Xavier Lázaro secured 10th place today in the Trofeo Andrea Margutti, an event that honors the young Italian who lost his life in a karting race in 1989. In the 35th edition of the race at the South Garda Karting track in Lonato, the Portuguese driver started the Final from the 24th position. With a flawless performance, Xavier Lázaro was consistent and effective in climbing positions, pursuing the goal of finishing as best as possible in a weekend where it took some time to gather the necessary competitiveness to compete with the best in the Mini Sub 10 category.
At the wheel of the Gillard/TM by SM Racing, Xavier Lázaro finished the race in 11th place, but took advantage of the penalty assigned to the Italian Antonio Ianni to climb into the top 10, a remarkable result for someone who, in a high-level race and with only 10 laps, managed to make no less than 13 overtakings on the track.
After being one of the best in the first free practice sessions, Xavier Lázaro struggled with little competitiveness on Friday, which affected him in the timed practices and in the first of the three Heats that determine the positioning in the Pre-Final and Final. Although the Portuguese driver's pace was better on Saturday, it was only on Sunday that SM Racing managed to hit upon the competitive solutions that were being introduced.
Some Competitiveness Issues Since Qualifying
Although Xavier Lázaro was competitive on track and in pursuit of top positions on the timing charts during the initial free practice sessions, the truth is that right from the Qualifying session, the Portuguese driver seemed to be struggling with some competitiveness deficit behind the wheel of the Gillard by SM Racing. The result obtained in the session reflects this, with Xavier Lázaro unable to achieve better than the 11th time in his series, 21st overall in the Mini Sub 10 category, which, for this traditional event, featured 64 drivers.
This situation was once again evident in the first Heat, held on Friday afternoon. Starting from 11th place, Xavier Lázaro had a good start to the race, quickly moving up to the top six. However, as the race progressed, the Portuguese driver began to lose positions, clearly showing that he did not have the desired pace to maintain his position at the front. Facing some difficult situations, such as when he was pushed off the track by an opponent, Xavier Lázaro finished the race in 10th place, but was ultimately penalized for overtaking his teammate (Stepan Mazepin) during a yellow flag situation, resulting in a five-second penalty and relegation to 19th place.
Na segunda Eliminatória, tornou a partir bem, conseguindo de novo logo ganhar algumas posições. Xavier Lázaro cumpriu na pista em termos de competitividade e terminou num positivo quarto lugar. No entanto, com danos no bico, sofreu nova penalização, que o ‘atirou’ para o 12º lugar.
In the final Heat, Xavier Lázaro managed to achieve his best result, starting from 11th place to secure ninth place. After having his results compromised in the first two Heats, the Portuguese driver ran under pressure in this final chance to secure a spot in the Pre-Final, ultimately adopting a conservative approach on the track.
New Penalty in the Pre-Final
Xavier Lázaro knows he is competitive in the Mini Sub 10 category, even though he encountered some new opponents at the Trofeo Andrea Margutti and, like everyone else in the category, had to adapt to the Mg tires to compete in the event honoring the late Italian driver. Therefore, in the Pre-Final, starting from 23rd place, Xavier Lázaro tried to reach the front positions. Despite putting in a consistent performance, once again the young Portuguese driver ended up paying a high price for the need to try to climb positions to place himself as far forward as possible for the Final start. In the early laps, a few touches even pushed the SM Racing youngster back to the last positions, but then Xavier Lázaro had a good phase, steadily gaining places. In a heated moment, he ended up damaging the front bumper again, resulting in another penalty and finishing in 24th position, still ahead of where he started the race. He also recorded the second fastest lap of the race.
High-Level Finish
Starting from the 24th position for the Final of the highly competitive Mini Sub 10 category, Xavier Lázaro knew that he needed to push himself as far forward as possible. And that's exactly what the 10-year-old achieved in the dozen laps of the race. With calmness and perfect timing, he climbed positions without getting involved in contact with his opponents. A consistent and determined performance placed the Portuguese driver just outside the top 10, in 11th position. However, this time it was the young driver from Várzea de Sintra who benefited from the misfortunes and mistakes of others, rising to the 10th place after the penalty assigned to Italian driver Antonio Ianni (Team Driver).
Xavier Lázaro's weekend in this edition of the Trofeo Andrea Margutti was challenging, but consistently improving, just like the performance of SM Racing, relentless in the pursuit of solutions to enhance the competitiveness of the Gillard karts provided to the Portuguese driver and Stepan Mazepin.
Photos: Sportinphoto Kart Photo-Agency and Vasco Lázaro
