HRKC Double-Header: The Perfect Support for RMC Ontario

In addition to the Rotax Max racers at the RMC Ontario opener, the Hamilton Regional Kart Club Briggs racers got to compete in a special double-header race weekend.

Split into two separate club race days, Saturday featured the majority of the HRKC membership, while Sunday saw several visitors join in on the action as the weekend featured perfect karting weather: warm, sunny and just a slight breeze to help the drivers soar down the Hamilton Karting Complex front straight.

Running within the RMC Ontario weekend schedule, the track was non-stop with action. The Briggs racers dazzled with great battles for every position and nearly every Final coming down to the last corners to determine the race winners.

Impressively, four of the five categories saw drivers sweep the victories in their respective classes.

It was also a great preview of what we expect to see at the Canadian Karting Championships later this summer in Hamilton, albeit with even more competition, as racers from across the country compete for prestigious National titles.

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Cadet: Romeo cannot be stopped

Initially, Mateo Romeo (LGK Kart) planned to race this weekend in both Briggs Cadet and Rotax Mini Max, but due to circumstances on Friday night, he chose to focus solely on the Briggs when it came time to race.

Putting all of his focus on the Briggs, Romeo was locked in and went on to secure both Final victories. They didn’t come easily as he had to contend with Ethan Smith (Intrepid), Blaine Donovan (CL Kart) and Koah Dozet (Nitro Kart).

Both Finals came down to a duel with Smith, with Romeo holding onto the lead on Saturday, while on Sunday, he pulled off a sneaky pass in the penultimate corner to retake the lead and get the win. Joining them on the podium both days was Dozet in P3, followed by Donovan in P4. Noah Kishun (Ultra Kart) took P5 on Saturday while Lucas Dos Santos (Parolin) earned the position on Sunday.

Mateo Romeo (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

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Junior: Andrew Adams works his last lap magic

The Briggs Junior features came down to a final lap sprint, and in both Finals, Andrew Adams (TonyKart) worked his magic to get into the lead at the perfect time and make it to the finish line first.

After a slight red flag delay in Saturday’s final, Adams overtook Wyatt Smith (Kart Republic) for the lead on the mid-race restart. Pushing him through was Melville Dos Santos (Goodwood F4K), and the pair traded the lead numerous times until the finish, while keeping a gap to the racers behind.

At the finish, Adams led Dos Santos across the line by only 0.086 seconds. Ethan Belknap (TonyKart) won the epic battle for P3, just narrowly beating Cross Lombardi (BirelART) and Aaron Kucherenko (BirelART).

On Sunday, it was a duel with Cody Shaw (TonyKart) that saw Shaw lead every lap except the final one as Adams waited patiently to make his move before pulling the trigger on the final circuit around the Hamilton Karting Complex. Dos Santos had to settle for third, and the lead pair linked up and pushed away from him.

Andrew Adams (41) and Cody Shaw (280) lead the Junior field to the green flag (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

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Senior Lite: Makovskis spoils the HRKC party

Senior Light was once again packed with competitors at the HRKC, with this weekend featuring more than 40 drivers on both race days.

Joining in on the action for the weekend was Major Makovskis (Kosmic), and he surely left his mark on the HRKC regulars as he secured not one, but two victories on the weekend.

Saturday saw Makovskis and Owen McCarthy (BirelART) break free from the field early and pull away. However, as the laps ticked away in the 22-lap main event, McCarthy began to slip back from the race leader, struggling with the grippier track surface during the RMC weekend.

This left Makovskis all alone to take the victory while McCarthy had to fend off the chasing pack. Raul Gabriel Canuto (Kart Republic) worked his way to P2 at the finish while McCarthy was third just ahead of Nathan Wilkie (BirelART) and Alex Murphy (CL Kart).

Sunday’s A Final was a lot more eventful. We also saw McCarthy switch over to a RedSpeed chassis for the day.

An eight-kart battle royale erupted in the Final that saw four different race leaders and a race anyone could win.

Makovskis and McCarthy led early, then Murphy took his turn in the lead for a lap, twice. Canuto pounced on Murphy to get the top spot on lap twelve after Makovskis slipped all the way back to P8.

Returning to the front, McCarthy traded the lead with Canuto for a few laps before leading the final three to reach the finish line first, while Makovskis recovered incredibly to get to P2 at the finish line, followed by Murphy, Wilkie and Anthony Quezada (Kubica Kart) as the top five all crossed within one second of the race winner.

However, McCarthy was given a penalty for failing to leave racing room, which knocked him off the podium and put Makovskis on top for the second day in a row, joined by Murphy and Wilkie on the podium.

With such a large group, a B Final was required on both race days. On Saturday, Dillon Coleman (BirelART) took the win to transfer to the A Final, while on Sunday, it was Riley Paladichuk (BirelART) who got it done.

Major Makovskis celebrates his victory (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

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Junior Lite and Masters: Kishun doubles up – Mezin and Leleivre split

Aiden Kishun (Ultra Kart) was in a league of his own in Junior Lite this weekend, easily cruising to victory in both Finals.

On Saturday, he went unchallenged and won by 3.6 seconds over Oliver Gonsalves (BirelART) and Peiyuan Liu (OTK), while on Sunday, Tyler Del Bel Belluz (OTK) joined the action and finished runner-up ahead of Gonsalves.

In the Masters division, Joseph Mezin (Kart Republic) pulled away to victory on Saturday, beating Rich Folino (BirelART) and Liam Barbosa to the finish line by 6 seconds.

After a DNF in Saturday’s main, Patrick Leleivre (Barrichello Kart) came back with vengeance to score the victory. He had to fight off David Miller (OTK) on the final lap while Mezin was just behind at the finish line to secure his second podium of the weekend.

Aidan Kishun (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

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The Hamilton Regional Kart Club returns to action this coming weekend for another club race, taking to the track Sunday, June 7, while the RMC Ontario’s next stop will be at the Mosport Karting Centre on June 19-21, which will also feature the launch of the new BSC Ontario series for Briggs racers.