Race-Report
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In sunny weather, I run in the revised engine with a new carburetor during the first stint. During the second stint, we noticed that we were about 0.4 seconds per lap behind the fastest karts.
The chassis was set up very correctly and the ideal tire pressure was determined.
The only issue during technical inspection was with our air filter. Although the homologation number was correct, the non-homologated lower section is no longer permitted. As a result, we had to change the whole air filter at the last minute. That was far from ideal, since we had no idea how this would affect engine performance. So we will check on the Warm up tommorrow.
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The weather was Slightly sunny at 10°C in the morning and 18°C in the afternoon.
Warm up Based on the air filter test, we had to combine a qualifying test with an impact test on the air filter. We realized as early as the warm-up that our engine-carburetor-air filter combination wouldn't be enough to compete for a spot in the top 3—unless something unexpected happened. We finished at P5.
In Qualifying, since the top drivers were already pushing hard right from the start of qualifying, I tried to keep up with them. I actually set my best time on the 4th lap, but I couldn’t take advantage of the slipstream—which cost me about 0.2 seconds per lap—and ended up in 8th place. The time was in line with what I expected given the circumstances.
In Heat 1, once again, I made a very good start and immediately moved up to 5th place. The more the field spread out, the less I could compete with the faster engines. Thanks to very good driving, I was able to gain a position. However, it wasn’t easy to realize this.
In Heat 2, Another great start, winning three positions, which I gradually lost again because of the engine performance. But my fighting spirit and defensive play were excellent. I also gain one position
Final, I started from P7. Another great start, gaining two positions, which I ended up losing again this time. In the end, I was very lucky that the back of the pack couldn’t overtake me. One more lap and I would have lost another two positions. My lap times were extremely consistent, so the tire pressure and chassis setup were good. But the 0.4-second difference in engine performance was simply impossible to make up. Still, the battle and defense were perfectly executed.
Warm up: P5 (48:35 sec)
Qualifying: P8 (48:25 sec)
Heat 1: P7 (start P8)
Heat 2: P6 (start P7)
Final: P7 (start P7)
