Genk (Belgium), 9th May 2010. The whole CRG-Maxter Official Team achieved an outstanding performance in the fourth and last event but one of the WSK Euro Series on the technical and fast track of Horensbergdam, at Genk, Belgium. Jonathan Thonon, the ‘local hero’, got onto the first step of the podium thanks to a terrific performance which showed the great qualities of the CRG chassis and the competiveness of the Maxter engine. The driver, whose hometown is the near Waterloo, dominated both the pre-final and the final of the top category with gearshift, the KZ1: thanks to his performance he is now back on the top of the ranking, 28 points ahead of the runner-up, the Dutch driver Bas Lammers.
The Belgian weekend was absolutely positive for the more and more performing driver Max Verstappen. At Genk he obtained a third place in the pre-final – after a great recovery – and was the runner-up of the final. Thanks to these results now his leadership in KF3 is much steadier.
Now there are 62 points between him and the English driver Alexander Albon, the only real rival left for the championship.
Verstappen needs four more points either in the pre-final or final in the last race of the WSK Euro Series at Sarno (Italy) next 6th June to put his hands on the trophy.
The CRG drivers of the other top category – Super KF – made a great impression too, performing better and better throughout the whole weekend. “Koko” Kozlinski is the driver who got the best result, arriving in 5th in the final, after a recovery to 3rd place in prefinal from the 24th position on the starting grid. Good result for Davide Forè too, 12th in both the races, as well as Felice Tiene who got an excellent 9th place in the pre-final and then was 14th in the final; finally, Eddy Tinini was 14th in the pre-final and 20th in the final.
CRG made great steps forward in the KF2 category too. Michelle Gatting (CRG Junior Team), who is keeping all the promises she made, got right on target in the pre-final with a gripping second place behind her country mate Nortoft. In the final she started from the front row but she was involved in a crash together with many other drivers at the first turn immediately after the start. She was obliged to re-start from the last position and, eventually, she arrived in 19th. She now occupies the 4th position in the general ranking of the championship, but she has definitely confirmed to be among the top drivers of her category.
Also the young driver Jorrit Pex (GRG Holland) was among the best CRG drivers at Genk: he got an excellent third position in the KZ1 final and is now eighth in the general ranking. His brother too, Yard Pex, did well: he was the winner of the KZ2 final and occupies the sixth position in the KZ2 general ranking.
So, with the exception of the KZ2 championship already won by De Conto, the WSK championships will be decided at Sarno (Italy) with the event due next 6th June on the Napoli International Circuit.
The Interviews
Omar Di Gesualdo, CRG Team Manager: “It was a very positive weekend for our team. We re-gained the leadership of the KZ1 championship with Thonon and, even more important, our driver was able to show all the winning qualities of the CRG chassis and Maxter engine. Verstappen too did a good job in KF3: despite the crash during a heat which pushed him back in the starting grid of the pre-final, he managed to achieve a good result anyway. We are battling for the title in both these categories. I have to praise Kozlinski for what he did in Super KF: he recovered brilliantly after the qualifying heats. Felice Tiene, Davide Forè and Eddy Tinini did a good final phase too, getting the best out of our chassis and our engines”.
“We had the good performance of Michelle Gatting in KF2, even thug she was unlucky in the final race. However, this weekend ended with the double win of Thonon in KZ1, two good placings for Verstappen and a brilliant performance of our drivers in Super KF. We are satisfied”.
Jonathan Thonon (KZ1): “Everything went well. Only the pre-final start wasn’t perfect. I got involved in a crash during the first lap, but I managed to get out of it in 7th position. I recovered and won, despite the chassis was a bit damaged. I want to say thanks to all the CRG Team and to Omar, my mechanic, who made a real miracle fixing the kart for the final. In the second race everything went smooth: I managed to get well ahead in the first laps, then I simply controlled the situation till the end. This race was crucial for my championship: now the gap between me and the runner-up in the general ranking is rather wide and I hope to finish in the best way possible at Sarno.”
Arnaud Kozlinski (Super KF): “My pre-final was good. I arrived in 3rd after recovering from the 24th place. In the last laps I had a technical problem which came back during the final too: that’s why I couldn’t do better than 5th. That’s a pity, because I could have battled for the win. What really matters, anyway, is that now we are on the right track to get better and better performances.”
