Solid Outing For Latifi At ECKC Finale
press release
Nicholas Latifi of Toronto, Ontario, a member of the Sofina Foods Driver Development program, returned to the Mont Tremblant Karting Circuit for the final round of Eastern Canadian Karting Championship Rmax racing action. Latifi also took in a round of the Quebec Championship, which was run on the Saturday. Latifi continues a solid first season of DD2 racing as he has already sits on Team Canada by way of his Gatorz Challenge of the Americas DD2 class title in March. The weekend started out a bit challenging, but once the crew figured out the setup Latifi was able to race hard and challenge for the podium.
Above: Nicholas Latifi took third in the overall ECKC Rotax DD2 championship
pic - Cody Schindel, Autosports Media Group
On Saturday Latifi struggled to get the kart dialed in on time for qualifying. In Saturday's qualifying for the Quebec Championship, Latifi ended up ninth, which was a disappointment for the team. In the prefinal Latifi moved up to fifth in the first few turns and then was hit by another kart one turn later. This dropped Latifi to the back of the field so he would start last for the final. In the final the DD2 rookie made it through all the accidents at the start but lost the lead pack due to the fact he had to make his way through traffic. An excellent run saw the 2011 Team Canada member finish in eighth place.
"Overall it was a pretty good weekend of racing. Nicholas loves this track and we really wanted to make sure we are strong for when we return to the Nationals," comments David Tennyson, driving coach for Latifi. "The Saturday race was tough, but Nicholas rebounded nicely on Sunday. His race craft is improving each time we hit the track."
On Sunday, for the ECKC final round, it was another average qualifying session to put Latifi seventh on the grid for the all-important prefinal race. In the prefinal Latifi had an amazing start and made it into third spot in the first three turns and ended up finishing with that position. In the final, the 16-year-old driver took the lead in the first turn only to be passed back a couple of laps later. Latifi then battled hard for three laps swapping spots looking for a podium spot. In the closing stages, Latifi tried to pass through turn one on the outside but could not make it stick and touched with the lead kart. Latifi went wide, two wheels off in the dirt, and lost three positions as he regained the track. Latifi rejoined in fifth and remained there until the end of the race.
"This weekend was filled with many mixed emotions for my team and I. In a costly move in trying to pass for the second position around the outside, I went off and lost some positions," comments Latifi. "Overall, I'm really happy with third in the championship seeing as it is my rookie year in the DD2 class. I have to thank my mechanics Jean-Francois and Coy, my coach David, and my parents for all their hard work and support."