After a positive first experience in OK-Junior in the BNL Series Karting at Genk, the young Luxembourg rookie Maxime Furon-Castelain made his grand debut in the FIA ​​Junior Karting European Championship during the opening race at Angerville (FRA). At just 11 years old, Maxime proved uncompromising and effective in his first international race at a highly contested meeting.

With many successes since his debut in competition karting, Maxime Furon-Castelain achieved an excellent season in 2018 by becoming Belgian Cadet Champion. He decided to take an important step by making his debut this year in the international OK-Junior category. The test run of the opener of the BNL Karting Series went perfectly and he got to know his team VDK Racing before the start of the European Championship at Angerville. His tender age and small size differentiated him from the greatest hopes of some thirty countries, but his speed and bravery were astonishing.

Maxime tamed the Angerville course at the wheel of his Kosmic / Iame during Free Practice and was 9th fastest in his group in official Timed Practice, placing him 24th out of 81 participants. The mission was complicated in the Qualifying Heats against more experienced opponents, sometimes having competed in up to eight races since the beginning of the season. Despite the palpable pressure of this first competition, Maxime, as usual, was strong and progressed quickly, heat after heat, against his rivals.

While the fight on the track was very tough, Maxime was one of the few drivers to keep his spoiler in place and avoid any penalty, a rare ability he has developed since last year. He also managed to avoid the many accidents that punctuated the races. Able to run within two-tenths of a second of the fastest, Maxime obtained a very encouraging Final result for the rest of the season in 35th position out of 81, proving again his rapid adaptability.

"At the moment, I was not very happy with myself. I would have liked to obtain a striking result immediately," confided the young driver. "The congratulations I received from all sides helped me to understand that this first competition had ended well against so many older drivers and especially those with much more experience. I also could not prepare for the event as much by participating in the French Cup two weeks earlier on the same circuit. The most important for me is my speed and my quick progression throughout the weekend. I will continue my training programme even more motivated for future events.

Once again, I would like to thank the entire VDK Racing team for the quality of the equipment and their support during the event, with my mechanic Pierre-Frédéric Herpin, my driving coach Didier Blot and my mental coach Marie Lanners, among all those who supported me in Angerville. I am looking forward to experiencing a European competition again in less than a month with greater ambitions."