#RMCGF
2022 Rotax Grand Finals Team Canada Blog – Wednesday/Thursday
Welcome to our CKN 2022 Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals Team Canada Blog!
We are trackside at the Algarve International Circuit in Portimao, Portugal where 21 Canadian drivers will compete amongst 396 Rotax racers from around the globe for eight prestigious titles.
Follow along on this page as we keep you updated on how our Team Canada drivers are doing.
Week Schedule
- Monday: Practice
- Tuesday: Practice & Qualifying
- Wednesday: Heat Races
- Thursday: More Heat Races
- Friday: Pre Finals
- Saturday: Grand Finals
A full breakdown of the schedule can be found here: https://www.rotax-kart.com/assets/uploads/RMCGF-2022/OFFICIAL-RMCGF-2022-TIME-SCHEDULE_v1.pdf
All of the competitive sessions will be live-streamed on YouTube and we will do our best to embed the video here.
A reminder, Portugal is 5 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time and 8 hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time.
Thursday – Heat Racing continues
While we were hoping for another sunny dry day here at Portimao, we ran into a bit of a fog delay this morning Prior to morning warm-up along with a brief rain shower which wet the track. Today will be the conclusion of heat racings to set the grids for tomorrow’s prefinal. There is still a lot in play for our team Canada drivers as they are all looking to advance their positions from yesterday’s heats. Unfortunately, Daniel Ali will not be taking part in the rest of the weekend, he is in good spirits ho
- 9. Jason Leung +6.094
- 16. OIivier Bedard +8.745
Leung took his second top ten finish of the heats which should give him a top ten starting spot in the Prefinal tomorrow. Bedard on the other hand showed a lot of improvement in the final heat of the day finishing in 16th.
DD2 A vs D
- 14. Matthew Taskinen +7.668
- 17. Lucas Pernod +8.506
Matthew Taskinen had a great start to his final Heat which resulted in a 14th place finish for the Alberta driver. Lucas Pernod had another solid heat moving up to 17th after as he as been on the move in every heat trying to gain as much ground to after his struggles in qualifying.
Rotax Senior A vs D
- 14. Gianluca Savaglio +4.655
- 17. Kevin Foster +7.836
Gianluca Savaglio had his best finish of the heats in his final heat moving up 8 places to finish 14th. Foster also was on the move gaining 7 places finish in 17th. Both drivers will need to have a good Prefinal tomorrow if they want to make it to the final on Saturday.
Rotax Junior B vs C
- 14. Jenson Burnett +8.192
- 17. Ryan Maxwell +8.842
- 22. Ziming Wang +10.050
Burnett had another top 15 finish in a chaotic Heat 3 where the leaders battles and some collisions in the front allowed for the mid pack to gain some spots late in the race. Maxwell finished 17th after which was an improvement from his DNF in the second heat. Ziming Wang had a tough session as he initially was running in the same pack as Burnett and Maxwell at the start, but slowly started to lose positions in the later half of the race
Mini Max B vs C
- 22. Antoine Lemieux +11.155
- 32. Edward Kennedy +13.236
Lemieux was able to put together a better race in the second heat of the day compared to this morning’s heat. Edward Kennedy’s struggles continued however as he finished out of the top 30.
Mini Max A vs D
- 15. Lucas Delongschamps +5.596
- 21. Alexis Baillargeon +7.735
Delongschamps once again had another well battled heat race finishing 15th in the last heat before the prefinals. Baillargeon finished 21st in the race an will need a strong result in the main if he wants to help his chances of making the main.
Heat 2
DD2 B vs D
- 9. Jason Leung +4.794
- 15. Lucas Pernod +10.344
- 21. Matthew Taskinen +13.182
- 28. Olivier Bedard +15.980
Leung continues to show good pace in the DD2 category consistently battling in the top 10 in the heat races. Lucas Pernod has been charging forwards in the heats this time gaining 11 spots to finish 15th in class. Matthew Taskinen was running well until he had a brief off track excursion which dropped him down to 21st. Oliver Bedard had a great start running in the top 15 until contact midway through the heat sent him down to 28th.
DD2 Masters
- 27. 522 Jared Freeston +13.517
- 32. 525 Alexandre Gauthier +32.296
Rotax Senior B vs D
- 13. Adam Ali +7.082
- 28. Kevin Foster +15.282
- 33. Gianluca Savaglio DNF
Adam Ali had a great run in Heat 2 moving from 21st on the grid to finish 12th. Luck wasn’t on the side of the Canadian’s Kevin Foster and Gianluca Savaglio as they both were involved in separate racing incidents which dropped Foster down to 28th while Savaglio was forced to retire late in the race after making a decent recovery after his bad start.
