectively. The Birel colours remain fully in the race with De Conto, in 4th place with 28 points, and Harvey who follows with 26, as well as Hauke who is in 7th place with 20 points. Finally, in the KF2, a mix of factors penalized the top Birel drivers. Among these were some contacts during the race and some set-up problems. Despite these beginnings, Marc Coleselli raced an excellent weekend, winning 8th place in the Pre-Final and 7th in the Final, bringing himself to 8th place in the championship with 30 points. Sorrentino also had a positive race, but unfortunately an accident during the Final forced him to withdraw. Even more unfortunate were Beretta, Viberti and Sorensen who were excluded from the Final due to a close call, while Agostini was excluded from the rally due to a questionable decision by the Board of Sports Administrators after the 1st race on Sunday morning. The KSB driver (13 years old) was involved in a discussion – clearly at the end of the race, with another driver who was assisted by one of the track officials, intervening clumsily when dealing with a child. As such, Cheever’s mechanic then intervened in order to remove the official. The result was that both Agostini and Cheever were excluded from the rally, and unfortunately neither of them was listened to. The WSK will return to the track for the 4th round at Mariembourg during the first week in June while the KF3 class will have a break.