MKC Round 7 Race Report

It was a welcoming return to Elite Speedway USJ as IAME Series Asia and MKC made their way to the famous circuit with that long loop and twisty uphill. The weather was clear, for most of the day at least, and there was plenty to fight for on track. As expected, all drivers put on a great showing of race craft, determination, grit, and intense racing sprinkled with a few incident-filled clashes here and there. It was a blistering hot Sunday but the action on track was even hotter, if one can imagine so.

In the Cadet category, it was down to the two championship leaders Kamolphu Anuchatkul and Esteban Freihuber who had everything to fight for. One would think they’d be fighting it out from the front of the grid but ironically they battled it out from the back. Both drivers had a disappointing qualifying session positioning them near the back of the grid and most of the heats was spent fighting their way to the front.  Esteban had the better result in that regard making his way to third place in both heats from a starting position of ninth on the grid. Kamolphu on the other hand struggled. However, neither effort was enough to challenge eventual Final race winners Leonardo Mauri and second-placed Jamie White. The duo from the Italcorse Racing Team put on a fine display of consistency and pace during the heats.

In the Pre Final, a slight drizzle sent teams into a frenzy to put on rain tires. Although it was declared a wet race by the officials, by the time the race had started the track was already drying up. Everyone raced on their wets nonetheless but some were unprepared for the sudden change. Esteban who managed to secure third place on the starting grid had no grip throughout the Pre Final and lost positions with every lap that went by. Kamolphu did not fare any better and somehow managed to finish second last. The ISA 2023 Cadet Championship decider was going to be the final race of the day and season. Eventual Pre-Final winner Leonardo put on a stellar display of ‘drying track’ driving and made the most of changing conditions to finish a full 3 seconds ahead of Jamie.

In the Final, all Esteban had to do was score enough points to beat Kamolphu in the championship by getting as high up the grid as possible. It was already looking like a lost cause for Kamolphu who was most likely going to write off the weekend as a dropped round. The burden was therefore on Esteban to perform his best and make to most of the final race of the season. But it turned out to be a difficult task getting by the mid-pack of Leeloo Freihuber, Kim Minjae, Kwanwoo Lee, and Michael Lederer. They did not let Esteban through as easily as they did in the heats and with every lap of missed chances, race leaders Leonardo and Jamie pulled away. Jamie and Leonardo had a fierce battle between themselves with Jamie making a late lunge in the dying laps only for Leonardo to counter a few corners ahead. It was close to the end between the pair who finished 0.3s apart at the finish line. Esteban came in third in the end.

However, it turns out the drama was not over as Esteban and Kamolphu finished the season tied on points after tallying their six best results. Then the organizers counted who won the most Final races throughout the year. Tied. Who won the most number of Pre-Final races? Tied. And finally, it was decided. Who won the most number of Heats, Kamolphu! That rarely happens in motorsport, what a special occasion. To make it the perfect end, Kamolphu and Esteban are best of friends when not racing and both will be going to the IAME World Final 2023 to represent Asian karting. All the best to them!

In MKC, Michael Lederer’s late-season charge was not enough to take away the championship from Ethan Ng who demonstrated how consistency pays off. Ethan took home the MKC title ahead of Sahill Singh who scored enough points in the first half of the season to hold onto second.

In the Junior category, with Katrina Ee already securing the championship win, it was a big fight for second place between Hendra Putra, Zarief Rayqal, and Ethan Seto. It was still mathematically possible for Rayqal to snatch second place away from Hendra as long as the gap was big enough. Ethan was quite certain of third if he bagged enough points and Rayqal under-performed. Conrad Garrow was also in the mix for third but he too would’ve needed to perform spectacularly to seal a top-3 finish.

In the Pre Final, it was a fierce encounter between the top 5 drivers consisting of Rayqal, Hendra, Calvin Wibowo, Ethan, and eventually Katrina after starting from the back. Hendra made an early charge after a clean start to take the early lead while leaving behind the rest to scrap it out for second place. Katrina did swap back a couple of times but could not catch Hendra once he had some clear breathing space. Katrina, Calvin, and Rayqal stayed close by in a pack ready to pounce but Ethan could not keep up. With 2 laps to go, that gap that Hendra worked so hard for was whittled down to a kart length and Katrina was poised to attack. And she did. And she caused Hendra to spin. Hendra amazingly saved it before going a full 180 and rejoined back in fourth place. Katrina won that race but was awarded a 5-second penalty at the end for the collision bumping her down to fifth place, behind Hendra. Rayqal won that affair after a late lunge on Calvin to take the Pre-Final win and valuable points in the bag.