Rotax Junior B vs D
- 12. Jenson Burnett +7.199
- 35. Ryan Maxwell DNF
It was a pretty good heat for Jenson Burnett, making up 5 positions from his starting spot to finish 12th in his second heat of the day. Ryan Maxwell however was involved in a late race accident which put him out of the race after he was running just outside the top 20 in the class. Both drivers will have one more heat later this afternoon as Maxwell will want to rebound to boost his chances of making the final on Saturday.
Rotax Junior A vs C
- 21. Ziming Wang +12.257
Zimming Wang dropped a 3 positions in heat A vs C from his 18th place starting spot.
Mini Max B vs D
- 10. Lucas Delongschamps +5.679
- 28. Alexis Baillargeon +13.623
- 30. Edward Kennedy +14.195
- 34. Antoine Lemieux +24.542
Lucas Delongschamps was on the move in heat 2 as he made it into the top ten from 22nd on the starting grid. The other Canadians in the heat however struggled with pace finishing lower in the running order. It will be important for Baillargeon, Kennedy, and Lemieux to have a good heat 3 later on this afternoon in to help their chances of making it to the final on Saturday.
Micro Max
- 23. Brando Londono +18.790
- 30. James Bedard +25.807
Running on slick tires it was a tough session for both of our Canadian drivers in Micro Max. After a great start Londono and Bedard both moved up the order to 13th and 15th by the half way point of the race. However both were caught out on the wet side of the track while battling with other drivers as the fell down the order in the later stages of the race.
E20 Senior
- 3. Griffin Dowler +5.648
A great rebound drive for Griffin Dowler as he came back from an early off track excursion to finish third in his sole heat for the day. This result should put Dowler closer to the front of the field for tomorrow’s Prefinal.
E20 Junior
- 13. Aixin Chi +17.884
Wednesday – More qualifying and finally, some racing!
The sun has welcomed us to the track for the first time this week, but the track is still very wet from last night’s rain, meaning more practice sessions on a constantly changing track.
The remaining classes are set to Qualify this morning and this afternoon, every category has a heat race.
Lots on tap for Team Canada today.
Heat 1
DD2 C vs D
- 13. Lucas Pernod +6.307
- 25. Matthew Taskinen +8.138
DD2 A vs B
- 11. Jason Leung +6.006
- 25. Olivier Bedard +14.313
- 36. Daniel Ali DNF
Daniel Ali was involved in a lap three accident which brought out the red flag as he was in need of medical attention.
Rotax Senior C vs D
- 18. Gianluca Savaglio +8.777
- 29. Kevin Foster +9.020
Rotax Senior A vs B
- 21. Adam Ali +8.208
Rotax Junior C vs D
- 35. Ziming Wang +25.218
Rotax Junior A vs B
- 13. Ryan Maxwell +9.909
- 16. Jenson Burnett +10.429
DD2 Masters
- 21. Jared Freeston +14.973
- 30. Alexandre Gauthier +28.061
Mini Max C vs D
- 15. Lucas Deslongschamps +6.497
- 19. Alexis Baillargeon +6.856
Mini Max A vs B
- 18. Antoine Lemieux +13.789
- 28. Edward Kennedy +15.306
Micro Max
- 18. James Bedard +10.861
- 34. Brando Londono DNF
E20 Senior
- 5. Griffin Dowler +1.913
E20 Junior
- 6. Aixin Chi +4.714
Qualifying
DD2 – Even
- 1. Mark Kimber (GBR) – 58.627
- 9. Jason Leung – 59.016
- 18. Matthew Taskinen – 59.271
- 21. Olivier Bedard – 59.331
- 26. Lucas Pernod – 59.387
- 29. Daniel Ali – 59.440
Matthew Taskinen has been finding his rhythm during the weekend and was the second fastest driver on track for Team Canada.
“I think I made some mistakes during the qualifying session. For sure losing the draft dropped my starting position but it for sure could have been a lot worse. As long as I continue to improve each session and keep my nose clean I think my goal is still very much reachable for the weekend.” – Matthew Taskinen
Rotax Senior – Even
- 1. Sean Butcher (GBR) – 59.976
- 21. Adam Ali – 1:00.903
- 22. Gianluca Savaglio – 1:00.916
- 24. Kevin Foster – 1:01.010
The Rotax Senior drivers had quite the session in the even group as the entire group held out to the last couple minutes of the session to enter the track. With all the chaos of karts blending and trying to position themselves on track majority of the drivers, including Canada’s Kevin Foster, weren’t able to put in a lap time they were capable of doing.
