The British and Spanish Drivers’ Stranglehold

The international circuit of Salbris, France, was the setting of the CIK-FIA European Championship finals for the KF1 and KF2 categories.

In KF1, even before the opening of hostilities in Salbris, the title was already settled and under the belt of the Italian Marco Ardigo, with four wins in as many races before this, the third and last meeting of the European tour. The race for the Vice-Champion title was however still open and coveted by a handful of drivers. Marco Ardigo’s team-mate, the Briton Gary Catt, who has in particular won the 2007 Italian Championship, did not leave much suspense as he grasped both races of the final phase in Salbris. Not content with the top two places in the final classification of the European Championship, the Tony-Kart team also allowed itself the luxury of finishing Race 2 in Salbris with a monopoly of the podium, in the order Catt, Ardigo and Britain’s James Calado. Out of all the candidates for the honorary title of Vice-Champion, the Englishman Jason Parrott was the unluckiest of all because his engine would not start for either of the two finals. The third place in the Championship went the way of the young Dane Michael Christensen, while the youngest KF1 driver, the Anglo-Pakistani Kazeem Manzur (who races with an Italian licence), distinguished himself in Salbris with a fine third place in Race 1.

In parallel with the final of the top category of Karting, Salbris also welcomed the 72 European KF2 Championship finalists selected further to the regional qualification events held in mid July in Belgium, France and the Czech Republic. The young Brit Will Stevens lived up to the role of favourite ascribed to him by many observers. After a very successful start of season (he is Asia-Pacific Champion, Italian Champion and winner of the Western Region Qualification to this European Championship), he was way ahead of the others in the Salbris event, with successive wins in qualifying practice, in every qualifying heat he entered, as well as in the pre-final and final ! Spain’s Miquel Monras and Javier Tarancon Sallo accompanied him on the podium. Whereas KF2 (the former ICA) is often the prerogative of French drivers, it was this time dominated by British and Spanish drivers; it was also arbitrated by Nordic drivers led by the Swede Joel Johansson and the Finn Valle Miilumäki, but this did not really come to anything in the final.

CIK-FIA European KF1 Championship final classification :
1. Marco Ardigo (I) Tony Kart-Vortex-B, 120 points; 2. Gary Catt (GB) Tony Kart-Vortex-B, 100 pts; 3. Michael Christensen (DK) Gillard-Parilla-B, 58 pts; 4. Armand Convers (F) PCR-PCR-B, 53 pts; 5. James Calado (GB) Tony Kart-Vortex-B, 51 pts; 6. Jason Parrott (GB) Birel-Parilla-B, 46 pts; 7. Arnaud Kozlinski (F) CRG-TM-B, 45 pts; 8. Kazeem Manzur (I) Zanardi-Parilla-B, 44 pts; ; 9. Nikolaj Bollingtoft (DK) Kosmic-Vortex-B, 39 pts; 10. Matias Laine (FIN) Maranello-Parilla-B, 37; 11. Davide Fore (I) Maranello-Parilla-B, 37 pts; 12. Antonio Piccioni (I) FA Kart-Vortex-B, 36 pts; 13. Sauro Cesetti (I) Birel-Parilla-B, 24 pts; 14. Francesco Antonucci (I) Tony Kart-Vortex-B, 20 pts; 15. Simo Puhakka (FIN) PCR-PCR-B, 18 pts; 16. Anthony Abbasse (F) Sodi-TM-B, 16 pts; 17. Alban Varutti (F) Sodi-Parilla-B, 16 pts; 18. Nicola Nole (I) CRG-TM-B, 12 pts; 19. Jonathan Walker (GB) Gillard-Parilla-B, 10 pts; 20. Alessandro Bosca (I) FA Kart-Vortex-B, 7 pts;…
Winners : Ardigo (4), Catt (2)

CIK-FIA European KF2 Championship final classification :
1. Will Stevens (GB) Tony Kart-Vortex-D; 2. Miki Monras (E) Maranello-Parilla-D, +2’’176; 3. Javier Tarancon Sallo (E) FA Kart-Vortex-D, +4’’438; 4. Aniello Smarazzo (I) FA Kart-Vortex-D, +8’’060; 5. Joel Johansson (S) Maranello-Parilla-D, +8’’597; 6. Greg Harper (GB) Tony Kart-Vortex-D, +8’’844; 7. Michael Ryall (B) Birel-TM-D, +10’’797; 8. Clément Bluy (F) Sodi-Parilla-D, +12’’580; 9. Bruno Nascimento (P) Maranello-Parilla-D, +13’’628; 10. Mario Turchetto (I) Birel-Parilla-D, +14’’863; 11. Tomas Pivoda (CZ) Maranello-Parilla-D, +16’’050; 12. Robert Foster-Jones (GB) FA Kart-Vortex-D, +17’’648; 13. Norman Nato (F) Sodi-Parilla-D, +17’’834; 14. Félix Da Costa (P) Tony Kart-Vortex-D, +18’’246; 15. Scott Jenkins (GB) Intrepid-Parilla-D, +19’’577; 16. Julien Deschamps (F) Tony Kart-Vortex-D, +19’’797; 17. Charles Lacaze (F) Tony Kart-Vortex-D, +19’’866; 18. Christopher J. Brown (GB) Maranello-Parilla-D, +21’’051; 19. Esapekka Lappi (FIN) Maranello-Parilla-D, +21’’752; 20. Miika Kunranta (FIN) Birel-Parilla-D, +22’’238;…