Jacob Parsons Leads The Aussie Charge In France

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Joseph Mawson sixth in the championship standings

Sydney teenager Jacob Parsons (North Shore, NSW) finished as the best placed Australian during Round Two of the CIK-FIA Under 18 World Karting Championship in Angerville, France at the weekend.

After qualifying 40th in the 71-driver field, Parsons enjoyed a strong run throughout the heat races to start 12th in the 34-kart opening pre-final, where he finished ninth. He then backed this performance up with a 24th placing in the reverse-grid second pre-final.

Above: Jacob Parsons on his way to finishing 13th in the Under 18 World Championship Round Two
pic - KSP

Starting from position 18 in the final, Parsons made the most of his opportunities in the opening few laps to be running as high as tenth place before eventually claiming 13th place.

"I feel as though I've made a big overall improvement from last round, to be battle for a spot inside the top ten was very encouraging," said Parsons.

"Unfortunately I couldn't quite keep the pace for the entire race and finished 13th, but overall I'm very happy with the weekend and really looking forward to the final round in Bahrain."

Parsons’ Australian counterpart Joseph Mawson (HInchinbrook, NSW) endured a challenging finals day in France. Following three thirds and a fifth placing in Saturday’s heat races Mawson was poised for a strong result on finals day and challenge his more experienced European rivals for a spot on the podium.

Above: The Australian trio (L-R) Joseph Mawson, James Abela and Jacob Parsons
pic - KSP

Unfortunately, an incident midway through the opening pre-final, when he was challenging for second place, led to him being forced off the circuit and shortcutting the track. As a result, Mawson was excluded.

Determined to make up for lost ground in the opening pre-final, Mawson was one of the hard chargers in the reverse-grid race by moving from 29th at the start to finish 17th.

Starting again from 29th in the final, Mawson ran as high as 16th before eventually finishing 18th. A result that sees him sixth in the championship standings, Parsons is 25th.

Above: Joseph Mawson leading the pack on the Angerville circuit
pic - KSP

Local driver Anthoine Hubert dominated the weekend’s proceedings and claimed the win ahead of Russian Seva Gagen. However, Gagen proved to be under the minimum weight at the end of the final elevating Italian Federico Savona to the runner-up spot.

In the Academy Trophy, Sydney’s James Abela (Horsley Park, NSW) endured a learning experience across the weekend in only his second-ever overseas event. Competing against the 43 of the world’s best drivers between 13 and 15 years, Abela narrowly missed out on a spot in the 28-kart main event. He held down second place in the early laps of the B Final before dropping to 10th, he fought back for 7th place at the finish.

Abela is now 23rd in the Academy Trophy standings with one event remaining.

Above: James Abela in action during the CIK-FIA Academy Trophy
pic - KSP

The next event in the CIK-FIA Under 18 World Karting Championship and the CIK-FIA Academy Trophy will be held in Bahrain on November 8-10.

CIK-FIA UNDER 18 WORLD KARTING CHAMPIONSHIP
Round 2 - Angerville, France

RESULTS: Top Five
1. Anthoine Hubert (France) - FK / WKE / LeCont
2. Federico Savona (Italy) - Top Kart / WKE / LeCont
3. Ricky Collard (Great Britain) - ART GP / WKE / LeCont
4. Charles Leclerc (Monaco) - ART GP / WKE / LeCont
5. Hubert Petit (France) - Sodi / WKE / LeCont
13. Jacob Parsons (Australia) - Top Kart / WKE / LeCont
18. Joseph Mawson (Australia) - Top Kart / WKE / LeCont

Top Five Standings - (After Round 2 of 3)
1. Henry Easthope (Great Britain) - 120 points
2. Anthoine Hubert (France) - 115
3. Charles Leclerc (Monaco)- 109
4. Ricky Collard (Great Britain) - 104
5. Martin Henckel Mortensen (Denmark) - 95
6. Joseph Mawson (Australia) - 82
25. Jacob Parsons - 40

CIK-FIA ACADEMY TROPHY
Round 2 - Angerville, France

RESULTS: Final 2 Top Five
1. Mattia Drudi (Italy) - Parolin / FIM / LeCont
2. Paolo Besancenez (France) - Parolin / FIM / LeCont
3. Alec Weckstrom (Finland) - Parolin / FIM / LeCont
4. Alexander Maslennikov (Russia) - Parolin / FIM / LeCont
5. Benjamin Lessennes (Belgium) - Parolin / FIM / LeCont

Final B
7. James Abela (Australia) - Parolin / FIM / LeCont

Top Five Standings - (After Round 2 of 3)
1. Joonas Lappalainen (Finland) - 174 points
2. Javier Cobian (Spain) - 158
3. George Russell (Great Britain) - 138
4. Mattia Drudi (Italy) - 135
5. Paolo Besancenez (France) - 123
23. James Abela (Australia) - 75

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