CRFKC Briggs Senior – What Surprises Are In Store in 2018?

Since the inception of the Champion Ron Fellows Karting Challenge, Briggs & Stratton Senior has been, without a doubt, the most popular and most competitive class on the grid.

Over twelve races in three seasons, eight different drivers have topped the podium, while last year Marco Di Leo successfully defended his championship crown without winning a race. In fact, vice-champion Joshua Conquer didn’t with a race either. Consistency is key in the CRFKC, especially in Briggs & Stratton action and with grids exceeding 40 drivers at times, mistakes and DNFs are a heavy punishment to a championship chase.

All three seasons of the CRFKC have featured a combined 54 or 55 different drivers making at least one Briggs Senior start. No other class in Canada can match that. In 2018, we’re expecting no different, especially when it comes down to the CRFKC Summerfest at Mosport as well as the addition of an event in Hamilton.

So let’s look back at the previous three CRFKC seasons and how they broke down.

2015: Treadwell vs Edgar and what could have been for Signoretti

2015 was a spectacular year for Jon Treadwell as he was Canadian Champion and CRFKC Champion with K&K Kart (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

2015 featured a pretty epic battle between Jon Treadwell and Kyle Edgar. The two were on the podium in the first three events, with two wins going to Treadwell that gave him a leg up heading into the championship finale, under the lights at Goodwood. Both drivers would miss the podium in round four, and even though Edgar edged out Treadwell by a few positions, it wasn’t enough to overtake him in the final standings.

Making only two starts in the series, Marco Signoretti was a wildcard that probably should have raced the whole championship. He went two for two in his starts and finished fourth overall in the standings with half as many starts as the rest.

Third overall went to Christopher Proietto, while Ryan Mohan rounded out the top-five.

Race Winners: Treadwell, Signoretti, Treadwell, Signoretti

2016: Four Races, Four Race Winners

Marco Di Leo (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

Marco Di Leo kicked off the season with a win at his home track Goodwood, as he focused on Briggs at CRFKC and Rotax at ECKC. He would maintain the championship lead all the way to the end as four different drivers topped the podium throughout the season. Signoretti decided to race the entire championship this time and although he didn’t win a race, his consistent podium appearances earned him the vice-championship.

A spectacular campaign as a rookie by Tyler McCullough, featured a race win and third overall in the standings while Alex Da Silva and Nicholas Hornbostel were fourth and fifth overall.

Race Winners: Di Leo, Da Silva, McCullough, Rennie

2017: Di Leo Defends Title Without Winning a Race

How big will the grids be in 2018? (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

As the competition becomes closer, so did the championship hunt. The total number of points needed to win fell for a second straight year. Di Leo once again used the CRFKC to focus on Briggs racing and was rewarded for his consistency as he was able to defend the title without winning a race.

For the second year in a row, a Rookie Senior was on the championship podium as Joshua Conquer earned the vice-championship, remarkable as he had only one podium result.

Taylor Gates saw his championship hopes disappear in round three as he was unable to finish the race and scored a big zero. Even with two race wins to his credit, he was only able to finish third overall. Pearce Herder wound up fourth while Signoretti finished in the top-five for the third straight season. Signoretti also added a race win during the campaign to lead all Briggs Senior drivers with three CRFKC victories.

Race Winners: Gates, Signoretti, Herder, Gates. 

So what is in store for 2018? Honestly, we have no idea.

So here are a couple questions we will ask now and answer in September.

• Can Di Leo Make it Three in a Row?
• Will Signoretti finally win the championship?
• Can Treadwell return to the top?
• How many drivers will enter a CRFKC race this year? Our guess is 61
• Finally, who will sneakily use consistency best to place themselves on the championship podium?

Race one hits the track this Sunday at Goodwood Kartways. We will see you there!