Birel ART: Interesting performances in Kristianstad
Two weeks after a frustrating weekend in the Champions of the Future Euro Series, the Birel ART Racing team turned things around in Sweden at the fourth and final round of the 2024 FIA Karting European Championship. Pedro Hiltbrand made a spectacular comeback in OK in the rain, after Charles Leclerc Racing's Matheus Morgatto had scored several top-five finishes in the dry during the heats. His teammate Ludovico Mazzola was also very competitive in the dry OK-Junior class.
The weekend was divided into two very different parts, with the fine, fairly warm weather of the first two days being followed by a marked cooling and the arrival of rain on Sunday. Matheus Morgatto (CL Racing) put in a string of good results in OK, finishing 6th, twice 5th and 4th in his Qualifying Heats. He confirmed this on Sunday morning with 5th place in Super Heat A, which was restarted on rain tyres after a red flag was shown following a sudden downpour. Involved in contact at the start of the Final, the Brazilian still managed to restart and climb 15 places to 18th.
Pedro Hiltbrand proved to be very effective on a wet track on Sunday. He made up 11 places in Super Heat B before putting in a superb performance in the Final, climbing 19 places to 7th place.
Ludovico Mazzola (CL Racing) was the revelation of the weekend. Used to OKN-Junior in Italy, he put in some very good performances in OK-Junior during the Qualifying Heats, finishing 2nd and 4th. Experiencing the intensity of the competition, he started 11th in Super Heat A on a dry track but finished 18th. He qualified 26th in the Final but failed to improve in the rain.
"The team worked hard to improve its performance," said Ronni Sala, President of Birel ART, "We were competitive in both dry and wet conditions. Pedro Hiltbrand put on a real festival on Sunday, while Matheus Morgatto showed good pace in the dry heats. Ludovico Mazzola's rise to prominence in the OK-Junior class was also a great pleasure for us.”
Birel ART is preparing to return to the KZ, KZ2 and KZ2 Master categories for the second round of the European Championship at the Val Vibrata track at the end of the month, with some great opportunities up for grabs.