“We just tried to play into the qualifying games, and were the ones thatgot on the wrong side of it. Very frustrating to be starting where we are, given the pace we showed in previous practices and today’s warm-up” – Kevin Foster
Rotax Junior – Even
- 1. Tommie Van Der Strujis (BEL) – 1:00.553
- 17. Jensen Burnett – 1:01.057
- 21. Ryan Maxwell – 1:01.146
Rotax Junior – Odd
- 1. Vinnie Phillips (GBR) – 1:00.437
- 19. Ziming Wang – 1:01.085
Warm-up
DD2 Masters
- Jared Freeston – No Time
- Alexandre – Gauthier – No Time
Mini Max
- 10. Lucas Deslongschamps – 1:05.171
- 14. Alexis Bailargeon – 1:05.188
- 28. Edward Kennedy – 1:05.792
- 30. Antoine Lemieux – 1:06.225
Micro Max
- 13. Brando Londono – 1:09.698
- 24. James – Bedard – 1:10.086
E20 Senior
- 1. Griffin Dowler – 1:02.097
E20 Junior
- 12. Aixin Chi
DD2 – Even
- 6. Lucas Pernod – 1:00.182
- 12. Jason Leung – 1:00.293
- 24. Olivier Bedard – 1:00.664
- 27. Matthew Taskinen – 1:00.706
- 36. Daniel Ali – 1:01.137
Rotax Senior – Even
- 6. Kevin Foster – 1:06.838
- 10. Gianluca Savaglio – 1:06.988
- 30. Adam Ali – 1:08.771
Rotax Junior – Even
- 15. Jenson Burnett – 1:18.478
- 30. Ryan Maxwell – 1:20.303
Rotax Junior – Odd
- 25. Ziming Wang – 1.21.250
Tuesday Afternoon Notes
Of course, the mist and rain returned for the Qualifying sessions. Only four of the categories qualified on Tuesday afternoon, while the rest get to Qualify on Wednesday morning.
Some unfortunate luck for our drivers in the tough conditions. Alexandre Gauthier had a flat left front tire, stopping him from posting any type of fast lap. Edward Kennedy was stuck in limp mode with his choke on, meaning he too didn’t get a smooth lap.
Below is where each of our drivers faired in their respective groups, with the final classification still to be confirmed.
Qualifying:
DD2 Masters
- 1. Paul Louveau (FRA) – 1:12.567
- 30. Jared Freeston – 1:14.948
- 35. Alexandre Gauthier – 1:16.458
Mini Max – Even
- 1. Harry Bartle (GBR) – 1:18.262
- 23. Lucas Deslongschamps – 1:20.061
- 25. Alexis Bailargeon – 1:20.120
- 28. Antoine Lemieux – 1:20.349
- 36. Edward Kennedy – 1:23.954
Micro Max
- 1. Daniel Minto (GBR) – 1:08.587
- 20. Brando Londono – 1:09.244
- 24. James Bedard – 1:09.483
E20 Senior
- 1. Jesper Sjoeberg (SWE) – 59.810
- 3. Griffin Dowler – 1:00.098
After his third-place result in the qualifying session, Griffin Dowler had a lot to say about the E20 program on his second weekend in the kart.
“The Rotax E20 is a phenomenal program from Rotax. The best way I could explain it to others is that it is a mix between a Rotax Senior Max and a Rotax DD2. The smooth torque curve of the Senior Max parried with the speed of the DD2 and it has front brakes to boot. Additionally, a game changer that really sets the E20 package apart is the boost button. This Boost button adds an entirely new element to karting. My qualifying session was quite tricky from a mechanics standpoint. the weather was quite unpredictable, with a slight mist of rain beginning at the start of the session I knew I had to go.” – Griffin Dowler
E20 Junior
- 1. Joel Bergstroem (SWE) – 1:01.421
- 8. Aixin Chi – 1:01.860
Practice 5 Results
Afternoon sessions have begun here in Portimao as drivers are looking to find that last bit of extra pace in the final practice sessions prior to qualifying. Let’s see how part of Team Canada makes out later today in qualifying as they look to set themselves up for success in the heat races.