Davide Forè (Super KF): “It was a tough race. We tried to find the best set up to get a good result. For sure, here in Belgium we took a good step forward, but I’m absolutely confident, because for the next race we are developing important enhancements for the engine. I’m sure we’ll do great things in the last race of the championship but, above all, I’m looking forward to the next world series which will start next July in Portugal.”
Max Verstappen (KF3): “I’m glad for my result, especially because it comes in handy for the championship. I’m happy for the set up I managed to get for my CRG, after the weekend hadn’t started quite well. The crash I had during the last qualifying heat pushed me back to the 7th position on the starting grid of the pre-final. However, I was able to recover and arrive in third. Then in the final, I tried to get the leadership of the race, but I had to give in because the track was rather slippery and I was happy with the second place. Anyway, I’m leading the general ranking of the championship with a wide gap of points: I hope I will be able to do a good race at Sarno and, who knows, I might even win the last race.”
WSK Euro Series – The Final Rankings of Genk (B):
KF3:
1. Albon (GB) (Intrepid-Tm);
2. Verstappen (NL) ( Crg-Maxter) +1.325;
3. Hoevenaars (NL) (Intrepid-Tm) +2.779;
4. Visoiu (RO) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +2.960;
5. Dennis (GB) (Top kart-Parilla) +4.343;
6. Orudzhev (RUS) (Intrepid-Ttm) +5.960;
7. Caspari (D) (Energy-Tm) +8.796;
8. Truelove (GB) (Tony kart-Vortex) +9.040;
9. Hansson (S) (Tony kart-Vortex) +9.357;
10. Pakari (FIN) (Maranello-Maranello) +10.137.
KF2:
1. Nortoft (DK) (Fa Kart-Vortex);
2. D’Agosto (I) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +1.494;
3. Basz (PL) (Rk- Bmb) +1.880;
4. Moller (DK) (Energy- Tm) +3.594;
5. Varley (GB) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +4.033;
6. Cucco (I) (Birel-Parilla) +7.070;
7. Sörensen (DK) (Birel-Bmb) +7.156;
8. Butcher (GB) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +7.225;
9. De Ridder (B) (Kosmic-Vortex) +8.502;
10. Kanamaru (J) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +8.546.
SUPER KF:
1. De Vries (NL) (Zanardi- Parilla);
2. Ardigò (I) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +1.336;
3. Cesetti (I) (Birel-Bmb) +1.764;
4. Cooper (GB) (Kosmic- Vortex) +2.510;
5. Kozlinski (F) (Crg-Maxter) +4.176;
6. Camponeschi (I) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +5.383;
7. Convers (F) (Kosmic- Vortex) +5.839;
8. Catt (GB) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +8.426;
9. Vigano (I) (Birel-Parilla) +10.106;
10. Toman (CZ) (Birel-Bmb) +13.249.
KZ1:
1. Thonon (B) (Crg- Maxter);
2. Dreezen (B) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +2.675;
3. Pex Jorrit (NL) (Crg-Tm) +3.891;
4. Lammers (NL) (Intrepid- Tm) +3.956;
5. De Brabander (B) (Intrepid- Tm) +5.318;
6. Renaudie (F) (Pcr- Tm) +6.725;
7. Abbasse /F) (Sodi- Tm) +7.147;
8. Piccoli (I) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +7.668;
9. Hawksworth (GB) (Maddox-Parilla) +9.003;
10. Iglesias (F) (Intrepid- Tm) +12.909.
KZ2:
1. Pex Yard (NL) (Crg- Tm);
2. Visser (NL) (Intrepid- Tm) +0.702;
3. De Conto (I) (Energy- Tm) +3.974;
4. Fuchs (PL) (Birel-Tm) +5.007;
5. Jeleniowski (D) (Energy- Tm) +8.411;
6. Midrla (CZ) (Birel- Tm) +8.565;
7. Oberg (S) (Gillard-Parilla) +9.015;
8. Van Haandel (NL) (Crg- Tm) +9.241;
9. Negro (I) (DR-Parilla) +11.142;
10. Habulin (HR) (Crg- Maxter) +14.802.
WSK Euro Series. Championship Rankings After Four Events:
KZ1:
