Maxim Rehm (DKM), Jens Treur (DJKM), Jorrit Pex (DSKM) and Christiaan de Kleijn (DSKC) are the champions of the predicates in the German Kart Championship. In the Prokart Raceland, 103 drivers started the last races of the anniversary season and once again fought hot duels.
For the finale of the 2022 season, the drivers and teams of the German Kart Championship went to the Upper Palatinate. The 1,197-meter-long Prokart Raceland in Wackersdorf was the scene of races nine and ten. After the last bright sunshine, the weather god had some surprises in store this time. Especially on Saturday, partial rain caused alternating conditions.
The final was carried out by the team of the ACV Automobil-Club Verkehr e.V., which, like the DKM, is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year and invited to a small closing ceremony in the paddock on Saturday evening. DKM series coordinator Stefan Wagner was very satisfied with the conclusion and is already looking forward to the coming season: "We have experienced a great conclusion here in Wackersdorf. For the final races on Sunday, the sun came out, it could not have been better. The entire DKM team would like to thank all participants and teams for their trust in our championship. We continue to work on bringing about change and hope to put together a good package again in 2023."
In the individual championships, all decisions were still open before the final, and the races were eagerly awaited. In the end, there were several new race winners with Kiano Blum (DKM), Rodrigo Seabra, Simon Rechenmacher (both DJKM), Jorrit Pex, Stan Pex (both DSKM) as well as Linus Hensen and Jannik Julius-Bernhart (both DSKC). Maxim Rehm (DKM), Jens Treur (DJKM), Jorrit Pex (DSKM) and Christiaan de Kleijn (DSKC) won the championship trophy.
DKM: Perfect weekend for Kiano Blum – title goes to Maxim Rehm
Austrian driver Kiano Blum (TB Racing Team) experienced a tailor-made weekend. Already with pole position in qualifying, he underlined his ambitions and was unstoppable in the further course. After the heats, he also continued to lead the standings and secured a double victory in the end. "Today was an incredible day. I gave it my all, unfortunately it was not enough to win the championship, but we can still be very satisfied," said the Austrian driver in the final winner's interview.
Behind the TB pilot, on the other hand, there were thrilling duels. In the first final, the field of pursuers was closely related. Kevin Lantinga (Falcon Racing Team) took on the chasing role, but a spoiler penalty threw him into sixth place. The new runner-up was Maxim Rehm (Rehm Racing) who fought his way past Luca Griggs (Falcon Racing Team) in the middle of the race and secured second place. Behind the duo, Lenny Ried (Lanari Racing Team) and Valdemar Aggerholm (RS-Competition) complete the top five.
In the second round, Rehm followed in second place over long distances, but did not manage to attack. On the other hand, Ried took his chance shortly before the end of the race and passed his compatriot in second place. This secured him third place in the overall standings. Rehm, on the other hand, was the overall winner which nobody could take from him. He therefore beamed accordingly satisfied in the championship interview: "It was a great year, we won four races and after the narrowly missed junior title last year, we now won the championship. A big thank you to the whole team, everyone did a great job." The other cup ranks in the race were taken by Griggs and Aggerholm.
Championship final score class DKM:
1. Maxim Rehm (238 points)
2. Kiano Blum (218 points)
3. Lenny Ried (148 points)
4. Kevin Lantinga (144 points)
5. Lars van Vark (127 points)
DJKM: New winners and close championship decision
With Jens Treur (Falcon Racing Team) and Tom Kalender (TB Racing Team), two juniors still had a clear chance of winning the title and were also among the main protagonists in the races. On Saturday, Kalender had a firm grip on events and led the standings after pole position and two preliminary victories.
For the finals, however, the second protagonist turned the events around. Although Kalender won the start, Treur fought for the lead a little later and drove to victory. But it should not stop there. Treur and runner-up Simon Rechenmacher (TB Racing Team) fell back to fourth and fifth place due to a spoiler penalty. The new winner was the Portuguese rookie Rodrigo Seabra (Lanari Racing Team) ahead of Jindrich Pesl and Kalender. Kalender also received a time penalty but appealed against it and postponed the decision to the green table.
For Treur, the final race of the year began with a setback. The Dutch driver was involved in a starting accident and retired. At the top, however, Rechenmacher prevailed and celebrated his first victory in the German Junior Kart Championship. In his slipstream, Viktor Brandt Smith (Diamond Racing Team) was ahead of Phil-Colin Strenge (Rehm Racing). Kalender crossed the finish line in fourth place, but a five-second penalty threw him back to ninth place. With that he also lost the championship, which left Treur accordingly surprised: "I am very happy to win the title. When you see the list of former champions, it is an honor to be one of them. A big thank you to my mechanic Ribert and my team for their support. Also, thanks to Kalsbeek College, who give me the freedom to practice this sport." Jason Bralic (Falcon Racing Team) and Christian Jørgensen (RS-Competition) completed the cup ranks in the race.
