photo credit: pace images
Pro Karting took a team of 8 drivers across 5 classes to the final round of the SP Tools Australian Kart Championship to the Newcastle Kart Club over the weekend. The Pro Karting team has had multiple podiums at the top level in season 2022 and was looking to finish their championship strong. With drivers ranging from Cadet 12 through to the senior ranks, the team was in for a busy weekend.
Marco Manson out of New Zealand was the youngest driver in the team taking on the Cadet 12 category with a full field of 40 drivers. Manson qualified just outside the top 10 in position 11 and was looking to move his way forward across the heats. Marco finished all 4 of his heat races with position 10 in heat 1 and position 9 in heat 4 his highlights. Manson was racing well in the final and looked on for a strong top 10 finish when his weekend came to an unfortunate halt on lap 15 in the final.
X30 had a triple threat attack for Pro Karting in Kristian Janev, Will Harper and Declan Somers. Janev led the charge in qualifying setting the 14th fastest time with Harper in position 19 and Somers in position 22. Janev showed excellent speed and worked his way inside the top 10 and on the back of the top 5 in heats 3 and 4. Both Harper and Somers worked their way into the top 15 at stages over the weekend, setting up a fascinating final. Janev was able to lead the charge coming home inside the top 10 in position 9 overall. Harper was right behind Janev in position 10, with Somers just outside the top 15 in position 17 overall.
Sebastian Manson was the sole KA2 Junior driver for the Pro Karting team. Manson qualified in position 28 in the field of 40 plus drivers and was looking to move forward in the heat races. The heats were mixed for Manson with a DNF both in heat 2 and 3. Sebastian was able to burst into the top 10 for his other split heats with 7th in heat 1 and 6th in heat 2. Manson had made up 6 spots across the final before an issue brought his weekend to a halt in a DNF finish.
Ryan Cook was another sole representative for Pro Karting, this time in the TAG 125 class. Cook qualified in position 28 in the near 40 kart field of drivers. Cook finished all 4 heat races and was consistently racing on the edge of the top 25 in a stacked field. Ryan was able to cross the line in position 23 in the final to grab his best result of the weekend!
Pip Casabene and Benjamin Munro were the final Pro Karting pilots to grace the track in the KA4 Junior category. Munro qualified just outside the top 10 in position 11, with Casabene not far behind in position 16. Casabene led the way in the heats finishing all 4 races and moving up to 8th in heat 3 and into the top 5 in the final heat. Munro was consistent across his races grabbing 2 top 10 finishes with a 9th in heat 2 and 10th in heat 4. Casabene was battling inside the top 10 when he was unfortunately ruled out of the race in lap 8 and Munro was able to come home just outside the top 10 in position 13 overall.
Pro Karting driver coach Adam Lindstrom spoke post weekend on the final round of the championship. “Travelling to Newcastle without testing beforehand we knew it would be difficult, our guys did a great job of improving as the weekend went on and earned some great results. Our planning and preparation has already started towards our attack on the 2023 AKC championship”. Pro Karting will continue their busy 2022 season in Victoria.
