In Wackersdorf, the Final of the first round of the FIA Karting Academy Trophy was a thrilling one with several drivers capable of claiming victory. Reno Francot (NLD) was on pole alongside Bart Harrison (GBR), followed by Salim Hanna (COL) and Tom Braeken (BEL). Other serious protagonists started from the top 10.
Francot led the first lap ahead of Hanna, Caleb Gafrarar (USA), Dion Gowda (SGP) and Yevan David (LKA), while an incident eliminated Braeken, David Walther (DNK) and Oscar Wurz (MCO). Hanna took the lead on the fourth lap, followed closely by Francot and Gafrarar. In 4th, Gowda was more than a second behind. Harrison had dropped back to 6th place at the start. Very fast, Gowda was joining the leading group with David in his wake. The Singaporean attacked the American on lap 8, followed shortly after by David.
Further back, Leo Robinson (DZA) was making good progress, moving up to 12th from his 29th position on the grid. Darius Babaiona (ROU) entered the top five with a gain of 10 places, while Oleksander Bondarev (UKR) had recovered 17 places in 8th position. With five laps to go, the three leaders were separated by 3 tenths each. However, the gap increased significantly on the next lap as David closed in on 3rd position. The situation didn’t change until the finish and Francot took a strong victory in front of Hanna and Gowda. David secured 4th place ahead of Babiona, then Harrison 6th and Gafrarar 7th. Robinson finished in 9th place behind Bondarev with the biggest improvement of 20 places.
Info Kartcom / Photo © KSP