1. Thonon (B) points 187;
1. Lammers (NL) 162;
3. Abbasse (F) 104;
4. Dreezen (B) 95;
5. Iglesias (F) 91;
6. Renaudie (F) e Toninelli (I) 55;
8. Pex (NL) 49;
9. Piccoli (I) 45;
10. Nato (F) 40.
KZ2:
1. De Conto (I) points 235;
2. Visser (NL) 134;
3. Jeleniowski (D) 88;
4. Midrla (CZ) 86;
5. Fuchs (PL) 80;
6. Pex Yard (NL) 73;
7. Johansson (S) 60;
8. Garcia (E) 47;
9. Georgiev (BG) 40;
10 Davies (NL9 e Dalmau (E) 27.
SUPER KF:
1. Convers (F) points 194;
2. De Vries (NL) 171;
3. Ardigò (I) 153;
4. Catt (GB) 88;
5. Cesetti (I) 72;
6. Camponeschi (I) 67;
7. Cooper (GB) 63;
8. Kozlinski (F) 60;
9. Puhakka (FIN) 27;
10. Toman (CZ) 26.
KF3:
1. Verstappen (NL) points 220;
2. Albon (GB) 158;
3. Hoevenaars (NL) 108;
4. Visoiu (RO) 53;
5. Spinelli 52;
6. Beer 50;
7. Pakari (FIN) 38;
8. Hubert (F) 37;
9. Ocon 32;
10. Fioravanti (I) 32;.
KF2:
1. D’Agosto (I) poinhts 169;
2. Nortoft (DK) 120;
3. Moller (DK) 112;
4. Gatting (DK) 90;
5. Varley (GB) 73;
6. Basz (PL) 70;
7. Silva (BR) 66;
8. Barrabeig (E) 57;
9. Kanamaru (J) 49;
10. Klinkby (DK) 34.
Press Office
CRG SpA
Internacional - CRG-Maxter domina a KZ1 na Belgica no quarto evento do Euro WSK Series graças a Thonon
O piloto de Waterloo vence tanto a Pré-Final como a Final e retoma a liderança no ranking da KZ1, enquanto a liderança de Verstappen na KZ3 segue sólida. Boa performance dos pilotos da CRG na SKF, e Gatting tem azar na KF2 após chegar em Segundo na Pré-Final Genk(Bélgica) 9 d maio de 2010. O Time Oficial da CRG, obteve fantástica performance na penúltima etapa do WSK Euro Series, realizada na técnica e veloz pista de Horensbergdam, em Genk na Bélgica. Jonathan Thonon, o herói local, subiu ao degrau mais alto do pódio, graças a uma incrível performance, que evidenciou as grande qualidades dos chassis CRG e competitividade dos motores Maxter. O piloto, cuja cidade natal é a vizinha Waterloo, dominou na Pré-Final e na Final da categoria top com marchas, a KZ1. Graças ao seu desempenho, Thonon voltou a ocupar a liderança do campeonato, 28 pontos a frente do segundo colocado, Bas Lammers.O final de semana belga foi extremamente positivo para Max Verstappen que vem evoluindo sua performance a cada vez que vai a pista. Em Genk, ele obteve a terceira colocação na Pré-Final após uma incrivel corrida de recuperação e foi segundo colocado na Final. Graças a estes resultados, sua liderança na KF3 está mais segura.
Agora, 62 pontos separam Max e o piloto inglês Alexander Albon, seu único rival que ainda tem chances de levar o campeonato.
Verstappen só nescessita de mais 4 pontos na próxima etapa da WSK Euro Series em Sarno na Italia, dia 6 de Junho para levar o troféu de Campeão.Na outra categoria Top, a Super KF, os pilotos da CRG também impressionaram, melhorando seus desempenhos ao longo do final de semana. Koko Koslinski, foi o que obteve o melhor resultado, terminando a Final em quinto lugar, após uma recuperação inacreditável na Pré Final, quando saiu em 24th e cruzou a bandeirada em terceiro lugar.
Bons resultados também para Davide Foré, que terminou em décimo segundo nas duas corridas e Felice Tiene chegou em 14th na Final. Eddy Tinini terminou em 14th na Pré Final e 20th na Final.