DD2 – Even
- 5. Lucas Pernod – 59.116
- 12. Jason Leung – 59.222
- 17. Matthew Taskinen – 59.278
- 19. Daniel Ali – 59.321
- 25. Olivier Bedard – 59.402
Rotax Senior – Even
- 11. Kevin Foster – 1:03.907
- 23. Adam Ali – 1:08.146
- 28. Gianluca Savaglio – 1:12.166
Rotax Junior – Even
- 25. Ryan Maxwell – 1:04.189
- 31. Jensen Burnett – 1:04.655
The Junior class had different conditions in both of their practice sessions today. Jensen Burnett had mentioned how he felt about the day and what he was looking for going into Qualifying tomorrow.
“The first practice went well as I was continuing to learn the track. In the second session there were some mixed conditions but I think we still need to find some more grip. For qualifying, I need to be smart and find a good draft since it’s pretty important at this track.” – Jensen Burnett
Rotax Junior – Odd
- 16. Ziming Wang – 1:02.601
DD2 Masters
- 23. Jared Freeston – 59.708
- 35. Alexandre Gauthier – 1:00.545
Mini Max – Even
- 11. Antoine Lemieux – 1:05.324
- 15. Alexis Baillargeon – 1:05.406
- 22. Lucas Deslongschamps – 1:05.648
- 25. Edward Kennedy – 1:05.735
Micro Max
- 17. Brando Landono – 1:09.826
- 22. James Bedard – 1:10.033
James Bedard has been learning the track throughout the sessions and has an idea of what will be important for him to put in a fast time later this afternoon in qualifying.
“We were running in the top ten for parts of the last few practice sessions. It’s important to be in the draft in this track especially in Micro Max. I am hoping to have a drafting partnews in qualifying in order to start the heats closer to the front of the field.” – James Bedard
E20 Senior
- 4. Griffin Dowler – 1:00.105
E20 Junior
- 10. Aixin Chi – 1:02.353
Tuesday Morning Notes
This morning we finally have some blue skies above Kartodromo Portimao. The remainder of Free Practice 3 is on tap along with FP4 and FP5 for all classes. In addition, we will have some Qualifying today as E20, Micro Max, Mini Max and DD2 Masters will hit the track at the end of the day to set their best times and officially kick off the event.
There is still a threat of rain in the area throughout the day so we can potentially have another mixed bag of track conditions for the drivers to face.
Practice 4 Results
DD2 – Even
- 9. Jason Leung – 59.303
- 13. Lucas Pernod – 59.370
- 14. Olivier Bedard – 59.411
- 28. Matthew Taskinen – 59.729
- 30. Daniel Ali – 59.769
DD2 Masters
- 22. Jared Freestone – 59.657
- 35. Alexandre Gauthier – 1:00.533
Rotax Senior – Even
- 18. Gianluca Savaglio – 1:00.753
- 27. Kevin Foster – 1:01.067
- 32. Adam Ali – 1:01.157
Rotax Junior – Even
- 5. Jenson Burnett – 1:01.113
- 21. Ryan Maxwell – 1:01.466
Rotax Junior – Odd
- 12. Ziming Wang – 1:01.562
Mini Max – Even
- 14. Alexis Baillargeon – 1:05.417
- 20. Antoine Lemieux – 1:05.557
- 24. Lucas Deslongschamps – 1:05.742
- 33. Edward Kennedy – 1:06.286
Micro Max
- 8. Brando Londono – 1:09.631
- 20. James Bedard – 1:10.284
E20 Senior
- 1. Griffin Dowler – 1:00.344
E20 Junior
- 7. Aixin Chi – 1:02.855
Practice 3 Results
DD2 – Even
- 10. Lucas Pernod – 59.717
- 15. Olivier Bedard – 59.939
- 22. Daniel Ali – 1:00.084
- 29. Jason Leung – 1:00.456
- 31. Matthew Taskinen – 1:00.505
DD2 Masters
- 25. Jared Freeston – 1:03.057
- 31. Alex Gauthier – 1:04.649
Jared Freeston had quite a busy session on track as he dealt with a drying track this morning after the rain yesterday.
“First session was hairy. Half wet/ half dry conditions made things tricky. Guys driving slow and sliding off track made it hard to get a clean lap in. hopefully the weather holds up the rest of the day and we can get some good sessions in.” – Jared Freeston
Rotax Senior – Even
- 11. Kevin Foster – 1:04.320
- 12. Gianluca Savaglio – 1:04.326
- 13. Adam Ali – 1:04.334
Monday Afternoon Notes
With the track drying up in the morning, the afternoon sessions are the first time most competitors were able to see some dry running at the Portimao circuit. The forecast is still calling for spots of rain during the afternoon so there is still potential for more wet on-track action for the tail end of today’s on-track activities.
