In the most competitive category of karting, bringing together the world's greatest hopefuls destined to move on to single-seater racing, Jimmy Hélias was one of the best performing drivers throughout the 2024 FIA Karting European Championship in OK. At the wheel of his VictoryLane KR-IAME, the 15-year-old Frenchman frequently battled for the podium, while continuing to work with his partners to build a promising sporting future.
Top four in Slovakia
In 2024, Jimmy Helias took on a new challenge by joining Nicolas Martins' VictoryLane team.
"The first contact I had with the whole team won me over immediately," said Jimmy. "The French team was created just a few years ago and had already decided to enter the FIA Karting Championships this season. We share the same values: determination, hard work and ambition. As I suspected, the performance was there from the very first races of the year, and we've only gone from strength to strength.”
At the Champions of the Future Euro Series in Slovakia in June, a preparatory event for the European Championship, Jimmy Helias impressed everyone by being the first to take the chequered flag in the Final race after starting in 9th position. Admittedly, his front fairing had moved, resulting in a penalty that pushed him back to 5th position, but the talent of the driver from Évreux had once again shone through. Motivated by the idea of proving that this was not just an isolated performance, he confirmed this two weeks later at the same Slovak Karting Center with a faultless performance in Round 3 of the European Championship for OK. P5 in Timed Practice and winner of two Qualifying Heats, he climbed from 6th to 4th place in the Final.
"I wasn't far behind the 3rd-placed driver, but he defended his position so well that it was really risky to try and overtake him.”
In any case, this magnificent 4th position showed that Jimmy was indeed one of the fastest drivers, while at the same time having matured!
Pole position and an all-time record in Sweden
The FIA Karting European Championship for OK came to a close in south-east Sweden on the Åsum Ring at Kristianstad. After another impressive performance in the warm-up race, with a regular presence at the front of the field, he struck a blow two weeks later in Timed Practice: pole position and an all-time circuit record! In the sunshine, he followed up with an ideal run in the heats leading up to the Final: two 1st places and three 2nd places. Unfortunately, an incident in the rainy Final deprived him of a probable podium place, as Jimmy recounts.
"I got off to a good start and was ideally placed in the leading group to fight for the top three. But on the first lap, a driver confused speed with haste and tried to overtake several drivers in the same corner. I had to go off the track to avoid him and I only came out of it in around 20th place. It's true that I came back 14th, but it's not really the result I was hoping for, because I had the speed to win."
Jimmy finished a convincing 9th in the final standings of the European Championship, knowing that he has the potential to aim for the prestigious and coveted title of World Champion. The season's showpiece event takes place from 12th to 15th September in England.
"As I prepare for the World Championship, I'd like to thank all my supporters. First of all, the VictoryLane team, its team manager Nicolas Martins and technical manager Aurélien Fath, with whom I successfully embarked on the fantastic adventure of OK in FIA Karting in 2024. Our joint development efforts have paid off. Thanks to Dino Chiesa of the Italian factory Kart Republic for the trust he placed in me and his fantastic KR chassis. To IAME and their supersonic engines. To my engine builder KVS for all his hard work and dedication.”
Jimmy Helias hasn't forgotten one of the key pieces in the jigsaw either: Julien Abelli from Simumotion.
"We've been working together for around eight years now and he's helped me to become a complete driver, with specific physical, mental and driving preparation, with the help of the simulator. My sincere thanks go to Samira, Nicolas and Guillaume. We are actively working on both the present and the future, so that I can achieve the goals I have set myself in motorsport."
"A big thank you to my partners who believe in me, Greco-Genève, Sportavie and You'Me, not forgetting a special nod to the Ocon family, who have been following, pushing and supporting me since I started in Mini-Kart!"