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Eastern Canadian Championship, Round 4

press release

Perfect weather set the stage for Round #4 of the 2012 Eastern Canadian Karting Championship (ECKC), as the series took on the challenging and always-exciting 12-turn, 1.5km Mosport International Karting (MIK) circuit, set outside turn eight at Canada’s premier racing facility.

Above: Ben Cooper (Birel) completed the sweep of Round #4 action in the Rotax DD2 class
pic - Cody Schindel/CKN

The second double-header event on the schedule saw a return to Ontario over the Canada Day holiday weekend, with Saturday setting up Round #4 of the six round series. A new batch of MOJO tires produced a record-setting event, with racing action and the championship battles continuing to intensify. Grandstands at the top of the hill provided the best view of the track and spectators were treated to more superb racing the ECKC has become known to produce.

"The track was ready!" exclaimed Series Manager Louis-Philippe Gelinas. "And the weather was perfect, the grandstands on the top of the hill were the best seat at the track! The BBQ cheeseburgers were excellent, and everything was in place for a super day! Except for the new rule regarding ladies on the grid needing to cover their shoulders! Hello! Sexy girls, racers, engines…this is part of the sport!"

DD2 championship contender Ben Cooper (SRA Karting/Birel) led the way during Saturday’s qualifying session, clocking a new track record of 53.435 just ahead of his SRA Karting/Birel teammate Christophe Boisclair. Enrico Menotti (Intrepid North America/Intrepid) secured the inside row two position for the prefinal, while reigning ECKC, Canadian National and World Champion Pier-Luc Ouellette (PSL Karting/CRG) would find himself all the way back in 20th after engine troubles hampered his session. The eight-lap prefinal got underway with Boisclair making his move for the lead ahead of Cooper. Zacharie Richard-Robichon (SRA Karting/Birel) got the jump on Menotti, putting Birels 1-2-3, all the way until lap seven, when Boisclair started to fall off with a blown tire. Cooper got by, followed by Robichon, then Nicholas Latifi (Sofina/CRG) and Menotti as they made their way to the checkered flag.

Above: Joe Sorrano scored the Mini Max feature win on Saturday
pic - Cody Schindel/CKN

Boisclair was eventually classified sixth, with Ouellette making his way through the 22-kart strong field to finish seventh. The start of the 15-lap final saw Cooper in the lead, with Robichon, Latifi, Boisclair, Menotti and Ouellette in pursuit. Contact relegated Menotti back to fifth by lap five, with Boisclair and Ouellette soon making work of Latifi. Birels again held a 1-2-3 advantage, and Boisclair was able to make his way past Robichon through turn one on lap six. Ouellette then made his move to break up the red kart train, passing Robichon in the turn five hairpin, just past the halfway flags. From there nothing changed, as Cooper took his second straight DD2 victory, and the points lead, with Boisclair and Ouellette again completing the podium. Robichon held on for fourth with Latifi fifth.

With only five karts taking the field in the DD2 Masters category, the decreased numbers in no way decreased the great racing action in the over-32 category. In qualifying, Stuart Clark (Prime Powersports/Maranello) scored pole over Marc-Andre Bourgeois (PSL Karting/CRG) and home track pilot and 2011 ECKC Masters champion Paul Carvalho (PSL Ontario/CRG). The start of the prefinal saw Bourgeois and Carvalho power past Clark, with Carvalho taking over the point on lap three. From there, the PSL Ontario pilot used his vast knowledge of the 1.5 km circuit to cruise to the prefinal win over Bourgeois. Clark held on for third with championship contender Luc Sauriol in fourth. A wild final saw Carvalho, Bourgeois and Clark battle all race long, with Bourgeois making his race winning pass on lap 12 over Carvalho. Clark then got by next to secure second place on the podium with Sauriol back in fourth and John Cariati fifth. Clark was able to hold onto his point advantage over Bourgeois heading into Sunday’s Round #5.

