Following on from his 5th place in the Champions of the Future Euro Series, Matheus Morgatto put in an exceptional performance at the Val d'Argenton circuit during the second round of the FIA Karting European Championship - OK. The Brazilian driver from the Charles Leclerc Racing team made the most of the potential of his Birel ART / TM Kart in all the conditions of a weekend made particularly difficult by the changeable weather. Delighted to have reached the third step of the Final podium, he also moved up to 4th place in the Championship.
On Friday and Saturday, the weather conditions changed relentlessly, with incredible speed during practice and the Qualifying Heats. The races were sometimes made chaotic by sudden changes in grip caused by the sudden starting or stopping of rain.
"The weather was unpredictable for the first two days at Val d'Argenton," explained Jordon Lennox, Birel ART Racing's OK Team Manager. "We had learnt a lot from the preparatory race two weeks earlier, and our level of performance was very high, but the ups and downs of the racing made it difficult for more of the drivers in our team to achieve good results. We had to constantly adapt to the extremely difficult conditions as our drivers tried to avoid the pitfalls of the track. Matheus Morgatto (CL Racing Kart) was incredibly consistent in the top three throughout the meeting. Once the track was dry again on Sunday, he continued to run in the leading group and his Final 3rd place was the reward for the efforts of the whole team. Ean Eyckmans made an exceptional comeback in the heats after a disappointing Qualifying session. Regaining over 40 places in these conditions is a real achievement. It's a real shame he didn't make it all the way in the Final. Martti Ritonen put in his best performance to date and Noah Wolfe (VAR by Birel) was able to show his competitiveness in the midst of a number of setbacks. It was a bittersweet weekend: given our overall level, we could have expected more positive results.”
Val d'Argenton's strengths in OK
Matheus Morgatto - CL Racing Team 2nd in Qualifying, two wins, 2nd and 4th places in the heats, 3rd in the intermediate classification, 3rd in the Super Heat and 3rd in the Final, 4th in the Championship classification.
Ean Eyckmans: 54th in Qualifying, 11th in the intermediate classification after a 43-place recovery in the heats, twice 4th and twice 5th with a fastest lap in the race, 11th in the Super Heat, retired in the Final.
Martti Ritonen: 11th in Qualifying, twice 3rd, once 5th and a retirement in the heats, 8th in the Super Heat, 26th in the Final.
Noah Wolfe - VAR by Birel 28th in Qualifying, 4th and 6th in the heats, two retirements, 12th in the Super Heat, retirement in the Final.