Three Drivers are now dominating in European 250cc Superkart and each is seeking to continually improve their technical approach. After the withdrawal of the outgoing Champion, the French Emmanuel Vinuales, the CIK-FIA European Superkart Championship can be summarised as a tight duel until the last race between the Czech Adam Kout on MS Kart-DEA and German Peter Elkmann on MS Kart-VM.
The national races in France and Germany earlier this year Had already prefigured this fight, the two drivers either engaged in a duel announcing their mutual confrontations or working assiduously on other races. They were testing their equipment and so on to optimise it for the season.
At Donington (GBR), each of the two protagonists won a race and finished the other in 2nd. The other drivers were relegated far back except perhaps Vinuales on the podium of Race 1, but he was to retire in the second race due to a small detail. The Briton Gavin Bennett, the former European champion, kept up appearances for the year by getting on the podium at home. Already perfectly equal in the provisional rankings, Elkmann and Kout were followed by Henrik Lilja (PVP-PVP) in 3rd, Gavin Bennett and Marcel Maasmann (Anderson-VM).
The second race result at Le Mans (FRA) proved identical to the first with the same grip of the two favourites from Qualifying Practice. This time Elkmann prevailed ahead of the Czech in Race 1 and then took his revenge on Kout. The opposition began to wake up with the amazing Liam Morley (Anderson-DEA). For once free from breakdowns, he took two podiums and was the second closest and far ahead of Andreas Jost (Anderson-VM), Henrik Lilja and Marcel Maasmann. In confirmation of a revelation, the Independent Driver Jason Dredge (Anderson-PVP) again did well as he had in England.
The two leaders were still equal before the start of the third Competition at Assen (NLD). Four drivers however dominated proceedings and not two. In Race 1, the two favourites were facing problems, prolonging the suspense. Marcel Maasmann and Liam Morley took advantage of the situation and thus took the top two places on Saturday. Adam Kout missed his start in the final race on Sunday and Peter Elkmann then took control despite resistance from Maasmann. Then Kout pushed and managed to come back to take the lead, clinching his first European title in front of a fair opponent. Very fast, Morley took his fourth consecutive podium and recovered 3rd place overall by just one point from Maasmann, with Jost finishing 5th overall.
The first European crown won by the Czech Adam Kout, the factory Driver of the MS Kart brand, appears to be well deserved in terms of his performance over many seasons. Last year the fight was already very tight, and Kout was beaten at the last moment by Emmanuel Vinuales. The victory of this friendly smiling Driver thrilled the whole paddock, including his rival Peter Elkmann.
The Final seemed to be a compromise at Assen: difficulties in Race 1 and a missed start in Race 2, an incredible scenario?
– Yes, what a relief especially after the start of the race! Already the gearbox let me down on Saturday. We feared a more serious problem. Fortunately, this did not change the Championship as we had a joker to play due to the dropped scores. I don’t know what happened with the clutch at the start of the last race, but it was a bad start. My set-up was perfect, so I launched a strong attack, and voila!
You have finally taken the title, what was your first reaction?
– This was my goal, but we were so close with Peter all year … except maybe during this weekend where everything did not go as planned. What a relief and especially what a joy, for the whole team. I thank them all, Milan Šimák, Milena Vachtfeitlová, my mechanics, my competitors … everyone was very moved!
Was it a dream season in the end?
– As we won in the end, of course! Especially since as it was a hard, constant fight. The award has more flavor, but at the time, the stress was significant. I remind you that I won at Le Mans on Sunday after hitting the wall on overtaking at the very end of the race. What a fright, I probably would not have done one more lap. At Assen I knew I was fast but then to find myself 7th on the first lap! Otherwise we worked constantly and effectively on the new brakes, seeking the best balance for the chassis. This has indeed been a memorable season!
Name: Adam Kout
Nationality: Czech
Date of birth: 05/07/1990
Chassis: MS Kart
Engine: DEA
Team: MS Kart
2015: CIK-FIA European Superkart Champion
2014: CIK-FIA Vice-European Superkart Champion
2013: 3rd in the CIK-FIA European Superkart Championship
2012: 5th in the CIK-FIA European Superkart Championship
2008 & 2009 Formula Renault 2.0 (2nd at Silverstone)
Many times a winner of the European Superkart Series
(Extract from 2015 CIK-FIA Best-Of)
Info CIK-FIA / © Photo KSP