2017 CIK-FIA Best-Of – Ronnie Quintarelli: an ambassador for karting in the land of the rising sun

A 38-year-old Italian Driver, Ronnie Quintarelli became a professional in Japan thanks to the results he obtained at the highest level in karting at the turn of the millennium. Always passionate about the discipline that taught him everything he knows, he could not resist the proposal from Birel ART and TM Racing to participate in the CIK-FIA World KZ Championship in September 2017 at Wackersdorf.

First of all, Ronnie, why do we have the pleasure of seeing you at Wackersdorf?

– My passion for karting has always remained intact and I seized the opportunity to participate in the World Championship. At the beginning of the year, I had the opportunity to do a few laps on the new track at Lonato in a KZ2. I was enthusiastic, and with Franco Drudi of TM Racing and Ronni Sala of Birel ART I found two supporters to arrange my participation in the World Championship. This project gave me extra motivation throughout the season in Japan, because I always had this meeting in mind in September at Wackersdorf.

What assessment do you make of this Competition?

– It was a very nice experience! The KZ are really fast, the chassis have evolved a lot in 15 years and the engine is much more usable than the Formula C of my time. The feeling of speed is an even greater sensation than at the wheel of my Nissan Super GT which develops 500 hp. Braking is even later than in cars. The current level of competition is extremely tight in KZ and it was difficult for me to play a leading role. I’m happy to have been able to gain eight places in the Final, but I still remained in the middle of the pack.

Going back to the past, how did you become a professional driver in Japan?

– It was karting that opened the doors of a car career. After my very good performances in the 2002 World Championship, Pierre-Henri Raphanel invited me to come and try F3 in Japan at the end of the season and that’s how it all started. I had many successes in single-seaters and then in the Super GT Championship which I won four times for Nissan.

Karting has remained present in your career. Why is that?

– I have always been convinced that practicing this discipline would give me an advantage in car racing. I even trained with a group of about ten Super GT Drivers. We prepare together every Monday before a race. We have our own equipment equipped with KF4 engines. The Driver who won Super GT in 2013 thanked me for these karting practice sessions, recognising that it had helped him a lot.

In Japan, as elsewhere, young people are moving towards cars very early. I think that’s not a good thing. Motorsports teams and major manufacturers do not realise how much karting is essential for Driver training. I do everything I can to open their eyes to this discipline which they do not know enough about.

CIK-FIA Best of 2017 / © Photo KSP