Close Finishes In Rotax Euro Challenge Finale
press release
The fourth and final edition of the 2011 Rotax Max Euro Challenge saw the crowning of the new champions with an exciting weekend’s racing at the famous Gabriel Thirouin circuit at Angerville in France on September 5 to 11, in what was already anticipated to be nothing short of a showdown to remember.
In the eight year lifespan of the international series, the Euro Challenge has become increasingly competitive and undoubtedly regarded as some of the closest high level, professional karting where teams or individuals have the chance to race against many of the best drivers in their class. The deciding round this year proved once again that the race for the title is not always over until the final chequered flag. Three of the five classes went down to the wire in the last race and the changing weather from bright sunshine to pouring rain overnight had a clear impact on the results. 2011 will go down in the history of the event as being yet another memorable conclusion to a brilliant season.
Above: Special arrangement for the driver presentation in France
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
Ben Cooper takes victory by 1 point to secure the European Senior Max title
Former World and European Rotax champ Ben Cooper (Birel/Kalman Motorsport) took the honours in France for a second time in the series to seal the 2011 title and overcome the fierce challenge of current world number 4, Kasper Jensen (Kosmic/PB Kart Race) of Denmark, also a double-round winner and in the running for the championship. Going into the 18-lap final, the pair knew that it was the sudden-death decider where each was extremely competent in the slippery, wet conditions. The dual was on from the lights, with the Brit starting on pole, having also been quickest in the pre-final, while Jensen was off P2. The lead changed several times in the opening lap and the Dane set the best time, but was unable to break through Cooper’s sheer determination in the end.
In Friday’s qualifying, less than a second covered 57 karts, almost the entire Max field. Edward Brand (Tonykart/Strawberry Racing) claimed his third pole position (51.159) for 2011, contributing to his title fight where he needed to win both finals. Brand had been runner-up in the European series in Junior and Senior Max respectively the two years prior so he was hoping to go one step higher on the podium. During Saturday’s qualifying heats, he took 2 wins and a 2nd, losing out to Sean Babington for pre-final pole, who secured all three of his races. Andy King won the remaining heat, making his Euro Challenge debut at round 4 as Brand’s new team-mate.
Above: Start of the Senior MAX final, Ben Cooper leads form pole
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
After some very close heat racing on a grippy track, Sunday’s finals were run in the wet and notably favoured some more than others. Starting from row 3, Cooper assumed the early lead, followed by Shaun Slavin off P9, then Babington and his local team-mate Antoine Barthon. Within a few laps, Kasper Jensen had come through from outside the top 10 to challenge Babington for 2nd; taking it on lap 9. An incredible drive by the newly crowned Rotax Max French champ Alexandre Finkelstein recovering from an incident in the opening heat to qualify via the second chance race Sunday, saw him take 4th ahead of Barthon and fellow Frenchman Jules Cousin 6th.
Cooper’s prime start position didn’t mean he had it easy when it came to the afternoon final, but only qualifying 9th in the dry he now had the ideal conditions to stay in front. The rain was clearing, although the track was extremely slippery and Jensen was pushing hard for the victory. They diced for the lead over and over in the initial lap, but it was Cooper who succeeded even as the laps wound down and the Danish champ cut 3-tenths a lap off his lead. Babington’s dominance in the dry was not evident in the final, yet he maintained 3rd place which gave the 19-year old 5th in the overall points. Poland’s Karol Dabski was almost one second off pace-setter Jensen, so he drove well to climb from P12 to 4th and finish 6th in the points, fending off a French assault by Thomas Benisri and Finkelstein in a fantastic three-way battle for much of the race. Finkelstein lost his 5th classification in the race after receiving a start penalty that left him 10th.
Able to be in the first three overall, Brand had also been penalised 10 seconds in the pre-final, but managed to rise back to 6th following some first corner havoc where he fell to around 20th. He crossed the line one spot ahead of Mats van den Brand, who ranked 3rd overall in 2010, just as he did coming into the last round in Angerville. The difference between them ended up being only 2 points for P3 in the series. Competitive Euro drivers Michael Cool and Jiri Forman took 8th and 9th positions for the weekend. The top 10 for the 2011 championship was completed by world number 3 Ferenc Kancsár in 7th, Charlie Eastwood, Ross Wylie and Antoine Barthon. However, it was a totally elated Ben Cooper who took the chequered flag to realise his dream to be European Max champion in 2011.