Above: Zachary Claman-DeMelo drove to a dominating victory in Rotax Junior
pic - Cody Schindel/CKN

In a record-setting Rotax Senior qualifying session, Goodwood Kartways double race winner Marco DiLeo (Intrepid North America/Intrepid) and Austin Milwain (SH Ontario/TonyKart) clocked identical times, with pole going to DiLeo for his second fastest lap. Championship leader Steven Szigeti (SH Karting/TonyKart) was just off in third followed by his teammate Jesse Lazare and REM/Birel pilot Kevin Monteith. The same five drivers would remain in play during the prefinal race, with DiLeo controlling the field until a lap four pass by Szigeti put him back to second. Milwain made his bid for third place on the same lap, but Lazare and Montieth were both able to slide past working the next lap. From there the quintet remained the same, with Szigeti earning pole for the final over DiLeo, Lazare, Moneith and Milwain. The final saw Szigeti get shuffled back to third in the first corner, with DiLeo taking the lead and Monteith right behind. Montieth then made his way past DiLeo, until the halfway point when Szigeti powered back past both drivers. Quickly putting a gap on the field, Szigeti went on to take his second straight Rotax Senior victory by 3.202 seconds and maintained his edge in the overall championship points leading up to Sunday’s events. DiLeo held on for second, and a hard-charging Luke Chudleigh (Prime Powersports/Maranello) made his way to complete the podium after starting way back in the 14th position. Reid Arnold completed the top-five, while Lazare and Milwain were out of the action on lap two after contact.

After a weekend to forget at Circuit ICAR, PSL Karting’s Zachary Claman-DeMelo (CRG) was back with a vengeance in Mosport. A scorching 55.008 lap in qualifying put DeMelo on pole over Olivier Bedard (SRA Karting/Birel) and championship leader Parker Thompson (SH Karting/TonyKart). A tame prefinal saw DeMelo take the win, with Thompson getting past Bedard on lap seven to secure a front row starting position for the final. Chaos at the start of the final had Thompson and Bedard spinning from their positions even before turn one, allowing DeMelo to quickly gap the field of 23 karts. Battling through the field from the last row on the grid, Jeffery Kingsley made it all the way to second by lap seven. With DeMelo checked out, Kingsley began to pull a gap of his own leaving 2011 ECKC Rotax Junior Vice-Champion Cameron Morrison (SH Ontario/TonyKart), Samuel Fontaine (PSL Karting/CRG) and Aidan Landauer (REM/Birel) to fight for the final podium position. DeMelo went on to score a staggering eight-second victory over Kingsley, with Morrison moving up to third after a penalty on Landauer put the Birel pilot back to fifth and Fontaine held on for fourth. Thompson and Bedard would finish eighth and ninth respectively, with Thompson still holding onto the points lead despite his disappointing finish.

In Rotax Mini Max action, Gianfranco Mazzaferro (Zanardi) earned the day’s pole position by three tenths, but was relegated to second in the prefinal by the Karts & Parts/LH Kart of Joe Sorrano. A broken throttle cable during the final warm-up laps then sidelined Mazzaferro for the rest of the day, with Sorrano taking the main event win after a racy battle with Austin Riley (Intrepid North America/Intrepid), with Jack Ewaniuk completing the podium. Ending Matthew Latifi’s (PSL Karting/CRG) string of perfection in the Rotax Micro Max category, Matthew Barry (Intrepid North America/Intrepid) started off his Mosport campaign with the pole position. With only three karts on the grid, the action never waivered, as Barry’s teammate Xavier Harris came from third in qualifying to take the prefinal win with Latifi still sandwiched between the two Intrepids. An action-packed final came down to the wire, with Latifi overshooting an attempt for the lead, allowing Harris to score his first ECKC victory with Barry in second and Latifi third. A noticeable increase in Briggs & Stratton entries saw CF Racing’s Cory Cacciavillani (Birel) take the Senior win over Mathieu Demers (PSL Montreal/CRG), with Dylan Brady taking his first victory in Junior and Kroon tops in Masters.

"I was really happy to be at MIK again, it was like my one year anniversary," continued Gelinas. "Last year, my first ECKC event was Mosport. It’s difficult to come into someone else’s track and organize an event. Ken, Robin and all the staff worked hard on getting everything perfect! Paul Cooke supervised and provided his extensive knowledge! I also want to thank Kim from SRA for her great professionalism, helping me with tire distribution, scanning, and being on the ball for everything! Super job Kim!"

Above: Steven Szigeti made it two in a row in Rotax Senior
pic - Cody Schindel/CKN

The series will conclude at the Monaco Grand Prix of Trois-Rivieres July 29, the prestigious street race set at the site of the GP3R at Exposition Park. The Eastern Canadian Karting Championship is a Rotax Max Challenge series and will award Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals tickets to the Rotax Senior, Rotax Junior, Rotax DD2 and Rotax DD2 Masters class champions.

