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RMCGF PreFinals: Nepveu Wins in Mini-Max; 9 Canadians advance to the Finals
The Rotax Max Challenge Grand Final Prefinal races are underway here in Sarno, Italy and the weather is wreaking havoc.
Rotax Micro-Max
On a dry track and running for most of the race by himself, Anthony Sardellitti advanced a few positions early then cruised en route to a sixteenth place finish, setting himself up nicely for tomorrow Final.
1. James Egozi (USA)
2. Elliot Veyron (FRA)
3. Robert De Haan (NED)
4. Diego LaRoque (USA)
5. Adrian Malheiro (ESP)
16. Anthony Sardellitti (CAN)
Rotax Mini-Max
What a drive! Thomas Nepveu found himself inside the top-five after a monstrous start from ninth on the grid. From there, he made his way to the lead, trading places inside the top-three lap after lap until the front two collided and took each other out. From there, he held, even after it began to rain on the final two laps to win the Prefinal. He will start tomorrows Grand Final from the Pole-Position!
1. Thomas Nepveu (CAN)
2. Hadrian David (FRA)
3. Luka Nurmi (FIN)
4. Mari Boya (ITA)
5. Enzo Joulie (FRA)
Thomas Nepveu (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)
Rotax Junior PreFinal A
With the drizzle wetting the track, officials delayed the start of the race for mechanics to switch to the rain tires. However during the 15 minute delay, the rain stopped and the track remained dry enough for slicks. A mad flurry in parc ferme resulted in many changing tire choices 2-3 times before entering the grid only seconds before the session went green. All but three drivers opted for slicks.
After a dry start, Ryan MacDermid ended lap one in fourth while Andres De Alba was well down the order after starting 35th.
But on lap three the rain began to fall and drivers were slipping and sliding all over the track. Heavier and heavier the rain came down as the race continued. MacDermid struggled mightily, while De Alba handled the conditions just like he did earlier this year at Mont-Tremblant.
At the finish, De Alba crossed in ninth, making it to tomorrows Final, while MacDermid limped home in twenty-fifth. His weekend is over.
1. Mathias Lund (DEN)
2. Leroy Jagesar (NED)
3. Anze Dovjak (CZE)
4. Roope Ropanen (FIN
5. Marco Settimo (ITA)
9. Andres De Alba (CAN)
25. Ryan MacDermid (CAN) **Did not transfer to the Final
Rotax Senior PreFinal A
Everyone opted for rain tires as the track was now soaked in water and the rain continued to fall heavily.
With a huge mist in the air the first Senior Max PreFinal got underway, with six drivers not making it through the parc ferme gates in time. Thankfully, none of them were Canadian as Marco Di Leo, Zachary Claman DeMelo and Coltin Mccaughan were all on the grid.
Unlike the Juniors, it was a much calmer race as the front runners realized their positions early.
Di Leo survived the first lap and maintained his position inside the top-ten while DeMelo was forced wide exiting corner four and held on for dear life through the grass, but he kept it going in the right direction. It wasn’t done there as DeMelo had karts bounce off either side on him, bending both of his side pods. But he pushed forward and eventually took home an eleventh place finish, good enough to make the main. Di Leo drove smart and finished eighth, he too will start the Final tomorrow.
Unfortunately for McCaughan, his Grand Finals ended today as he went off track and had to settled for a twenty-third place finish.
1. Denis Mavlanov (RUS)
2. Christopher Dreyspring (GER)
3. Felix Warge (BEL)
4. Jack McCarthy (GBR)
5. Lluc Ibanez (ESP)
8. Marco Di Leo (CAN)
11. Zachary Claman DeMelo (CAN)
23. Coltin McCaughan (CAN) **Did not transfer to the Final.
Rotax DD2 PreFinal A
During the first DD2 PreFinal, heavy rains came down and officials were forced to red flag the race on lap nine of fifteen. At that moment, both Tyler Kashak and Jeff Kingsley were inside the top-17.
