Two races into the 2022 race calendar and Rocco Simone has already found the podium twice in his sophomore season of international competition.
The youngster has been a busy racer to start the year, first competing in the World Karting Association Daytona Kartweek at the famous Daytona International Speedway and then this past weekend at the SKUSA Winter Series opener at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
In Daytona between Christmas and New Years Eve, Simone was lights out in the Micro Swift division. In a field of 32 drivers, Simone won the PreFinal and led the majority of laps in the Final, along with posting the fastest lap of the race, to score the victory on a circuit inside the 2.5-mile NASCAR Superspeedway.
He would also finish P7 in the Briggs Cadet Final, moving up seven spots from where he started.
Making some noise in Daytona captured the attention of the Parolin USA team and a deal was struck to put Rocco in a Parolin Kart for the opening round of the SKUSA Winter Series this past weekend.
Once again competing in the Micro Swift division, Simone was quick to adapt to the new chassis and happy with its handling of the fast Homestead circuit.
A solid weekend of competition saw Simone score his first podium in SKUSA competition with a second-place result behind his Parolin teammate on Sunday. He nearly had two podium results, but a 3-second penalty for blocking on Saturday knocked him from third at the finish line to fourth in the results.
With two great efforts and a handful of points, Simone will be a championship contender when the series returns to Homestead in February for the second and final round of the Winter Series.
Next up, Simone will stay in Florida for the opening round of the Rok Cup USA Florida Winter Tour, which will set up a temporary circuit at the Isle Casino in Pompano Beach.