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	Eastern Canadian Championship, Round 4 Tweet press release Perfect weather set the stage for Round #4 of the 2012 Eastern Canadian Karting Championship (ECKC), as the series took on the challenging and always-exciting 12-turn, 1.5km Mosport International Karting (MIK) circuit, set outside turn eight at Canada’s premier racing facility. Above: Ben Cooper (Birel) completed the sweep of Round #4 action in the Rotax DD2 class pic - Cody Schindel/CKN The second double-header event on the schedule saw a return to Ontario over the Canada Day holiday weekend, with Saturday setting up Round #4 of the six round series. A new batch of MOJO tires produced a record-setting event, with racing action and the championship battles continuing to intensify. Grandstands at the top of the hill provided the best view of the track and spectators were treated to more superb racing the ECKC has become known to produce. "The track was ready!" exclaimed Series Manager Louis-Philippe Gelinas. "And the weather was perfect, the grandstands on the top of the hill were the best seat at the track! The BBQ cheeseburgers were excellent, and everything was in place for a super day! Except for the new rule regarding ladies on the grid needing to cover their shoulders! Hello! Sexy girls, racers, engines…this is part of the sport!" DD2 championship contender Ben Cooper (SRA Karting/Birel) led the way during Saturday’s qualifying session, clocking a new track record of 53.435 just ahead of his SRA Karting/Birel teammate Christophe Boisclair. Enrico Menotti (Intrepid North America/Intrepid) secured the inside row two position for the prefinal, while reigning ECKC, Canadian National and World Champion Pier-Luc Ouellette (PSL Karting/CRG) would find himself all the way back in 20th after engine troubles hampered his session. The eight-lap prefinal got underway with Boisclair making his move for the lead ahead of Cooper. Zacharie Richard-Robichon (SRA Karting/Birel) got the jump on Menotti, putting Birels 1-2-3, all the way until lap seven, when Boisclair started to fall off with a blown tire. Cooper got by, followed by Robichon, then Nicholas Latifi (Sofina/CRG) and Menotti as they made their way to the checkered flag. Above: Joe Sorrano scored the Mini Max feature win on Saturday pic - Cody Schindel/CKN Boisclair was eventually classified sixth, with Ouellette making his way through the 22-kart strong field to finish seventh. The start of the 15-lap final saw Cooper in the lead, with Robichon, Latifi, Boisclair, Menotti and Ouellette in pursuit. Contact relegated Menotti back to fifth by lap five, with Boisclair and Ouellette soon making work of Latifi. Birels again held a 1-2-3 advantage, and Boisclair was able to make his way past Robichon through turn one on lap six. Ouellette then made his move to break up the red kart train, passing Robichon in the turn five hairpin, just past the halfway flags. From there nothing changed, as Cooper took his second straight DD2 victory, and the points lead, with Boisclair and Ouellette again completing the podium. Robichon held on for fourth with Latifi fifth. With only five karts taking the field in the DD2 Masters category, the decreased numbers in no way decreased the great racing action in the over-32 category. In qualifying, Stuart Clark (Prime Powersports/Maranello) scored pole over Marc-Andre Bourgeois (PSL Karting/CRG) and home track pilot and 2011 ECKC Masters champion Paul Carvalho (PSL Ontario/CRG). The start of the prefinal saw Bourgeois and Carvalho power past Clark, with Carvalho taking over the point on lap three. From there, the PSL Ontario pilot used his vast knowledge of the 1.5 km circuit to cruise to the prefinal win over Bourgeois. Clark held on for third with championship contender Luc Sauriol in fourth. A wild final saw Carvalho, Bourgeois and Clark battle all race long, with Bourgeois making his race winning pass on lap 12 over Carvalho. Clark then got by next to secure second place on the podium with Sauriol back in fourth and John Cariati fifth. Clark was able to hold onto his point advantage over Bourgeois heading into Sunday’s Round #5. Above: Zachary Claman-DeMelo drove to a dominating victory in Rotax Junior pic - Cody Schindel/CKN In a record-setting Rotax Senior qualifying session, Goodwood Kartways double race winner Marco DiLeo (Intrepid North America/Intrepid) and Austin Milwain (SH Ontario/TonyKart) clocked identical times, with pole going to DiLeo for his second fastest lap. Championship leader Steven Szigeti (SH Karting/TonyKart) was just off in third followed by his teammate Jesse Lazare and REM/Birel pilot Kevin Monteith. The same five drivers would