August was a good break from racing but not from karting.....It was full of lots of testing days at some of the UK's most demanding circuits......Whilton Mill, Larkhall and Crieff in Scotland......just to keep me fired up during the summer racing down period.......but now it was time to get back into race mode for the World Champs in Kristianstad, Sweden.
Kritianstad was a really difficult circuit to setup the kart for but eventually we found it in the final heat and starting in 18th position I managed to make it to 12th in the 2nd lap until I was taken out and ended up in 6th position in the second chance heat. I knew I had the speed and wanted to save my tires for the semis & final so I made just one pass in lap 5 to 5th position and stayed there to the end putting in the 2nd fastest lap of the heat (4/100ths sec slower than fastest time). Starting the semifinal in 33rd position is never easy but I knew I had to make up as many places as posssible for the final grid and the kart seemed fast enough so I just went for it and managed to gain 14 places. The final was much more difficult, starting in the middle of a field of the most capable drivers in the world its hard to make up too many places because everyone is trying to do the same thing. Neverless I managed to make up 4 more places and finish 15th while putting in the 6th fastest time in lap 18, saving those tires earlier was a good choice. Thanks again to BKC Racing, Robb Dodds & Stanislav Kavarimov for making it all possible.......a good result from a much more mature drive. Congratulations to Callum for winning the event......enjoy Bahrain and good luck at the OK Junior World Champs
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what can I say....a repeat of Portimao......if this is the only way you know how to win then.......enjoy it.....it will have very little value for you.
This race really looked as if it was going to go well, my driving was good, we found the kart setup really quickly, I was putting in top 10 times all weekend, the weather was hot, track conditions were what I was used to from Greece. I finished the 3rd heat in 9th position and started the prefinal looking for a good grid position for the final. Then disaster........the Korean driver used me as his brakes on a hairpin bend and took flight over the engine, breaking my sparkplug on his way, a few bends later the engine just stopped. I guess this is just part of racing, of course I was upset but I was more upset when I saw Stan (my mechanic) had broken down and was crying as I was dropped off by the retrieval vehicle. This is an emotional game, there is a lot of effort, work and stress on everyone, whether you're in the driving seat or up in the grandstand and sometimes it's unfair and sometimes the emotions just flow out of even the toughest of men....it's just the way it is but it's good to know you have real people who really care on your team......this is a real school........We'll be back Stan the man.
What an excellent result.........so I hear everyone saying "what's he talking about." 13th, the middle of the field, big deal.....so what. Look again, this race was dominated by the Brits who spend half their life training on this extremely technical circuit. The top 15 places only had 2 non Brits, so to finish 2nd foreign driver on this grid, at this circuit is a great achievement, what an amazing experience, many battles on the track and perfect driving is required.
Thanks to BKC Racing, Robb Dodds & Stan Kavarimov for all their hard work to achieve this. There was also an added bonus, Alison who is Andy's wife from Armadillo Merino came along to support me in person and I could really hear her cheering me on over the noise of the engines in the final, Thanks Alison. ....................On to Portimao tomorrow Today was my final exam at school for this year, yeah. It has been a really difficult few weeks but I think it all went well. After putting my pen down, it was a rush to the airport to catch the plane for London and on to PFi for the IAME X30 European Open. Of course testing has been since the start of this week but with my exams to finish, I'll just have to get straight into racing mode. The next few weeks will be really busy for racing, first off, PFi, England then off to Portimao, Portugal on Tuesday for the 2nd stage of the CIK Fia Academy Trophy and back to Greece the following Monday to Kalamata for the 3rd stage of the Greek Championship, 3 weeks of pure racing, amazing.
Not really what I would call my best weekend of racing in Castelletto, not everything went wrong but anything that could, did. We had good pace generally just 0.2 secs off the lead all weekend keeping us in the top 10 but many instances of contact during the heats, the difference between using the new CIK FIA front bumper system and not. Everyone in the centre of the field goes wild when there is no fear of a penalty for loading another driver. This transition year of some organisers using the bumper and others not, makes it really confusing for everyone. Had a scary moment on the apex of full speed K1, seeing my teammate Sam McDonnell spun sideways (after an incident with CRG driver) in front of me, no where to go, couldn't change lines....BANG.....sorry Sam. Saturday started with a trip to the local hospital, had a temperature of 39o that wasn't going away so got a check up and some antibiotics, Alex Ferris followed soon after, GWS Alex. Doesn't help the racing any when you're not 100%. The good news is 12th in the final wasn't that bad after everything else and starting at the back in semis. Really enjoyed track walk with Jordan Lennox Lamb and the track talk with Karting Magazine UK, thanks guys. Thanks also to BKC Racing, Rob Dodds, Stanislav Kavarimov for trying to straighten the banana, keep me on the track, better luck next time. Easter holidays in England and how fortunate, there just happens to be one of the best (and most difficult) circuits in Europe not too far away. PF International, near Grantham, the home of British karting. I'll have to make the most of the days testing because it is really technical and just a little mistake on each corner can be the difference between a good or really bad lap time. Luckily Alex Ferris will be there with me, keeping me right, pushing me on so it should all be good. Thanks BKC Racing, Robb Dodds and Alex Ferris for setting this up for me and supporting me on the day.
The best 51 drivers from all over the world in the junior category and I was 20th, not bad at all considering there was sun, rain, wind and lots of clouds (you dont worry about the weather with Armadillo Merino) Congratulations to my teamate, Callum Bradshaw for winning, thanks to BKC Racing, Rob Dodds, Alex Ferris & Sam Buchanan for all their hard work and effort to get this place.
What an amazing honour, OMAE, the Greek Motorsports Association has just selected me to represent Greece again this year at the CIK FIA World Academy Trophy. I'll be the first driver to represent Greece 2 years in a row. Thanks guys, I'll do my best to make you proud. Wow, can't believe it.
My first International race this year was tough, really big names from all over the world all fighting for a spot. I had some bad luck and some good luck as it always is. You can watch all the action from the semi final and final on youtube, the videos are posted below. The team did an excellent job setting up the kart, Thanks Mr Kostas Michalopoulos and Athens Kart Shop for all your hard work and for pushing me to new limits. Thanks also go to Mr Kostas Pantos, my family, especially my Sis for all the pics and my Greek team mates. By the way Armadillo Merino really does make you go faster and it's really comfortable...................... SEMIFINAL - I'm No. 32 in the white helmet FINAL - I'm No. 32 in the white helmet |
AuthorWelcome to my blog, I'll keep it up to date with all the latest news about the races I'm competing in and give special mentions to the whole team of people who, behind the scenes, are making my dream come true. Archives
May 2016
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