Parolin Motorsport Srl: Ups and downs in the Cremona rain
The weekend in Cremona was marked by very wet weather for the second round of the WSK Super Master Series. Rain was a feature of all phases of the competition before starting to ease on Sunday morning. The Finals provided the opportunity to use slick tyres for the first time, but grip was far from perfect and there were numerous pitfalls awaiting the competitors on the 1,210-metre track.
Most of the participants went off track and had a number of incidents, and the Parolin drivers were no exception to the rollercoaster ride. In these conditions, it was difficult to achieve any significant results. Parolin Motorsport in OK, OK-Junior and Mini, as well as the KZ2s of the Modena Kart Racing Team, nevertheless recorded some important data on rain tyres, which may prove useful later in the season. It was also a very rewarding experience for the drivers as they adapted to the tricky conditions.
Parolin Motorsport's best result at Cremona was Bruno Priam's 3rd place on the Mini podium, while Gioele Girardello finished 6th. In OK-Junior, Christian Costoya was once again excellent, starting from 5th place in Qualifying. He scored two wins and two top threes in the Qualifying Heats, but his retirement at the start of the D-E heat weighed heavily in the balance. 3rd in his Prefinal, he made up ground in the Final before being pushed back to 18th after the halfway point. Despite this, he made up six places in the last six laps to finish in 12th position, which enabled him to maintain his lead in the championship.
It wasn't easy in OK either. Delayed by two retirements, Anatoly Khavalkin made it a point of honour to climb seven places in a lively Final to finish in the top 20. After making progress throughout the Qualifying phases despite penalties, Zac Drummond got off to an excellent start and was 5th at the end of the first lap of the Final. Unfortunately, the track did not favour his set-up and he eventually retired. Jenson Graham and Vivek Kanthan were also forced to retire, but their performances were not in vain.
For the Modena Racing Team, Maksim Orlov once again proved his worth, making steady progress despite a few setbacks. After finishing 20th under the clock and 4th in the Prefinal, he made further progress to reach the final top 10. Eril Holm made a fine 15-place recovery over the weekend as a whole. Menyhert Krozser and Miguel Costa, who weren't given much of a chance, showed encouraging signs for the future.
"Cremona was a very difficult weekend for the teams and drivers," said Marco Parolin. "I'm happy for Bruno, who claimed his first international podium in Mini Gr3, even though I'm sorry we couldn't do better. Similarly in OK-Junior, it was possible to achieve a much better result, with Costoya leading throughout the weekend, but that's racing. The situation was more difficult for the OK section of our team. We were never able to find a good rhythm in the wet, despite our excellent speed in the dry during Free Practice. Congratulations to our partners Babyrace Driver Academy who took the Parolin brand to victory in Mini Gr3 with Calleja, who will soon join the official team in OK-Junior, and on the U10 podium with Kosztrewa."