Xavier Lázaro was present at the Circuito Internazionale Napoli (Sarno) last weekend for his final karting event of the year, the Ayrton Senna Karting Trophy, an ACI Sport-sanctioned event. Continuing his preparation for the 2022 season, his first with an extensive international program, the young Portuguese driver seized the opportunity to participate in this event to continue his training in race conditions. At the same time, he is getting acquainted with the tracks where he will compete in the upcoming year.
"The purpose of this presence in Italy was solely to give him the opportunity to accumulate more kilometers behind the wheel of the 60 Mini, besides being an event with many participants on a track where Xavier will compete in 2022", stated Vasco Lázaro, the father of the eight-year-old driver.
"This race was not originally in our initial program, but we ended up coming after Danilo Rossi mentioned to us that it was a good event before the end of this season and a good opportunity for Xavier to practice on the Sarno track", added Vasco Lázaro.
Xavier Lázaro's presence at this event did not have a predefined competitive objective. As the driver's father mentioned, this opportunity arose after a suggestion from the head of DR, the team with which the driver has an international program for 2022, which will be presented soon. The goal was simply to compete once again this year in an international event, allowing the driver to gain experience in a more demanding competitive scenario than what he has typically encountered throughout the national calendar this year. It's important to note that Xavier Lázaro is only in his first year of karting in the 60 Mini category (X30 Mini in Portugal), at eight years old, competing against older and more experienced drivers.
Event Highly Affected By The Storm In Sarno
With the Naples region being hit by bad weather for much of last week, track conditions for all participants were consistently challenging. It rained heavily on most days of the event, making life quite difficult for Xavier Lázaro, especially because his knowledge of the track was minimal.
Nevertheless, the driver from Várzea de Sintra was very active, seizing every opportunity to be on the track, while also paying close attention to all the instructions given by the team.
This event featured races for the 60 Mini category (engines from the previous generation of the category, currently used in the Italian championship) and for the Mini International Gr. 3 (current engines of the 60 Mini), with the Portuguese driver registered in the latter.
Although the results were not the most crucial aspect of this event, Xavier Lázaro showed some promising signs throughout the weekend. He had notable performances on Friday during the practice sessions, securing the 23rd position in his series and ranking 46th overall among the 60 participating drivers. His best qualifying lap was recorded at 1m15.064s.
On Saturday, the weather was more unstable, alternating between rain and sun, making the track quite challenging. This day was crucial for Xavier Lázaro, as he had the opportunity to experience the circuit with wet slick tires. Once again, the focus was on providing the driver with race experience. His inexperience was evident in the day's results, although there were excellent moments on the track, notably achieving 20th place in the first qualifying heat. In the second qualifying heat, Lázaro was one of the few who chose to use slick tires on a still very wet track. Inexperienced in those conditions, the driver couldn't avoid a collision, finishing in 29th place.
Luck did not favor the Portuguese driver in the final qualifying heat either, where he finished in 28th place, seven laps behind the winner, once again affected by a collision.
On Sunday, Xavier Lázaro competed in the Last Chance Qualifier, where he had a good race, starting from 31st place and making his way up to 27th.
"This event was always intended to provide Xavier with more kilometers and experience in a more intense environment than what he encounters in the Portuguese championship", said Vasco Lázaro. "This is one of the tracks where he will race in 2022, and throughout the year, he will frequently encounter many of the drivers he raced with this weekend. Being present in this event was an excellent experience on various levels, especially because he had the opportunity to experience the track in various grip conditions, some of them quite challenging. Undoubtedly, he takes away many lessons from here that will be useful in the future. A word also for the team that has welcomed him very well, and with whom there is an excellent relationship".
Photos: Vasco Lázaro
