Eastern Canadian Karting Championship
ECKC Championship Finale: Briggs & Stratton Classes Extremely Close
Championship weekend is upon us as this weekend the titles for the Eastern Canadian Karting Championship will be awarded at Mosport Kartways in Ontario. Drivers across all categories will be racing for victories in races five and six of the season to cap off another good year of ECKC action.
Contrary to their Rotax counterparts, the Briggs & Stratton categories have seen a number of drivers take race victories this year and heading into this weekend, all four categories are wide open with small margins between all the top drivers. There is no doubt these championship hunts will come down to Sundays Final races to see who comes out on top.
Also Read: ECKC Championship Finale: Rotax Classes Almost All Sealed Up
Briggs Junior Lite
The new guys on the block had a great turnout to start the season at Goodwood, but a smaller showing in Mont-Tremblant showed who were the championship contenders. A victory and a pair of runner-up finishes has Nicholas Christodoulou narrowly 60 points ahead of Tremblant double-winner Connor Pritiko. Nicholas Gilkes has been hanging around the leaders and has one podium to his credit and ranks third, 158 points out of the lead. Anthony Boscia is pulling double-duty this season, also competing in Mini-Max, and with his two podiums in Junior Lite, he ranks fourth with Nicholas Scarfo just behind him.
We’re expecting a large turnout of drivers at Mosport, with many simply seeking race wins that could mix up the rankings and have championship implications, including Jake Cowden who drove to an ECKC race win at Goodwood but skipped out on Tremblant.
Nicholas Christodoulou (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)
Briggs Junior
Four races, four different race winners. Briggs Junior has been a great show so far this season and heading into the championship finale, anything is possible.
Gabriel Savoie has earned an impressive three top-two finishes to hold the lead heading into Mosport, but it’s a slim 12 markers back to Jordan Prior. Savoie’s teammate William Chayer is third, 99 points out of the lead with Sunday winner Zachary Vanier fourth, 125 points out. Like his standing in Rotax Junior, Kai Dalziel is fifth in the championship with a legitimate shot at the championship podium this weekend.
With 25-30 drivers expected at Mosport, there is no doubt we will see some shuffling in the standings before the final points are tallied on Sunday afternoon.
Gabriel Savoie (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)
Briggs Senior
77 points! A minuscule 77 separates six drivers in the Briggs & Stratton Senior category.
Even more impressive, the top-three drivers do not have a race victory yet this season, which brings back flashes of Simon Belanger’s ECKC title two seasons ago. And on top of it all, the championship leader in a rookie senior.
Gavin Sanders has a pair of second-place finishes and heading into Mosport he leads the way by only one point over Marco Signoretti, who is riding a three-race streak of third place finishes. Alex Murphy didn’t find the podium until race four, but his consistent top finishes has him third overall, 14 points out of the lead, while Alex Da Silva is fourth, 41 marks back, tied with Belanger.
After taking a pair of podiums at Goodwood, Joshua Conquer had a rough go in Tremblant and ranks sixth, 77 points out, but well within striking distance.
If you are close to Mosport this weekend, grab a chair or a spot on the fence and buckle up, we’re in for a show in Briggs Senior!
Briggs Master
This may finally be the year that Corey Walsh takes home the ECKC title he’s been chasing for so many. He leads the Briggs Masters category entering this weekend, albeit by a slim margin over Eli Yanko.
Like their Briggs Senior siblings, it’s a very tight race at the top as the front four are separated by only 56 points with Scott Jefferies and Rich Folino third and fourth. Jefferies is riding momentum after a pair of second place finishes in Mont-Tremblant while his brother Rob is ranked fifth overall.
Mathieu Demers and Steve MacVoy will be seeking victory this weekend from the outside looking in after the pair were excluded from Sunday’s Final in Tremblant, all but ending their chances at the title.
We’ve seen these Masters play rough before, so who knows what is in store at Mosport.
Corey Walsh (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)
Practice for the race weekends runs Thursday and Friday with complete race days run on Saturday and Sunday.