Ben Cooper – “It still doesn’t seem real as yet that I’ve won the Euro championship today! The weekend was quite stressful because there were so many different scenarios for Kasper Jensen and Ed Brand to take the win so it added a lot of pressure for me. Even within the team, especially for Peter Kalman; they’ve put in so much effort this year with the support of Ronnie Sala at Birel. I’m also happy for Nigel Horner at HRS Engines for winning another European title. I want to thank my parents as well for all their support and my dad for his help as my mechanic for the first two rounds of the series. It’s been good to be back and as always, RGMMC does a great job in organising the Euro Challenge event.”
1. Ben Cooper (GBR - Birel/Kalman Motorsport)
2. Kasper Jensen (DEN - Kosmic/PB Kart Race)
3. Sean Babington (GBR - Alonso/Dan Holland Racing)
* full round and championship results HERE
Above: All podium place-getters from round 4 in Angerville including the overall champions for 2011
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
Max Masters win goes to Christophe Adams while title winner Mikko Laine misses finals
Defending Rotax Max Masters titleholder Christophe Adams (Tonykart/Sport Karting Competition) overcame the challenge of breaking a chain in the pre-final while winning, to fight back to take 1st place at the round 4 event. The Belgian consequently finished as runner-up in the Rotax Euro Challenge, 9 points behind the new 2011 class champion Mikko Laine (Formula K/Formula K Belgium), who unfortunately became unwell Saturday with a stomach virus and was unable to complete the weekend’s racing. Luckily, the driver from Finland had secured the series win after successfully taking victory in both finals at the previous round in Denmark.
After taking pole in official timed practice Friday, Laine (52.747) won the first qualifying heat, but withdrew from the following two races to which Adams responded by taking both wins. The results together with his P2 in the opening heat gave him pole position for Sunday’s pre-final, although he admitted during the afternoon press conference that he was disappointed not to have his closest rival on the grid for the season finale. Russia’s Georgii Efrossinin beat Jan Vos to the front row in the rankings and lined-up alongside Adams, while Jean-Louis Capluik also had a 2nd and 3rd place to start on grid 4.
Above: MAX Masters round 4 podium
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
In the pre-final, the lead changed five times in lap 1 between Adams and Efrossinin as Capluik went to rear of field after spinning off into the gravel. It was Adams who held P1 until disaster struck for the pole-sitter with less than three laps remaining, hitting the Angerville curbs once too often ending his pre-final glory. He handed the win to Efrossinin, from Maxim Shaposhnikov and Vos 5th.
Efrossinin came under attack early in the final from Capluik snatching P1. It was Adams through from down the order that gave the leader some of his own back to push for the lead. Efrossinin made the most of Capluik’s misfortune and pulled a clear gap over the German driver, setting the best time of the race as the only one to break the 1.12 minute mark. Efrossinin was unable to reach Adams with a difference of more than a second when the chequered flag came out. P3 went to Capluik, taking the last step of the podium behind Adams for the championship. Vos finished 4th and 6 points behind Capluik overall, while Shaposhnikov was 5th ahead of Jos Sleegers, who ranked 6th in the 2011 series.
Mikko Laine – “After winning the title at the third round in Denmark, it was really unbelievable! It was a perfect result for me and my partners; my team Formula K Belgium and Ogden Motorsport. I’ve tried since 2008 to achieve my dream to compete at the Rotax Grand Finals and now it’s come true. In the first heat Saturday, I was suffering with a fever and dehydration from a virus, so it was as shame I couldn’t not race after being on pole here at round 4 win. Thanks go to all my supporters and friends.”
Christophe Adams – “It’s very good to win the round here in France, but we didn’t really have the competition today that I had hoped seeing that the champion Mikko Laine became ill Saturday. I’m happy for Mikko now that he’s feeling better and congratulate him for winning the series. I didn’t do quite as well as I had wanted this year being the defending champion, but I have enjoyed the racing. In the pre-final today I broke a chain after hitting a curb, but came back for the win in the final. Thanks to Remy my mechanic, Sport Karting Competition who support me with all the material and Supertune.”
1. Christophe Adams (BEL - Tonykart/Sport Karting Competition)
2. Georgii Efrossinin (RUS - Sodikart/SRT)
3. Jean-Louis Capliuk (GER - Praga/JLC Racing Team)
* full round and championship results HERE
World’s best in Junior Max, Sasahara and Van Moorsel, share the accolades at the round 4 event
Japan’s Ukyo Sasahara (Kosmic/Paul Carr Racing) knew he couldn’t be beaten to the title after his clean sweep of every pre-final and final in the three rounds before Angerville. The 2009 Junior Max world number 1 has been on a mission to bring renewed hope to his nation since the tsunami tragedy this year, dedicating his success to the Japanese people. When it came to Sunday, his team made the decision that it was best for the 15-year old to sit the racing out in the wet conditions, to avoid any penalty that could hamper the chances of him being crowned the new Euro champion.