Practice 3 Results
Rotax Junior – Even
- 11. Ryan Maxwell – 1:16.152
- 21. Jenson Burnett – 1:17.121
Rotax Junior – Odd
- 10 Ziming Wang – 1:16.818
Mini Max – Even
- 13. Alexis Baillargeon – 1:21.018
- 22. Edward Kennedy – 1:21.844
- 25. Antoine Lemieux – 1:21.892
- 30. Lucas Deslongschamps – 1:22.363
The Mini Drivers faced a very unpredictable day today so we got Lucas Deslongchamps’s reflection on his thoughts of the day.
“Hopefully we get some good luck. The weather is very difficult because 1 minute it’s dry and the other it’s wet. We can’t do anything about it but keep trying our best” – Lucas Deslongschamps
Micro Max
- 4. Brando Londono – 1:10.919
- 33. James Bedard – 1:14.393
E20 Senior
- 4. Griffin Dowler – 1:01.342
E20 Junior
- 7. Aixin Chi – 1:02.214
Practice 2 Results
DD2 – Even
- 3. Jason Leung – 59.331
- 18. Lucas Pernod – 59.897
- 20. Olivier Bedard – 59.914
- 23. Matthew Taskinen – 59.996
- 24. Daniel Ali – 1:00.028
We spoke to Jason Leung after his session to see how he felt after the first day of practice concluded for the DD2 category.
“A good way to start the week here in Portugal. Overall today went well despite the tricky conditions. this is my second time in DD2 and the chassis felt pretty balanced. The field is really competitive, with many big names, so I will continue to work hard to make my way forward.” – Jason Leung
DD2 Masters
- 31. Jared Freeston – 1:00.522
- 34. Alexandre Gauthier – 1:01.306
Rotax Senior – Even
- 15. Gianluca Savaglio – 1:10.687
- 17. Adam Ali – 1:11.175
- 19. Kevin Foster – 1:11.660
We approached Gianluca Savaglio for a quick quote regarding his first day on track and here is what he had to say.
“I feel like today went pretty well. I think we have good pace in the wet and the dry. I’m feeling pretty confident going into this weekend especially because everyone is on the same kart. Hopefully, we have some good luck the rest of the week” – Gianluca Savaglio
Rotax Junior – Even
- 11. Jenson Burnett – 1:01.384
- 14. Ryan Maxwell – 1:01.416
Rotax Junior – Odd
- 23. Ziming Wang – 1:01.976
Mini Max – Even
- 25. Lucas Deslongschamps – 1:05.688
- 26. Antoine Lemieux – 1:05.700
- 29. Alexis Baillargeon – 1:05.942
- 33. Edward Kennedy – 1:06.523
Micro Max
- 5. Brando Londono – 1:09.460
- 27. James Bedard – 1:10.792
E20 Senior
- 3. Griffin Dowler – 1:01.285
E20 Junior
- 12. Aixin Chi – 1:02.926
Monday Morning Notes
It’s a wet start to the day here at the track as the E20 electric karts take to the track first on rain tires. The weather forecast for the week is very mixed and from our experiences here in the past, rain clouds can pop up at any given moment. Overcast is forecasted for the day, so it may be a challenging first day of on-track activity.
Partway through the morning sessions, the officials declared open tire selection for giving the competitors the choice of using rain or slick tires. DD2 Masters and DD2 had quite a few drives in those sessions electing to move to the dry tires
Practice 1 results
DD2 – Even
- 10. Jason Leung – 59.403
- 13. Matthew Taskinen – 59.503
- 20. Lucas Pernod – 59.734
- 22. Olivier Bedard – 59.771
- 30. Daniel Ali – 1:00.382
DD2 Masters
- 31. Jared Freeston – 1:00.522
- 34. Alexandre Gauthier – 1:01.508
Rotax Senior – Even
- 6. Gianluca Savaglio – 1:00.880
- 17. Kevin Foster – 1:01.452
- 18. Adam Ali – 1:01.551
Rotax Junior – Even
- 15. Jensen Burnett – 1:15.071
- 35. Ryan Maxwell – No time
Rotax Junior – Odd
- 12. Ziming Wang – 1:16.083
Mini Max – Even
- 9. Alexis Baillargeon – 1:21.329
- 19. Antoine Lemieux – 1:22.493
- 34. Lucas Deslongchamps – No Time
- 35. Edward Kennedy – No Time
Micro Max
- 25. James Bedard – 1:26.269
- 26. Brando Londono – 1:26.397
E20 Senior
- 18. Griffin Dowler – No time
E20 Junior
- 10. Aixin Chi – 1:17.626
