The 2nd Round of the WSK Euro Series which took place in Sarno has ended with a podium in KZ for Paavo Tonteri and a positive top ten in OK-Junior for Nikolas Roos. Beyond the sporting results, the weekend was very important for the work carried out, in OK Junior and OK in particular, to prepare for the FIA World Championship, scheduled for September on the same track.
In OK Junior CRG lined up 8 drivers to prepare for this important meeting and the data collected are really comforting. In addition to Nikolas Roos, who has always been among the best since the qualifying stages and penalized only by a contact in one of the Qualifying Heats, also the Brazilian Enzo Nienkotter, in his first race in Europe, performed very well, obtaining the 7th time in Qualifying Practice and then competing in excellent ways in the Heats. Unfortunately on Sunday morning in the Pre-Final, he was involved in an accident, which also affected his performance in the Final. Scott Lindblom also confirmed to be fast, but two retirements in the Heats prevented him from fighting with the best in the Final. In OK, as Gabriel Gomez and Olin Galli were not there but will return to Europe to prepare for the FIA World Championship at the end of August, Simone Bianco and Filippo Fiorentino got on the track. Both at times confirmed the excellent potential of the CRG technical package, even if they failed to qualify for the Final, due to some accidents in the Qualifying Heats. So even if on one hand, the CRG drivers had little luck in the direct drive classes, the two KZ drivers Paavo Tonteri and rookie Arthur Carbonnel did very well in the race. The Finn, after a technical problem that slowed him down in Qualifying, has always been among the fastest until reaching P3 on the starting grid of the Final and then obtaining an excellent podium with 2nd place. The weekend for Carbonnel was also growing. After testing various set-up possibilities in the Heats, he was also fighting for the podium in the Final, but an engine problem forced him to retire. Finally, the three CRG Mini drivers did not have much luck, missing the qualification for the Final.
Now there will be a short 2-week break for the team and then they will get back to work to prepare for the two most important events of the season: the FIA World Championship KZ scheduled in France on September 5th and the FIA World Championship OK and OK-Junior, which will take place in Sarno on September 18th.
Drivers’ post-race reactions
Paavo Tonteri (KZ): “I am very happy with the speed we have had all weekend because it gives us a lot of confidence on the eve of the World Cup. We have worked a lot on the balance of the chassis and we are very satisfied with the performance we have had in all track conditions. We have also tested some new engines with Galiffa and TM and also in this case we have had good feedback. In the Final, I had the chance to attack several times to try to win this race, but I would have had to take risks that were not necessary for our goals this weekend, but obviously, if it were the World Cup Final everything would have been different".
Arthur Carbonnel (KZ): “Despite my retirement in the Final, due to a technical engine problem, my balance for this first weekend with the CRG works team remains very positive. We found the performance gradually, working in the Qualifying Heats on the setup, but also on my adaptation to this chassis. The objectives of the work we had to do have all been achieved and now I can concentrate with great confidence on the World Cup which will take place at Le Mans, a track I know well and where I am sure we will be able to do very well”.
Nikolas Roos (OK Junior): “For the team, the goal this weekend was to do some comparative tests in race conditions ahead of the FIA World Championship in September and we were able to complete the job, gathering a lot of useful information. We have also worked a lot on tire management which we believe will be a very important issue in September in the World Championship. As far as I'm concerned, I have also worked a lot on driving, to find the best possible feeling with the track and from this point of view, I'm quite satisfied too. Unfortunately, I lost a Heat on Saturday in the Qualifying phases and on Sunday in the Final I started only from P10, compromising my chances of fighting for the podium, however, finishing in the top ten with all the best drivers on the track is a positive result".