After Gabriele Mini’s performance in Las Vegas, the 2018 season ended in Adria with the third and final event of the WSK Final Cup in the rain. While Mini’ concluded with another victory and the 2nd place in the Championship, the rise of the Parolin chassis continued in 60 Mini. Always at the forefront of the category, Brando Badoer unfortunately dropped out in the Final and had to settle for 4th place in the standings of the Italian series.
“The season ends with a very positive overall score,” said Marco Parolin. “What better than to finish on the top step of the last race after a year full of top-notch performances? Gabriele Mini’s 2nd place in X30 Junior in Las Vegas at the Supernationals XXII had already made an impression, while Alessio Lorandi of Team Baby Race won in KZ2 at the wheel of a Parolin. This weekend, another Baby Race driver has also won in OK, demonstrating that private teams can win with Parolin. I think everyone is now convinced of the quality of our products. In 60 Mini, 20 of the 34 Adria finalists raced on a Parolin chassis and 10 finished in the top 14 in addition to a 1-2 in 1st and 2nd places. By winning the Junior Final in the rain, Gabriele demonstrated the versatility of our equipment capable of performing in all conditions.”
Brando Badoer had once again shown great potential in 60 Mini with four wins and two fastest laps in the Qualifying Heats after a retirement in view of the finish in the first heat. 2nd in his Prefinal, he unfortunately dropped to 16th on the last lap of the Final and could not improve his 4th place in the Championship. The American Mateo Rubio Luego was very successful in his first race with Parolin, 4th in the heats after his 5th fastest Qualifying, but he had to give up in the Final. Russia’s Maksimilian Popov was 4th in Prefinal B but lost many positions in the Final. His compatriot Kosntantin Krapin qualified narrowly in a beautiful Prefinal B. Finally the Emirates driver Keanu Al Azhari progressed well from 20th to 14th place in the Final. Note that all Parolin Racing Team drivers qualified for the Final.
Starting from the 10th place in the OK-Junior Heats, Gabriele Mini’ had three wins in his four races, including two fastest laps. Winner of his Prefinal, again the fastest, he led from start to finish in the Final and won masterfully with a lead of over 8”. Vice-Champion of Europe, Vice-World Champion, 2nd in Las Vegas, Gabriele once again finished 2nd in the WSK Final Cup.
After setting the 52nd time in Qualifying, Alessandro Cenedese had a good recovery in the heats up to 21st, but had to give up at the start of the Prefinal. The young Norwegian driver Martinius Stenshorne, just up from 60 Mini, started badly with his 70th position on the clock. He returned to 41st at the end of the heats despite some penalties and qualified in an incredible 9th place in Prefinal B. He continued his climb to 14th position, a gain of more than 50 places during the meeting. Finally, Lithuanian Kajus Siksnelis made his debut with the team. A penalty of 10” for having exceeded the limits of the track in the last heat definitively affected his progress.
“We are now going to celebrate this great season,” concluded Marco Parolin. “And we will immediately get back to work to build on our commitment to racing in order to prepare our strategy for 2019. After 2018 we have a good trajectory to continue along“.
At the 7 Laghi circuit in Castelletto, the second of three WSK Final Cup events was marked by changing weather conditions and tough races. In these complex conditions, Parolin confirmed the excellent potential of its more and more popular chassis, whatever the grip of the track. The intensity of the racing did not always favour to the drivers of the Parolin Racing Team in terms of raw results, but the performance was there.
“We are once again very satisfied with our penetration of the international competition market,” said Marco Parolin. “The top overall chassis brand at Castelletto, Parolin accounted for more than 40% of the 60 Mini platform and nine of our karts finished in the top 13. Of the drivers of our team, Brando Badoer was close to total success, as well as Gabriele Mini’ in OK-Junior. The Final result did not show their extraordinary potential, but that’s racing. We’ll do better next time!”
The performance of Brando Badoer in 60 Mini deserves to be celebrated. In line with his race at Lonato, he first took pole position before winning three of his Qualifying Heats. Well established in the leading group of the Final, he led for several laps before the intensity of the clashes forced him to drop to 7th place. Akshay Bohra progressed throughout the weekend and regained another nine places to finish 6th. Keanu Al Azhari also had a very good run after his 4th fastest Qualifying and finished in 9th position after a difficult start to the Final. Douwe Dedecker managed some great runs to return from 30th to 11th before finishing 21st. Finally, Konstantin Krapin qualified very well in the Prefinal (+12 pl) and gained 10 places in the Final to finish 24th.
In OK-Junior, Gabriele Mini’ was very disappointed in the Final that he had led for several laps. He kept his chances until the last lap, but an incident decided otherwise and he was then penalised for an unhooked spoiler. Alessandro Cenedese started well with his 10th fastest time, then a 5th and 2nd place in the heats. After an incident in his last heat, his performance finished there. For his second race in Junior, Martinius Stenshorne qualified very well in the Prefinal, but suffered several attacks in the Final before being penalised for his spoiler.
The last race of the season will take place this weekend in Adria for the conclusion of the WSK Final Cup. Parolin will again have the opportunity to demonstrate its strength before the winter break.