This gave any of the remaining 41 drivers in the class even more opportunity to claim the round 4 victory without having to face the dominance of Sasahara. It was the more recent world top-ranked Junior Jordi van Moorsel (Tonykart/Strawberry Racing) who ended his Euro campaign with an outstanding drive to take the win. Fellow Dutch driver, Dave Blom (Formula K/Formula K Holland) out-paced the winner-to-be in Friday’s official timed practice with a 52.235, with Sasahara setting the third best time of the second junior session. Also in the running to take a top 3 place in the overall standings, Sasahara’s team-mate Philip Morin was quickest in the first group qualifying, which left him 4th in the combined rankings ahead of another Swedish driver William Sward.
Above: Esmeijer leads Sasahara, Jnr MAX
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
The order of the first four remained the same following Saturday’s qualifying heats, with Blom and Van Moorsel both taking two wins and a 2nd place to be on equal points, as were Sasahara and Morin behind them with one win each. Janneau Esmeijer and Nathan Harrison were also top 3 finishers in P5 and 6. The pre-final start saw Van Moorsel off the first row into the gravel on turn 1 and Esmeijer steal Blom’s lead. By lap 4, Rotax Winter Cup winner Finn Kooijman from grid 13 challenged for P1 with Morin following through to be 2nd. Esmeijer in 3rd led the 4-kart Team TKP train across the line; Guust Specken and Jesse Lazare who started mid-field, then race pace-man Lars Lamborelle.
Kooijman’s hopes ended for a final win in the initial lap when the pole-sitter dropped a chain, while Morin was a victim of first corner action and re-joined ROF. His series rival, Nathan Harrison, also surrendered positions at the start on the incredibly slippery track. Morin was quickest and passed him before the end of the 14-laps, but the British driver held a six-point buffer that let him take the vice-champion’s trophy. It was Van Moorsel from the 8th row appearing in front a few laps from the start, claiming a comfortable win of 12+ seconds over Pepijn Steeman. Jesse Lazare had his best Euro result to make the podium for the first time after overtaking another Canadian Alex Guenette. While running 3rd from P17 in the early stages, Kaan Onder spun out in the fight for positions to eventually end up 5th ahead of Gavin Jonk and Dave Blom, who lost 4th overall by 1 point. In 8th was Morin, then Sward and Henrique Baptista P10. Harrison was 11th to secure his place as runner-up to Sasahara. Together with Morin, they’ll compete at the Rotax Grand Finals in the UAE in November.
Ukyo Sasahara – “It feels very good to win the 2011 Euro Challenge title! Thanks to Paul Carr, my mechanic Oliver, all my sponsors including EIKO and Nismo, as well as my parents for supporting me. I believe that to win in Europe has been very good for my future racing career. Compared to last year, I have been able to improve my driving skills and become more confident as I have really learnt a lot from racing at the Rotax Euro Challenge. Now, I want to win another Junior Max world title in November.”
Jordi van Moorsel – “It was a good weekend for me and I was able to stay up amongst the top 5 in the racing. I was bumped out at the beginning of the pre-final, but came back from 32 to 15th. The track was really different to Saturday too because there was a lot of dirt on the circuit from the rain. The start of the final was good and I got into the lead. Thank you to my sponsors, my dad, my family and the team.”
1. Jordi van Moorsel (NED - Tonykart/Strawberry Racing)
2. Pepijn Steeman (NED - Gillard/DFK Racing Team)
3. Jesse Lazare (CAN - Intrepid/TKP-Chapman Racing)
* full round and championship results HERE
Above: Junior podium for round 4
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
Simas Juodvirsis unbeatable at Angerville to claim the ROTAX DD2 championship win
As was the case at the previous round in Denmark and the opening round in Belgium, it was yet another ‘finals domination’ by Simas Juodvirsis (Gillard/RKV Racing by DFK) showing his skill on track in the wet, slippery conditions to walk away with the round 4 win and the championship title. The Lithuanian driver had a 13-point lead coming into the French event, although he needed a good final result to make up for a DNF at round 2 in Germany if he was to secure the Euro Challenge victory.
