Senior Max Doesn’t Disappoint at Canadian Open

A spectacular lineup of over 40 drivers entered the Rotax Senior category at the Canadian Open over the weekend and they didn’t disappoint, putting on a show every time they took to the track at ICAR.

Throughout the weekend it was Timothe Pernod (PSL/BirelART) who topped the charts, earning the SuperPole on Friday and winning all three of his heat races and the PreFinal, earning him the pole position for the Final. He was joined on the front row by Gianluca Savaglio (REM/Kosmic) who was showcasing that he had the speed to challenge for victory. William Bouthillier (HMP/Kart Republic) and Olivier Bedard (Premier/OTK) lined up on row two as the 36 karts prepared for the main event with a ticket to the Rotax Grand Finals on the line.

Pernod slotted into the early lead but Savaglio attacked him immediately, moving to the lead on lap two with plenty of bumping and banging throughout the opening laps all the way down the running order.

From fifth on the grid, Oliver Hodgson (J3/CompKart), a British driver now racing with a USA license, pounced on Pernod to take second place on lap four and then set his sights on Savaglio. The three were able to build a small gap over the chasing trio of Bouthillier, Bedard and Arnaud Sabourin (BCR/BirelART).

On lap seven Hodgson made his move for the race lead and on the following lap, Pernod slid up the inside of Savaglio in the hairpin to take second place. This brought Bouthillier back into the mix and Savaglio had to defend the third spot, allowing the lead pair to get away.

Staying ahead just enough that Pernod couldn’t get into his draft, Hodgson, a former Rotax Grand Finals champion, drove like the veteran he is, making no mistakes and continually opening up the gap for the remainder of the Final and on lap twenty, he rounded the final corner to celebrate his victory and the title of Canadian Open Champion.

Pernod could only watch as his perfect weekend ended with a runner-up finish. A great scrap between Savaglio and Bouthillier ended with Savaglio snatching the final step of the podium in third place. Sabourin completed the top five just ahead of Bedard at the finish line while Ryax Maxwell (REM/Kosmic) rebounded from a DNF in the PreFinal to finish in seventh.

Ryder Hare (REM/Kosmic) drove to an impressive eighth-place finish in his rookie season of Rotax Max competition while last year’s winner Laurent Legault (Premier/OTK) finished ninth after starting the Final in 20th. Lucas Nanji (HMP/Kart Republic) completed the top ten.

It is the second year in a row that Oliver Hodgson has secured his ticket to the Rotax Grand Finals in Canada as last year he was the Max Karting Group Canada Final Rotax Senior Champion.

The focus for many of these drivers now shifts to the Canadian Karting Championships at the Hamilton Karting Complex next month. The Nationals will act as the second half of a two-race championship to award another ticket to the Rotax Grand Finals, this time reserved for a Canadian license holder.

Oliver Hodgson (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)