After many days of testing this week in Homestead, Florida, it was finally race day for the 2014 Florida Winter Tour. Friday’s qualifying sessions set the grids for todays pre finals, setting up for a great day of action at Homestead-Miami Speedway under sunny skies and warm temperatures.
There is a massive amount of potential in this weekends Rotax Junior class, as many new faces have joined the grid after moving up from Mini-Max, while talented juniors in the sophomore season are making things interesting as well.
Converting his pole-position from qualifying into an early lead helped Canadian Gianfranco Mazzaferro (Ferrolati Corse/TonyKart) secure the pole-position for the Final as he went unchallenged through the morning heat race. Brazilian Pedro Cardoso (PSL/CRG) worked his way up from fourth to finish second with Augusto Soto-Schirripa (Birel) third, Columbian Christian Munoz (TonyKart) fourth and Luis Forteza (J3/Kosmic) fifth.
Mazzaferro got a great start in the Final to score an early lead with Schirripa sliding into second and Cardoso back to third. Cardoso fired back to take second before the first lap was complete, with Mexican Javier Gonzalez (Benik/TonyKart) slotting into third.
The front two were able to pull away from Gonzalez and all the mayhem through the field with Cardoso making a move to the lead at the halfway mark, catching Mazzaferro a bit off guard. But the Canadian regained his composure and tracked down Cardoso, ultimately retaking the position in corner two with five to go. Cardoso returned the favour the next
time by as the two duked it out as the laps counted down. Cardoso led
as the last lap flag was displayed, but Mazzaferro waited only until corner four to make his move for the lead. Cardoso tried everything in the remaining corners but it just wasn’t enough and Mazzaferro scored a stunning victory.
Gonzalez was alone in third for a majority of the race, earning himself a podium finish, while Shirripa settled for fourth and Mauricio Baiz (Kosmic) completing the top-five.
Cedrik Lupien (SH Racing/FA Kart) enjoyed a great day, winning the Last Chance Race, then driving forward to finish twelfth in the final. Roman DeAngelis (Koene/TonyKart) ended up fourteenth with Clay Van Eerd two spots back after starting at the rear.