A CRG teve grandes evoluções na KF2 também! Michelle Gatting, (CRG Junior) que vem confirmando ser a grande promessa do kartismo, acertou no alvo com um emocionante segundo lugar na Pré-Final, logo atrás de seu compatriota, Nortoft. Na Final, Gatting se envolveu em um acidente na primeira curva logo depois da largada, que vitimou vários outros pilotos. Na relargada, ela saiu em último e cruzou a linha de chegada em 19th. Gatting ocupa a quarta colocação no campeonato, e confirmou estar entre os melhores pilotos de sua categoria.E mais! O jovem piloto Jorrit Pex (CRG Holanda) esteve entre os melhores pilotos da CRG em Genk. Obteve um excelente terceiro lugar na Final da KZ1 e ocupa a oitava posição no campeonato. Seu irmão, Yard Pex, foi o vencedor na KZ2 e está em Sexto em sua classe.
Sendo assim, com a exceção do campeonato da KZ2, já vencido por De Conto, o WSK Euro Series vai ser decidido em Sarno na Itália no dia 6 de Junho, no Circuito Internacional de Nápole.
Entrevistas
Omar Di Gesualdo, CRG Chefe de Equipe: “Foi um Final de Semana muito positivo para o Time da CRG. Retomamos a liderança da KZ1 com o Thonon e o mais importante, nosso piloto demonstrou ainda mais as qualidades do chassis CRG e dos motores Maxter. Verstappen foi muito bem em sua classe, ainda que tenha sofrido o acidente na preliminar o que o colocou no fundo do grid. Estamos na disputa pelo campeonato nas 2 classes. Tenho que parabenizar Koslinski pela sua recuperação, bem como Tiene, Foré e Tinini com bons resultados também.”
“Tivemos grande desempenho de Michelle Gatting na KF2 ainda que lhe tenha faltado sorte na Final. Estamos muito satisfeitos!”
Jonathan Thonon (KZ1): “Tudo deu certo! Só a largada da Pré Final não foi perfeita. Me envolvi em um acidente na primeira volta mas consegui me virar e ainda vencer ainda que o chassis tenha ficado um pouco danificado. Gostaria de agradecer a Equipe CRG e ao Omar, meu mecânico que fez o milagre de consertar o kart para a Final. A segunda corrida foi mais tranquila e os resultados foram fundamentais para o campeonato. Vamos para Sarno com ótimas expectativas!”
Arnaud Kozlinski (Super KF): “Minha Pré Final foi boa. Cheguei em terceiro depois de sair em 24th. Tive problemas técnicos que voltaram a ocorrer na Final, o que não me permitiu ir além da quinta colocação. Mas o importante é que estamos no caminho certo e melhorando nosso desempenho a cada etapa.”
Davide Forè (Super KF): “Ufa! Foi uma corrida difícil. Tentamos achar o melhor ajuste na busca de resultados. Aqui na Bélgica, sabemos que estamos no caminho certo e demos um bom passo adiante, aliado aos desenvolvimentos implementados no motor. Estou ansioso pelo próximo Mundial a ser realizado em Portugal.”
Max Verstappen (KF3): “Estou feliz com meu resultado, especialmente, pois vem bem a calhar no campeonato. Estou feliz com os ajustes que encontramos para o meu CRG, após o final de semana não ter começado muito bem. O acidente que sofri na última bateria classificatória me jogou para sétimo no grid de largada para a Pré Final. De qualquer forma, consegui me recuperar e chegar em terceiro. Na Final, tentei pegar a liderança da prova, mas com a pista escorregadia, resolvi não arriscar e garantir o segundo lugar, o que já me daria a ponta no campeonato. Agora é ir para Sarno e que sabe, vencer a corrida lá!”
Resultados finais de Genk (B) do WSK Euro Series:
KF3:
