Title Races Heat Up at RMC Ontario Ahead of the Canadian Championships

Rotax racing is back in Ontario and the second round of the RMC Ontario championship featured a competitive group of racers vying for a coveted ticket to the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals, but also using the weekend as a great testing ground for the upcoming Canadian Karting Championships at the Hamilton Karting Complex.

Round two took place during the HRKC Constructors Cup weekend, the unofficial prep race for the Nationals and it was a packed house in Hamilton, especially in the Rotax Max categories.

On Saturday, 31 drivers lined up in Rotax Senior, 20 were in Rotax Junior and 8 were in Mini Max and the championship races heated up as RMC Ontario completed the first half of their schedule. With drivers all having one drop this season to score the most points, this meant a number of new drivers vaulted themselves into the race for an RGF ticket as well.

Rotax Senior

The intensity of the title race was amped up with a number of competitive front-runners joining the action this weekend.

One of those drivers was Quebec’s Timothe Pernod and he showed he can’t be counted out of the championship battle by sweeping Saturday’s races. He blistered off a flyer in Qualifying to take the pole position and then followed up with wins in the PreFinal and Final. It wasn’t an easy feat as Frankie Esposito, Ryan Maxwell and round one winner Ayden Ingratta all kept the pressure on, with challenging overtakes and exciting racing.

At the finish line, Pernod scored the race two victory over Maxwell and Esposito to jump right into the championship battle.

Timothe Pernod (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

On Sunday Esposito kicked off the day with the fastest time in Qualifying by it was his Prime Powerteam teammate slipping through and stealing the show in the PreFinal.

An intense final race followed with Sabourin, Maxwell, Esposito and Pernod all taking the lead throughout the 20-lap pursuit.

Carving his way to the front, Esposito was really quick in the second half of the race and after working his way by Maxwell for the race lead, never surrendered it to celebrate his first RMC Ontario win of the year. Pernod and Sabourin would complete the podium.

With double points on the line this coming weekend at the Canadian Karting Championships, the RMC Ontario race will kick it up a notch with the nation watching on.

Frankie Esposito (377) and Arnaud Sabourin (302) lead the Rotax Senior field into corner 1 (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN

Rotax Junior

Similar to round one, the Rotax Junior division was chasing Jensen Burnett again in round two.

He dominated the action Saturday and topped all three competitive sessions to build on his championship lead. Jackson Morley and Pearce Wade were his closest competitors in the Final race, with Morley closing in on the final laps, but a small mistake cost him a chance at attacking the race leader.

It was a different story on Sunday. A technical issue after winning the PreFinal meant Burnett had to start the Final from the rear of the grid. This put Wade and Cole Medeiros on the front row.

Jensen Burnett (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

Leading the opening laps was Wade with Olivier Mrak and Decklan Deonarine in tow.

Behind, all eyes were on Burnett as he was cutting his way through the field. By lap eight, he had the lead pack in his sights and picked off Ari Theodoropoulous first, followed by Medeiros, Morley and Edward Kennedy. By lap 15, Burnett was in second place and looking for a place to pass Mrak for the race lead.

The door opened in corner ten and Burnett threw his kart up the inside. Mrak didn’t see him and the two came together, ending both of their races on the spot.

Parting the seas was Wade to resume the race lead with Kennedy and Morley in hot pursuit.

On the following lap, Deonarine had a brake failure in corner four ending his race while running in fourth.

Kennedy slipped by Wade on the same lap and Morley followed him through. Two laps later, Kennedy celebrated the unexpected race win.

Morley finished P2 for the second straight day, while Medeiros crossed in P3 as the championship race got a whole lot more exciting with only two races left to go.

Edward Kennedy (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

Rotax Mini

Leo Da Silva showed that he will be a contender at the Canadian Karting Championships with a pair of victories in Mini Max over the weekend to remain unbeaten in the RMC Ontario.

Sadly, the Mini-Max’s aren’t racing for a RGF ticket this year, but that hasn’t stopped them from showing up.

Stefano Lanzillotta and Ava Cabral challenged Da Silva on both race days but the round one race winner was a force in the final laps of both races to stay in the lead and secure the victories.

On Saturday, Cabral was P2 and Lanzillotta P3 while the pair swapped the podium positions on Sunday.

Saturday Mini Max podium: Leo Da Silva (centre), Ava Cabral (left) and Stefano Lanzillotta (right)

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With double points on the line this coming weekend at the Canadian Karting Championships, the RMC Ontario race will kick it up a notch with the nation watching on.