Just like last year, Energy Corse Team made its debut in the European 125/KZ2 Championship with a victory! In a category where as many as 104 pilots were racing, Tony Lavanant really impressed from the very beginning, by conquering the pole position. Always at the lead, Mathias Gallepe completed the success of the Energy official team by remaining in the top 7 in each of the two finals.
On the French Angerville circuit, Energy’s blue, red and white colours were everywhere throughout the weekend. After conquering the pole position, Tony Lavanant never left the first row, until Sunday afternoon. The French pilot drove an almost spotless race, winning
four out of five heats and setting four record laps.
“The job made by the team this winter is bearing its fruits” said Tony. “Our chassis was already performing well last year, but in 2008 it is really formidable! I had already realised it one month ago, at the WSK and this first round of the European Championship has only confirmed it. It is fast on the single lap but also throughout the race”.
In race 1, Tony Lavanant continued his demonstration. Fighting for victory against British Hawksworth, he was soon informed of the 10 second-penalty imposed on the latter for an early start. “When I realized that I could easily control my pursuers, I didn’t take useless risks with Hawksworth, because I knew that victory would be mine”, explained the Energy pilot. “I couldn’t dream of a better way to start this European Championship. Last year, it was my turn to be penalised for an early start. This time, I was careful not to waste the wonderful job made by my team”.
The third step of the podium was the reward for another excellent performance by Tony in race 2. “This last final was very hard fought between Demanse and Hawksworth. I came close to winning again, but I didn’t want to compromise this good weekend. By finishing first and then third, I obtained a very useful result for the Championship. This is really promising for the rest of the season”.
As to Mathias Gallepe, he was always on the heels of his team mate and compatriot. With a victory and four second places in the heats, not to mention the best lap in his group during warm-up, on Sunday morning, he provided proof of the competitiveness of Energy chassis. Starting 5th in race 1, he defended his position against the attacks of the group of pursuers. “I wanted to improve this result in race 2 and to be able to conquer a podium, but I couldn’t find a passage at the start so I lost touch with the leading group. I finished this race in 7th position but I scored important points; so now I can still
hope to play an important role in the Championship”.
Michele Panigada’s viewpoint, team manager of Energy:
“The weekend was excellent for Energy pilots; indeed, many of them fought in the top 10. Our main objective is to make sure that all our pilots are competitive, and thanks to the qualities of our chassis, as well as to those of our technical team, we have reached that goal. Tony Lavanant gathered all his experience to win and to become a candidate to the title of European Champion: he is on his way to conquer the second position and he is just four little points away from the leadership”
The partnership between Energy and Fly Kart Team directed by Alberto Tonti continues to provide excellent results, along the same lines as the performances shown at the WSK debut. Led by excellent Kevin Jansen, Kevin Leijtens and Kenneth Ostvold, the Fly Kart Team dominated the top 10, from timed practice to the final. The European Championship has certainly started under favourable auspices for the Italian team.
With four Energy chassis in the first 10 in both timed practice and heats, the competition started with excellent results for the Italian brand. In race 1, it was difficult to overtake the blue, red and white karts: six of them reached the top 12, an Energy
kart out of two… Never seen before!
Lavanant won and Dutch pilot Jansen did better than Gallepe and reached the 4th position. Leijtens (a Dutch too), Norwegian Ostvold and German Dominik Amian also took an active part in this incredible collective success. Race 2 was likewise successful, and Jansen, in particular, finished once again in fourth position. After setting the best lap in his group during warm-up, on Sunday morning, Kevin Leijtens kept his 11th position despite a few difficulties during the race.
“The Angerville circuit is very technical and it makes the most of the qualities of our chassis, said a technical staff member from Energy. In this context, pilots were able to express their talent by totally focussing on their race”. It must be said that Fly Kart Team offers an ideal work environment, which creates the best conditions for Energy pilots to make progress.
Overall, there are at least six Energy chassis in the top 15 of the European KZ2 Championship provisional ranking, the majority of which driven by pilots from the Fly Kart Team.
Michele Panigada’s viewpoint, team manager of Energy:
“All the members of the all team were really determined to have a good performance at Angerville and the results obtained by the fastest drivers were a stimulus for the other drivers, who felt motivated to achieve equally brilliant results. This time, it was Tony Lavanant who reached the podium, but many of his team mates have the potential to achieve the same result in the future. For example, Kevin Jansen, Kevin Lejtens and Kenneth Ostvold had convincing performances and they will be the men to beat in the next few races. I am also very satisfied with the work made by the Fly Kart technical team, which has showed once again its competence in top level competitions”. |