1. Albon (GB) (Intrepid-Tm);
2. Verstappen (NL) ( Crg-Maxter) +1.325;
3. Hoevenaars (NL) (Intrepid-Tm) +2.779;
4. Visoiu (RO) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +2.960;
5. Dennis (GB) (Top kart-Parilla) +4.343;
6. Orudzhev (RUS) (Intrepid-Ttm) +5.960;
7. Caspari (D) (Energy-Tm) +8.796;
8. Truelove (GB) (Tony kart-Vortex) +9.040;
9. Hansson (S) (Tony kart-Vortex) +9.357;
10. Pakari (FIN) (Maranello-Maranello) +10.137.
KF2:
1. Nortoft (DK) (Fa Kart-Vortex);
2. D’Agosto (I) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +1.494;
3. Basz (PL) (Rk- Bmb) +1.880;
4. Moller (DK) (Energy- Tm) +3.594;
5. Varley (GB) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +4.033;
6. Cucco (I) (Birel-Parilla) +7.070;
7. Sörensen (DK) (Birel-Bmb) +7.156;
8. Butcher (GB) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +7.225;
9. De Ridder (B) (Kosmic-Vortex) +8.502;
10. Kanamaru (J) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +8.546.
SUPER KF:
1. De Vries (NL) (Zanardi- Parilla);
2. Ardigò (I) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +1.336;
3. Cesetti (I) (Birel-Bmb) +1.764;
4. Cooper (GB) (Kosmic- Vortex) +2.510;
5. Kozlinski (F) (Crg-Maxter) +4.176;
6. Camponeschi (I) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +5.383;
7. Convers (F) (Kosmic- Vortex) +5.839;
8. Catt (GB) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +8.426;
9. Vigano (I) (Birel-Parilla) +10.106;
10. Toman (CZ) (Birel-Bmb) +13.249.
KZ1:
1. Thonon (B) (Crg- Maxter);
2. Dreezen (B) (Tony Kart-Vortex) +2.675;
3. Pex Jorrit (NL) (Crg-Tm) +3.891;
4. Lammers (NL) (Intrepid- Tm) +3.956;
5. De Brabander (B) (Intrepid- Tm) +5.318;
6. Renaudie (F) (Pcr- Tm) +6.725;
7. Abbasse /F) (Sodi- Tm) +7.147;
8. Piccoli (I) (Tony Kart- Vortex) +7.668;
9. Hawksworth (GB) (Maddox-Parilla) +9.003;
10. Iglesias (F) (Intrepid- Tm) +12.909.
KZ2:
1. Pex Yard (NL) (Crg- Tm);
2. Visser (NL) (Intrepid- Tm) +0.702;
3. De Conto (I) (Energy- Tm) +3.974;
4. Fuchs (PL) (Birel-Tm) +5.007;
5. Jeleniowski (D) (Energy- Tm) +8.411;
6. Midrla (CZ) (Birel- Tm) +8.565;
7. Oberg (S) (Gillard-Parilla) +9.015;
8. Van Haandel (NL) (Crg- Tm) +9.241;
9. Negro (I) (DR-Parilla) +11.142;
10. Habulin (HR) (Crg- Maxter) +14.802.
Tabela do Campeonato WSK Euro Series depois de 4 etapas:
KZ1:
1. Thonon (B) points 187;
1. Lammers (NL) 162;
3. Abbasse (F) 104;
4. Dreezen (B) 95;
5. Iglesias (F) 91;
6. Renaudie (F) e Toninelli (I) 55;
8. Pex (NL) 49;
9. Piccoli (I) 45;
10. Nato (F) 40.
KZ2:
1. De Conto (I) points 235;
2. Visser (NL) 134;
3. Jeleniowski (D) 88;
4. Midrla (CZ) 86;
5. Fuchs (PL) 80;
6. Pex Yard (NL) 73;
7. Johansson (S) 60;
8. Garcia (E) 47;
9. Georgiev (BG) 40;
10 Davies (NL9 e Dalmau (E) 27.
SUPER KF:
1. Convers (F) points 194;
2. De Vries (NL) 171;
3. Ardigò (I) 153;
4. Catt (GB) 88;
5. Cesetti (I) 72;
6. Camponeschi (I) 67;
7. Cooper (GB) 63;
8. Kozlinski (F) 60;
9. Puhakka (FIN) 27;
10. Toman (CZ) 26.
KF3:
1. Verstappen (NL) points 220;
2. Albon (GB) 158;
3. Hoevenaars (NL) 108;
4. Visoiu (RO) 53;
5. Spinelli 52;
6. Beer 50;
7. Pakari (FIN) 38;
8. Hubert (F) 37;
9. Ocon 32;
10. Fioravanti (I) 32;.
KF2:
1. D’Agosto (I) poinhts 169;
2. Nortoft (DK) 120;
3. Moller (DK) 112;
4. Gatting (DK) 90;
5. Varley (GB) 73;
6. Basz (PL) 70;
7. Silva (BR) 66;
8. Barrabeig (E) 57;
9. Kanamaru (J) 49;
10. Klinkby (DK) 34.
CRG SpA
Versão Brasileira: Luigi Carneiro