Less than a second covered the entire DD2 class in the official timed practice. Damien Vuillaume (CRG/Freekart) was the fastest with 50.212 to be 0.020 seconds quicker than second round winner Mathias Detige (Gillard/DFK Racing) with his team mate Simas Juodvirsis setting the 3rd best lap. The former French champion was hoping to take the win at his most local edition of the Euro Challenge, having not raced at the Gabriel Thirouin circuit in the 2-speed gearbox class before, saying he was happy to be on pole and driving smooth was the key. One of Estonia’s best youngsters 15-year old Tristan Viidas ranked 4th ahead of Jules Szymkowiak, who still had a chance at the DD2 title.
Above: Pole position qualifier in Rotax DD2, Damien Vuillaume (FRA)
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
Following the three riveting qualifying heats Saturday, it was Vuillaume who sat on pole for Sunday’s pre-final after three well-deserved wins while the remaining grids were based on some very mixed results from the close racing. Detige shared the front row while Lucas Orrock and Juodvirsis filled row 2, with Viidas and seasoned Euro Challenge front-runner Tiago Ribeiro ranked P5 and 6. A changing weather pattern changed a lot for the pole-sitter, who struggled to hold his lead when the rain began to fall for the first of the finals, making a wish come true for Juodvirsis who took P1 and stretched the gap to almost 15 seconds. A fantastic battle for 2nd developed between Szymkowiak and Nicholas Latifi, seeing the Canadian lose ground until Detige and Szymkowiak also haggled for P2 on lap 10, where it was Detige being shown the driving standards flag who won the position, which allowed Orrock to take 3rd in a close finish to Latifi, then the Dutchman Szymkowiak 5th.
The start of the final was intense, with Juodvirsis keeping his lead from Orrock while the action unfolded behind him. Szymkowiak grabbed P3 and was under pressure from Viidas before Latifi joined in, seeing the pair lose some positions after running offline. It was then Detige looking to take 3rd, giving the leaders breathing space ahead of another incredible race for places within the top 10. 2010 European Rotax DD2 champion Andreas Jensen was the only one to come close to the times of Juodvirsis in the pre-final, so it was not surprising to see him running 5th from start grid 20 and gaining on Detige in P4 as the rain got heavier. When the last lap board came out, the leader slowed somewhat, driving cautiously to assure the win and the title were both his. Orrock in 2nd crossed the line almost 3 seconds behind ahead of Szymkowiak, Detige and Jensen. For Detige, it was the vice champion’s trophy and 3rd overall in the series for Szymkowiak. After a great scrap for places, 6th in the final went to Latifi, then Kevin Ludi, Vuillaume and Viidas. The quickest was Ken Allemann in 10th.
Simas Juodvirsis – “Today’s my day because I wanted the rain for the finals after not being as quick as I needed in the dry and I prayed that this would happen. I’m really, really happy to have won three rounds of the Euro Challenge, actually almost four, when the level of the competition was so much higher again this year and be able to finish by winning the championship. I want to thank the team boss of RKV Racing and everyone at DFK Racing, my family who always travel with me and all my fans for pushing me and being here to support me today. It’s just the perfect result today!”
1. Simas Juodvirsis (LTU - Gillard/RKV Racing by DFK)
2. Lucas Orrock (GBR - Kosmic/Paul Carr Racing)
3. Jules Szymkowiak (NED - Zanardi/RAW Racing)
* full round and championship results HERE
Above: DD2 round winner and series champion, Simas Juodvirsis
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
Above: DD2 Championship podium
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
Rotax DD2 Masters title goes to the wire in the final between Christophe Adams and Dennis Kroes
It was another close finish in the Rotax DD2 Masters class running within the DD2 category, as last year’s champion Dennis Kroes held the upper hand in the final after 2010 Euro runner-up Christophe Adams spun on the first corner. However, the varying strategies may have played the significant part in Adams being able to catch Kroes over the course of the 18 laps, with only two places separating them as they crossed the line. In the end, Adams won the title by a mere two points. The round 4 honours went to Kroes, with Florent Lambert unlucky over the weekend and unable to put in a last race bid for the series win. He finished 3rd on the podium and in the points standings, while the lady of the DD2 class Tamsin Germain was 4th. 5th overall but absent in France was Carl Cleirbaut.
Christophe Adams - “To be honest it was very stressful in the final because I was always behind Denis Kroes and knew I could only have a maximum of three drivers between us for the points I needed to win the championship. I crashed at the start and then there were 7 guys between us, but as the rain got heavier, it seems my tyre pressure was better for the conditions than Dennis’. I’m so relieved by the result and very happy for the win today. I’d like to thank my mechanic Remy for helping me in both Masters’ classes today seeing my other mechanic was sick, as well as the Slangen Racing team for the excellent Topkart chassis and Supertune for the engine.”