remain in play during the prefinal race, with DiLeo controlling the field until a lap four pass by Szigeti put him back to second. Milwain made his bid for third place on the same lap, but Lazare and Montieth were both able to slide past working the next lap. From there the quintet remained the same, with Szigeti earning pole for the final over DiLeo, Lazare, Moneith and Milwain. The final saw Szigeti get shuffled back to third in the first corner, with DiLeo taking the lead and Monteith right behind. Montieth then made his way past DiLeo, until the halfway point when Szigeti powered back past both drivers. Quickly putting a gap on the field, Szigeti went on to take his second straight Rotax Senior victory by 3.202 seconds and maintained his edge in the overall championship points leading up to Sunday’s events. DiLeo held on for second, and a hard-charging Luke Chudleigh (Prime Powersports/Maranello) made his way to complete the podium after starting way back in the 14th position. Reid Arnold completed the top-five, while Lazare and Milwain were out of the action on lap two after contact. After a weekend to forget at Circuit ICAR, PSL Karting’s Zachary Claman-DeMelo (CRG) was back with a vengeance in Mosport. A scorching 55.008 lap in qualifying put DeMelo on pole over Olivier Bedard (SRA Karting/Birel) and championship leader Parker Thompson (SH Karting/TonyKart). A tame prefinal saw DeMelo take the win, with Thompson getting past Bedard on lap seven to secure a front row starting position for the final. Chaos at the start of the final had Thompson and Bedard spinning from their positions even before turn one, allowing DeMelo to quickly gap the field of 23 karts. Battling through the field from the last row on the grid, Jeffery Kingsley made it all the way to second by lap seven. With DeMelo checked out, Kingsley began to pull a gap of his own leaving 2011 ECKC Rotax Junior Vice-Champion Cameron Morrison (SH Ontario/TonyKart), Samuel Fontaine (PSL Karting/CRG) and Aidan Landauer (REM/Birel) to fight for the final podium position. DeMelo went on to score a staggering eight-second victory over Kingsley, with Morrison moving up to third after a penalty on Landauer put the Birel pilot back to fifth and Fontaine held on for fourth. Thompson and Bedard would finish eighth and ninth respectively, with Thompson still holding onto the points lead despite his disappointing finish. In Rotax Mini Max action, Gianfranco Mazzaferro (Zanardi) earned the day’s pole position by three tenths, but was relegated to second in the prefinal by the Karts & Parts/LH Kart of Joe Sorrano. A broken throttle cable during the final warm-up laps then sidelined Mazzaferro for the rest of the day, with Sorrano taking the main event win after a racy battle with Austin Riley (Intrepid North America/Intrepid), with Jack Ewaniuk completing the podium. Ending Matthew Latifi’s (PSL Karting/CRG) string of perfection in the Rotax Micro Max category, Matthew Barry (Intrepid North America/Intrepid) started off his Mosport campaign with the pole position. With only three karts on the grid, the action never waivered, as Barry’s teammate Xavier Harris came from third in qualifying to take the prefinal win with Latifi still sandwiched between the two Intrepids. An action-packed final came down to the wire, with Latifi overshooting an attempt for the lead, allowing Harris to score his first ECKC victory with Barry in second and Latifi third. A noticeable increase in Briggs & Stratton entries saw CF Racing’s Cory Cacciavillani (Birel) take the Senior win over Mathieu Demers (PSL Montreal/CRG), with Dylan Brady taking his first victory in Junior and Kroon tops in Masters. "I was really happy to be at MIK again, it was like my one year anniversary," continued Gelinas. "Last year, my first ECKC event was Mosport. It’s difficult to come into someone else’s track and organize an event. Ken, Robin and all the staff worked hard on getting everything perfect! Paul Cooke supervised and provided his extensive knowledge! I also want to thank Kim from SRA for her great professionalism, helping me with tire distribution, scanning, and being on the ball for everything! Super job Kim!" Above: Steven Szigeti made it two in a row in Rotax Senior pic - Cody Schindel/CKN The series will conclude at the Monaco Grand Prix of Trois-Rivieres July 29, the prestigious street race set at the site of the GP3R at Exposition Park. The Eastern Canadian Karting Championship is a Rotax Max Challenge series and will award Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals tickets to the Rotax Senior, Rotax Junior, Rotax DD2 and Rotax DD2 Masters class champions. Home
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