After the opening round in Spain on the Valencia track, the FIA European Championship for the OK and OK-Junior categories will stop this week on the Třinec track, in the Czech Republic, for the 2nd of the 4 scheduled appointments.
The CRG Racing Team will line up 11 drivers, 10 of which in the OK top class, where the French Jimmy Helias will also make his debut with CRG colors, while in OK Junior the team will be there with the Brazilian driver Gabriel Koenigkan. Above all, the CRG Team will get in Třinec on the strength of the performances in the Champions of the Future race, which took place here just 15 days ago, when Gabriel Gomez was the driver to beat in OK throughout the weekend. It is worth saying that at the moment the Brazilian is also the Championship leader after the 1st round in Spain.
It is a very favorable moment for the CRG technical package, with the KT2 chassis which has always proved to be very fast on all types of track and this weekend it will certainly be among the protagonists too, not only with Gomez but with all the Racing Team drivers, who were very fast in the preparation race. Obviously, there is also a lot of expectation for the debut of Jimmy Helias, who familiarized himself with the CRG chassis and the Team in a test which took place in Italy before leaving for the Czech Republic, an occasion where he immediately demonstrated that he had found the speed and the right feeling with the CRG chassis.
In OK-Junior, Klara Kowalczyk will be absent, busy with the FIA Academy, therefore the Brazilian Gabriel Koenigkan will defend the CRG colors who, after the 6th place in the Champions of the Future, is aiming for the podium this weekend.
A total of 93 drivers in the OK category and 95 in the Junior category will take part in the race in the Czech Republic. The event program will get into its heart on Friday when the Qualifying Practices and the first Heats are scheduled, which will then continue on Saturday. On Sunday the Super Heats are scheduled in the morning and the Finals in the afternoon. In the economy of the Championship, spread over 4 rounds, it will be important to score points right from the Qualifying stages and an important variable over the course of the weekend could be the weather, which is expected to be unstable for all 4 days of racing.
To follow the action on the track, Live Timing and Live Streaming will be available on the website www.fiakarting.com
CRG drivers’ expectations:
Gabriel Gomez (OK): “After the very positive weekend in Valencia and the race that took place here in Třinec 15 days ago, we are by right among the favourites. We also worked on the wet track, considering that the weather will be very changeable, but obviously, I hope that at least part of the race can be held on a dry track, in order to be able to express our full potential to the fullest. The versatility of our chassis will also help us with changing track conditions, as it adapts very well to all grip conditions, so regardless of the weather, I am sure we can score a lot of points and have a great weekend".
Jimmy Helias (OK): “I only did a shakedown in Italy with the team before this important race and I will certainly discover many mechanisms of the chassis during the weekend, but all the technicians are helping me a lot to speed up my learning and be able to be competitive. I am very happy to be part of the CRG Team which represents the history of karting and I am sure that I will be able to learn a lot from this experience, as well as obtain important sporting results".
Mattia Colnaghi (OK): “In the Champions of the Future we have done a good job of preparation and we start this weekend with a lot of expectations. I like the track a lot and the goal will be to score points in all phases of the event, without making mistakes. It is very probable that part of the weekend will take place on a wet track, but even in these conditions we have found a good balance and we can be competitive".