1. Dennis Kroes (NED - Tonykart/Team Kroes)
2. Christophe Adams (BEL - Topkart/Slangen Racing)
3. Florent Lambert (GBR - Haase/Tatum Racing)
* full round and championship results HERE
Above: Rotax DD2 Masters Champion & Round 4 Winner Max Masters Christophe Adams crosses the line. Adams used Top Kart in DD2 Masters and Tony Kart in MAX Masters for the Slangen Karting and Sporting Kart Competition teams respectively.
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
All race results and the championship points can be found online at www.rgmmc.com by following the link to “2011 RESULTS”.
Go to YOU TUBE and search for “ROTAX EURO CHALLENGE 2011 Angerville France” to watch all the videos of the EURO highlights including racing, interviews and podiums on RGMMC’s KartworldTV. All other rounds of the 2011 championship are also online at You Tube as well.
ROTAX MAX GRAND FINALS & ROTAX INTERNATIONAL OPEN INVITATIONS AWARDED
11 invitations* to compete at the 2011 ROTAX MAX CHALLENGE GRAND FINALS to be held at Al Ain Raceway (near Abu Dhabi) in the UAE were presented to the eligible winners at the prizegiving ceremony at round 4 in France by ROTAX engine manufacturer BRP-Powertrain. This included the top three overall place-getters in the Rotax Max Junior, Senior and Rotax DD2 classes, together with the winners from both the Rotax Max Masters and Rotax DD2 Masters categories.
Above: Rotax MAX Euro Challenge Champions for 2011 (L to R) Rotax DD2 - Simas Juodvirsis (Gillard/RKV by DFK Racing), Max Masters - Mikko Laine (Formula K/Formula K Belgium), Senior Max - Ben Cooper (Birel/Kalman Motorsport), Junior Max - Ukyo Sasahara (Kosmic/Paul Carr Racing) & DD2 Masters - Christophe Adams (Topkart/Slangen Karting)
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
RGMMC Establishment as the organisers and promoters of the Rotax Max Euro Challenge also awarded 12 places** to the ROTAX INTERNATIONAL OPEN 2011 being held at Zuera, Spain in October. The 2011 champions in the Rotax Max Junior, Senior, Masters and Rotax DD2 classes received free race entry to the end of season event with discounted entries for the series podium place-getters.
Further information for competitors and supporters of the prestigious Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals event is available at www.maxchallenge-rotax.com
*According to article 2.9.2.2 of the Sporting Regulations – refer to www.rgmmc.com
**Conditions apply as in article 2.5.1. The prize cannot be transferred to other drivers and/or events, or traded for cash.
2011 ROTAX EURO CHALLENGE – CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS
* full round and championship results HERE
Above: Senior MAX Chapionship podium
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
ROTAX SENIOR MAX
1. Ben Cooper (GBR - Birel/Kalman Motorsport)
2. Kasper Jensen (DEN - Kosmic/PB Kart Race)
3. Edward Brand (GBR - Tonykart/Strawberry Racing)
ROTAX MAX MASTERS
1. Mikko Laine (FIN - Formula K/Formula K Belgium)
2. Christophe Adams (BEL - Tonykart/Sport Karting Competition)
3. Jean-Louis Capliuk (GER - Praga/JLC Racing Team)
ROTAX JUNIOR MAX
1. Ukyo Sasahara (JAP - Kosmic/Paul Carr Racing)
2. Nathan Harrison (GBR - Alonso/Evolution Racing)
3. Philip Morin (SWE - Kosmic/Paul Carr Racing)
ROTAX DD2
1. Simas Juodvirsis (LTU - Gillard/RKV Racing by DFK)
2. Mathias Detige (BEL - Gillard/DFK Racing Team)
3. Jules Szymkowiak (NED - Zanardi/RAW Racing)
ROTAX DD2 MASTERS
1. Christophe Adams (BEL - Topkart/Slangen Racing)
2. Dennis Kroes (NED - Tonykart/Team Kroes)
3. Florent Lambert (GBR - Haase/Tatum Racing)
Above: Junior Championship podium
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
Above: DD2 line up for their final
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media
Above: Rotax MAX Euro Challenge Champions for 2011 (L to R) Rotax DD2 - Simas Juodvirsis (Gillard/RKV by DFK Racing), Max Masters - Mikko Laine (Formula K/Formula K Belgium), Senior Max - Ben Cooper (Birel/Kalman Motorsport), Junior Max - Ukyo Sasahara (Kosmic/Paul Carr Racing) & DD2 Masters - Christophe Adams (Topkart/Slangen Karting)
pic - Bas Kaligis / RGMMC Media