In the Final, the heat was on at maximum. The track was dry, everyone had new tires, and it was the final race of the season. There were endless battles up and down the field, and everyone was giving it all they had. All the lessons learned, all the hardships faced, it was there and then in that fateful Final that great driving was displayed. After early contact between Katrina and Conrad split the field, it was every driver for themselves. Ethan made a spectacular start to begin his challenge on Rayqal and Calvin with Hendra following close behind. Ethan managed to pass Rayqal with 9 laps to go while Hendra made the most of Ethan’s move to also pass Rayqal and take third. Rayqal, bemused by what had just happened, kept pace but all that commotion allowed Sanjana Dandu to join to party. Sanjanu also made a move on Rayqal two laps later and chased down the hunting pair of Ethan and Hendra who were closing the gap on Calvin. Which only took two laps. With 5 laps to go, Ethan wasted no time and made a classic pass on Calvin who could do nothing but give enough racing room. Hendra, again the opportunist, makes use of Calvin’s loss of momentum and also passes Calvin on the same lap as Ethan. However, Calvin was not done and made a desperate move on the inside at the end of the loop but it wasn’t enough and Hendra’s rear right tire caught Calvin’s front left tire. Hendra spun, and Calvin ended up in the wall but walked away with no injuries. Sanjana is now in second after having the oceans split for the junior driver. Meanwhile, Katrina managed to catch up to all the action in front and also made a pass on Rayqal who just did not have the pace in the Final, ultimately sealing his fate for second place in the championship. Hendra, despite all the calamities he tends to find himself in, with all the spins and misfortunes throughout the year, managed to salvage a tumultuous weekend and drive home to secure second place in the championship. Ethan, with the Final race win and probably the drive of his life, wins third in the championship after edging out Rayqal on the most number of Final race wins. Karting could not have asked for a more dramatic end between the talented drivers. They all displayed tenacity and grit with some of the toughest battles witnessed in Asian karting. But Katrian Ee’s pace was unmatched and a big congratulations to her for becoming the IAME SERIES ASIA 2023 JUNIOR CHAMPION!

In MKC, Katrina sealed the title with Hendra taking second place away from Ethan and Rayqal by just one point. And as fate will have its way, Rayqal and Ethan were once again locked in third but with Ethan winning more Final races Rayqal was left in fourth with a season to forget.

In the Senior category, there wasn’t much to fight for as championship leader Aditya Wibowo had a firm grip on the title going into the final round and with an unmatchable pace over the weekend, Aditya was never going to let it go. His utter domination since Round 3 onwards deserves credit and Indonesia has once again produced a stellar driver after his predecessors such as Prass, Senna, Zahir… (and the list keeps going). Aditya sealed the IAME SERIES ASIA 2023 SENIOR TITLE with a cool 9-point advantage over second-place Ferroz Fezril and third-place Ezra Arian.

However, the star of the weekend with the most unexpected performance goes to Oscar Cura. With an impressive qualifying in third place (practically on par in pace with second place Ferroz) and challenging heats, Oscar positioned himself in prime position in fourth to launch a threat no one saw coming, not even himself. With 12 laps to go, Ferroz launches an attack on Aditya which causes them to run wide and gives all the space for Oscar to take the lead as they all make their way through the uphill section. Oscar managed to create some breathing space as Aditya and Ferroz processed what just happened between the two teammates. Oscar was maintaining the gap but Aditya in all desperation made a very risky dive on the inside at the end of the loop, perhaps his only chance to take the lead. And it worked out which somewhat stunned Oscar causing him to run wide and allow Ferroz through to take second. Oscar, not giving up one bit with a big point to prove, wasted no time and retook second place by the end of the following lap and chased down Aditya. Oscar was inching closer with each lap demonstrating a hunger that was not seen throughout the season. But it was not meant to be that perfect dream weekend for Oscar as Aditya maintained composure to finish just 0.3s ahead of Oscar at the finish line. But all credit to Oscar for his fine performance and it’s something for him to build on going into next year.

In MKC, Ferroz managed to seal the title ahead of Muhammad Ezzuan in second and Timofey in third. Things might have been different if Timofey was present throughout the season but Ferroz will always be able to call himself MALAYSIAN SENIOR KARTING CHAMPION 2023.

In the Master category, it was a similar story of dominance and sheer pace. Luke Armstrong took home the title with another dominant display of driving and racing… amongst the Seniors! It’s always amazing to watch Luke arm-strong his way into the leading pack and duke it out with some of the leading Senior drivers. The only other Master driver who can match him with pace is Nik Iruwan but he had a difficult weekend with a crash in Pre Final opening lap after Turn 1 despite making some ground in the Final. Second place in the championship went to Alpesh Patel after driving home a steady third in the Master category. Thiru Kumaran who had a weekend to forget in the final round of IAME SERIES ASIA 2023 thankfully did well enough in previous rounds to secure third in the championship.

In MKC, Thiru won the title ahead of Mohd Jasa and Nik Iruwan. Usual contender Mohd Jasa could not pose much of a threat to Thiru as he only managed to participate in five out of the seven rounds in MKC 2023. Thiru in return was rewarded for his commitment to the sport we all enjoy.

In the Veteran category, Peter Chua drove with the title ahead of Ridzman Aziz and Lee Lung Nien. Ridzman, unfortunately, could not match Peter in pace and had to settle for second in both the championship and final race of the season. Previous champion Lung was absent in the last round and in Round 4 which dampened any chance of him repeating his title-winning campaign.

In MKC, Ridzman was crowned MALAYSIA KARTING CHAMPION 2023 in the Master Category. A great reward for his consistent showing at every round.

IAME SERIES ASIA 2023 was a rounding success and none of it could have been possible without sponsors, officials, marshals, drivers, parents, and fans of the sport. The organizers would like to gratefully thank every one of you for your participation and support of the sport. We look forward to more action, more driving spirit, more comradery, and more faces in 2024!

Until then get some rest, recharge those batteries and we’ll see you in January next year.