Championship final standings class DJKM:
1. Jens Treur (214 points)
2. Tom Kalender (211 points)
3. Simon Rechenmacher (165 points)
4. Tobias Bille Clausen (160 points)
5. Rodrigo Seabra (138 points)
DSKM: Eighth title for Jorrit Pex – winners take turns
Guest driver David Liwinski (Haak Motorsport) provided a first surprise of the weekend with pole position. In the course of the heats, Stan Pex (SP Motorsport) fought his way to the front. For the first final, however, he turned the tide. Pex turned his starting position and lost his lead. Liwinski led the race until shortly before the end of the race, then Jorrit Pex (SP Motorsport) found a way past and drove to victory. In addition to him, his brother Stan Pex and Thomas Imbourg (CPB Sport) also passed Liwinski. Behind the Pole, Marek Skrivan (SUMAKO IPK racing) crossed the finish line in fifth place. After Pex's victory, the championship decision was also made, his direct opponent Kris Haanen (SP Motorsport) retired after a collision shortly before the end of the race. "We competed to win the championship. After half-time I already had good points and am very happy about my eighth title. The whole team around my brother Stan did a great job. Next year we will attack again," Pex celebrated the historic success.
There was a new ranking in the second round. This time Stan Pex drove ahead, in the further course Liwinski moved up again, but there was no final maneuver. In the award for third place, Skrivan secured the last place on the podium. David Trefilov (Maranello SRP Factory Team) showed a great catch-up – after missing Saturday, the driver from Berlin fought his way up to fourth place. Local hero Valentino Fritsch (BIREL ART RACING KSW) completed the top five.
Championship final score class DSKM:
1. Jorrit Pex (223 points)
2. Kris Haanen (169 points)
3. David Trefilov (163 points)
4. Thomas Imbourg (161 points)
5. Daniel Stell (155 points)
DSKC: Hensen and Julius-Bernhart win – De Kleijn wins the title
Championship leader Ben Dörr (Dörr Motorsport) was unable to take part in the finale in Wackersdorf due to a schedule overlap with the ADAC GT4 Germany and thus cleared the way for Christiaan de Kleijn (CRG Holland). The Dutch driver knew about his chance and did not risk too much in the races. With a fourth and second place, he scored enough points and was highly satisfied on Sunday evening: "I feel very good and am super happy. It is my first year in the shifterkart, I did not expect to immediately win the title – tonight we are celebrating."
Nevertheless, there was tension in the scoring races. Linus Hensen (Kartschmie.de) gave the German kart manufacturer Mach1-Kart another victory in the highest German kart championship after a long dry spell. Already after the heats he was at the top of the 43-strong field and was unstoppable in the first round. From the start, he drove away from his pursuers and celebrated a clear victory. Behind him, however, there were some duels. Dominik Reuters (AP-Racing) defended his second place given by his pursuers Jannik Julius-Bernhart (Maranello SRP Factory Team), de Kleijn and André Matisic (Solgat Motorsport).
With a perfect start, Julius-Bernhart laid the foundation for his second victory of the season in the second race. In the beginning, the Maranello pilot pulled away, but lost ground again in the further course and had to fend off the attacks of de Kleijn at the end. After 21 laps, however, the victory could not be taken away from him. Behind the duo, there were still some postponements after the race due to several time penalties. Claudia Henning (Kartxxl Racing Team) thus made it onto the winner's podium. Matisic was ranked fourth ahead of Tim Gerhards (CPB Sport).
Championship final score class DSKC:
1. Christiaan De Kleijn (175 points)
2. Ben Dörr (145 points)
3. Jannik Julius-Bernhart (138 points)
4. Tim Gerhards (116 points)
5. Karl Lukaschewsky (108 points)
A big focus this season was also on the team classification. With a prize money of 50,000 €, it was important to score points with ones drivers. In the end, the TB Racing Team defended its success from 2021 and won the team classification for the fifth time overall. Second place went to the Falcon Racing Team ahead of SP Motorsport.
Premiere of the E-Kart Race a complete success
For the first time, the E-Kart Race took place as part of the supporting program. 13 drivers competed with uniform Project E20 electric karts by the manufacturer BRP-Rotax and fought close duels in three categories. In total, the participants completed four races, which were added together at the end. The overall victories went to Christopher Holst (Junior), Julien Koch (Senior) and Tobias Follert (Masters).
With the conclusion of the 2022 season, the organizers of the DKM are already looking forward to the following year. The race calendar is largely coordinated and again includes five race weekends, with Belgium and Italy, two stops abroad are planned.
All information about the race weekend can be found in the DMSB portal: https://www.dmsb-sport.de/Int_ACV_Kartrennen_Wackersdorf_DKM_12851/