After a lengthy rain delay and the movement of standing water on the track the race resumed with Kashak and Kingsley restarting 14th and 15th.
Kashak was forced wide on the exit of corner two and by the time he got all four wheels back on the asphalt, he was at the tail of field. Kingsley was managing his position on the bubble until three laps to go when he went off track and resumed in 22nd. He charged back to eighteenth at the finish but we will have to see if any penalties will elevate him into tomorrows Grand Final race. Kashak was scored 26th, with his week being over.
**Update: Jeff Kingsley has moved up two positions courtesy of penalties and will race in the final tomorrow!
1. Ferenc Kancsar (HUN)
2. Andreas Bachmann (SWE)
3. Constantin Schoell (AUT)
4. Kasper Bielecki (POL)
5. Martins Steigerst (LAT)
16. Jeffrey Kingsley (CAN)
26. Tyler Kashak (CAN) **Did not transfer to the Final
Rotax Junior PreFinal B
The rain has stopped but a very wet track meant the second Junior PreFinal was on the new MOJO rain tires.
Samuel Lupien drove a very smart race, running as high as third early on. Searching all over the track for grip, he did surrender two positions before settling in to fifth where he finished. He will race in tomorrows Grand Final.
On the other hand, Matthew Taskinen had a great start and was working his way forward early, running inside the top-15. However, at halfway, he had an off-track excursion and when he resumed he was outside the top-20 and ultimately he finished in 22nd and his weekend is over.
1. Johnathon Hoggard (GBR)
2. Titus-Shanghai Schmidli (SUI)
3. Mark Kimber (GBR)
4. Georg Koss (EST)
5. Samuel Lupien (CAN)
22. Matthew Taskinen (CAN) **Did not transfer to the Final
Rotax Senior PreFinal B
On a slowly drying track all of the Rotax Seniors were back out on track on rain tires.
Immediately trouble for Gianfranco Mazzaferro as he retires on lap one only five corners into the race, ending his weekend.
Kellen Ritter tried his best to hold with the pack, but he was sent off track on lap five and fell well down the running order. Unable to recover, he finished the race and his weekend in twenty-fourth.
1. Adrien Renauldin (FRA)
2. Ruben Kverkild (DEN)
3. Glenn Van Parjis (BEL)
4. Cody Gillis (AUS)
5. Rasmus Tuominen (FIN)
24. Kellen Ritter **Did not transfer to the Final
34. Gianfranco Mazzaferro **Did not transfer to the Final
Rotax DD2 Masters PreFinal B
After starting on the pole-position for this one, Scott Campbell led the majority of the PreFinal, leading by as much as two-second at one point. But as the track began to dry, Campbell came under pressure from a rival and ultimately he surrendered the position and was forced to settle for second. Displaying some great driving, Campbell is really on his game this week and he will be one to watch in tomorrows Grand Final.
1. Dennis Kroes (NED)
2. Scott Campbell (CAN)
3. Lee Mitchener (AUS)
4. Rafael Moro (ARG)
5. Michael Fiedler (AUT)
Rotax DD2 PreFinal B
Escaping a wild start, Marco Signoretti erupted in the fourth position and held it through the first half of the race. While he was pressuring for third, he was also coming under attack from behind and with the tricky conditions, Signoretti fell to seventh in the running order, where he finished. Currently, he will be the only Canadian driver in the Rotax DD2 Grand Final tomorrow.
Alessandro Bizzotto never really found his groove in the tricky PreFinal, running around towards the back and eventually finishing in twenty-fourth.
1. Josh Hart (NZL)
2. Chrstian Sorensen (DEN)
3. Pascall Marschall (GER)
4. Simas Juodvirsus (LTU)
5. Denis Slavinski (BLR)
7. Marco Signoretti (CAN)
24. Alessandro Bizzotto (CAN) **Did not transfer to the Final
