With 96 drivers entered in OK and 91 in OK-Junior in the first of five rounds of the Champions of the Future Euro Series, top 10 places in the Final were extremely hard to come by. The teams using KR chassis and IAME engines clearly worked in the right direction, as the rankings showed seven OK and six OK-Junior drivers in the top 10 of the Finals. In 2025, the aim will be to retain the OK title in this RGMMC series and to win back the OK-Junior crown. In addition, valuable information has been gathered a week before the start of the FIA Karting European Championships.
An instructive competition
After a start to the season focused on Italy, the demanding 1,580-metre Campillos circuit offered a different environment, with very pleasant weather, a dry track for four days, a fluid organisation and only two categories on the event programme. In the south of Spain, KR Motorsport and its satellite teams were able to continue developing their equipment in ideal conditions, while focusing on the progress of their drivers and maximising their potential.
OK: Craigie and Martinese on the podium
Admittedly, the victory did not go to a driver racing in the Kart Republic colours, but with five KR-IAME karts from 2nd to 7th place at the finish of the Final, the outcome of the event was extremely positive. Several heats and one of the two Super Heats were won by the KR chassis. In the decisive race, Kenzo Craigie (Prema Racing) got off to an excellent start to establish himself in 2nd place. Dries Van Langendonck (Prema Racing) and Joe Turney (KR Motorsport) battled it out for the podium for a long time, but in the end it was the very solid Iacopo Martinese (Cetilar Racing) who took 3rd place. The two Australians from the KR Motorsport team, Lewis Francis and James Anagnostiadis, completed the magnificent grouping in 6th and 7th positions. Thibaut Ramaekers (VDK Racing), who started 20th, made a remarkable improvement to finish 9th. Louis Cochet (VictoryLane Karting) set the fastest lap of the race.
OK-Junior: Another podium for Dean Hoogendoorn!
Two weeks after claiming the WSK Super Master Series title, Dean Hoogendoorn (Prema Racing) was once again one of the most successful drivers in the Kart Republic Group. The Dutchman won four heats and fought hard for 2nd place in the Final. In the chasing pack, several KR-IAME drivers livened up the proceedings. The Walz brothers (KR Motorsport) were particularly impressive, with Drew taking 5th place and Devin 8th. Will Green (KR Motorsport), a regular in the top 10 since the start of the year, climbed back up to 6th place ahead of Noah Baglin (Prema Racing). Baglin suffered a mishap in Qualifying and had to make do with 46th place. Luka Scelles (VictoryLane Karting) also made his mark in 9th place, as did Mark Pilipenko (Fusion Motorsport).
A comment from Dino Chiesa, head of KR Global Motorsport Company
“Karting is a sport in which it's difficult to win every weekend, and the Campillos event was further proof of that. The competition is tough and there are some very good drivers in its ranks. Despite this, we did an excellent job at Campillos. Kenzo Craigie in the OK class and Dean Hoogendoorn in the OK-Junior class demonstrated this by finishing on the second step of the podium. We were able to draw some interesting conclusions and we'll be analysing them to improve our performance in the FIA Karting European Championship. At the WSK, we used Vega tyres in OK-Junior and LeCont in OK. Managing Maxxis requires a different approach. Many of the KR-IAME drivers have the potential to shine and we intend to support them in the best possible way to help them achieve their goals.”