Davide Fore was really determined to win a major international race with the Maranello Team. He arrived in Japan deeply motivated and did one of his best races. On the Suzuka circuit, which is just as prestigious as the Italian pilot’s long list of victories, he defended himself from the heavy competition to raise the KF1 World Cup trophy from the podium.
Although he had not conquered a podium at Angerville or Lonato, recent performances with his Maranello-Maxter at the European Championship and at WSK had boosted Davide Fore’s confidence. At Suzuka, he knew he could play his cards well.
He proved right and the Italian pilot was often the fastest during
free practice. Of course he had to repeat his good performances
during the qualifying round and this is exactly what he did, with a superb pole position at an average speed of over 95 km/h!
“The rest of the race was difficult”, Davide explained “because of ever changing weather conditions. On Saturday it rained during the heats, then it was dry again in the final, and I had to find new adjustments. The Maranello Team did a wonderful job and I had a fantastic kart. The synergy between the chassis and the tyres was perfect, and Maxter engines proved their reliability and speed”.
Davide also had a little mishap when Gary Catt made an imprudent manoeuvre. Catt’s behaviour will certainly be sanctioned by the race management, but Davide found himself confined to fifth position in the final starting grid.
“At Suzuka, overtaking is easy, I was not particularly concerned.
However, I had to prevent other pilots from gaining too much advantage at the lead of the race. This is why I was fast to go to the lead of the pack. I kept my speed high to leave all the other pilots behind. My pace was very good and I could keep the lead until the very end”.
Already winner of 2000 World Cup, but in Formule Super A on the Motegi circuit, Fore has triumphed at Suzuka for the first time in his career, on a track inside a complex Formula 1 circuit. Already very rich, the list of awards for this five-time World Champion is now even longer and more prestigious. “It is a very important victory for me. After 17 years with Tony, I wanted to prove that I was capable of winning a major international race with a different team. I am also very happy to have given Maranello its first world success. Together, we had already won a few races in Europe, but a World Cup, well, it’s something special. I would like to thank wholeheartedly Armando Filini, Maranello team manager, the whole team, my mechanics, KVS, my motor engine mechanic, Maxter and Maranello importer to Japan, Trenta Quattro, for their support here. I was already strongly motivated on season debut, I am even more so after this victory”. Very promising... |
