Xavier Lázaro won the Mini Gr. 3 today in the second round of the WSK Super Master Series, held at the Circuito Internazionale Napoli in Sarno, Italy. Driving the official DR/TM Kart/VEGA, Lázaro wrote another golden page for national motorsport and karting by becoming the first Portuguese driver to win a Final in any category at a WSK Promotion event on Italian soil. Xavier Lázaro also becomes the first Portuguese driver to triumph in the Mini Gr. 3 category in a competition under the aegis of the Italian promoter.
In Sarno, a track on the outskirts of Naples, Xavier Lázaro was truly imperial. After securing fourth place in Qualifying on Friday morning, the young driver from Várzea de Sintra claimed his first-ever Heat victory in the competition that same afternoon. In this race, Lázaro lost the lead at the start of the final lap, dropping to fourth place. However, in the same lap, with a masterful overtaking move, he surged from fourth to first and held onto the lead until the checkered flag. On Saturday, he competed in the remaining Heats, winning one and finishing sixth in the other.
With the sum of the points awarded, the young DR driver, from the team of five-time Karting world champion Danilo Rossi, started the Pre-Final from pole position. He led a group of three drivers, exchanging positions throughout the race, and on the final turn of the last lap, he dropped to third place. However, he managed to overtake both rivals before crossing the checkered flag.
With the Pre-Final victory, the eleven-year-old started the Final from pole position. He led the race and dominated, although at times he dropped to second and then third place. With confidence and a strong mindset, he quickly reclaimed the lead, building a gap of about one second over his closest rivals—a margin he managed perfectly to secure his first-ever win in the WSK Super Master Series.
"I achieved another dream: winning a round of a WSK Promotion competition", said Xavier Lázaro at the end, overjoyed with his achievement. "I fought hard for this day, and I hope it can be repeated many times. A huge thank you to my family for their unconditional support, and I also want to thank Danilo, my mechanic Gregório, Marco Salemi for the excellent engine he provided me, and the entire DR ‘family.’".
With the first two of the four rounds of the WSK Super Master Series completed, Xavier Lázaro is leading the Mini Gr. 3 category with 139 points, 23 more than his closest rival, the Italian Niccoló Perico. The next round of the WSK Super Master Series will take place from February 19 to 23 at the South Garda Karting in Lonato.
Qualifying Went Well, But It Didn't Result In Pole Position
Always among the fastest in all the free practice sessions, Xavier Lázaro showed strong performance in Qualifying, which is crucial for determining the starting grid position for the three Heats that lead to the Pre-Final and Final. With a good fast lap, the young driver from Várzea de Sintra was just 13 thousandths of a second shy of being the fastest in his group. His lap time of 1m05.973 placed him second in the group and fourth overall, with Achille Rea (CRG Team-T Group/TM Kart/VEGA) securing pole position.
Nearly Perfect Run in the Heats
With an exemplary performance, Xavier Lázaro flawlessly navigated the three Heats. Right from the start, in the first Heat, the DR driver was always in the fight for the win, leading as he entered the final lap, but dropped to fourth place. In a heavy braking zone for a sharp right-hand turn, he braked about 30 meters later than the drivers ahead of him, overtaking them all on the outside. The maneuver left the paddock in awe. With determination, attitude, and personality, the young Portuguese driver kept the DR in first position until the end of the race.
In the second Heat, the Portuguese driver once again performed at the highest level, once again fighting for the victory. During the race, he was beaten by the Frenchman Jean Poujol (Tonykart Racing Team-Tonykart/Vortex/VEGA), but Poujol was penalized for being at fault in the incident that forced Stepan Mazepin (SM Racing-Gillard/TM Kart/VEGA) off track. The French driver was penalized with a five-second time penalty, dropping to 10th place, and the victory was awarded to Xavier Lázaro.
The third Heat was ultimately contested in the rain, which didn't favor the Portuguese driver, as the setup of his kart wasn't ideal for the track conditions, with the engine having too long a gear ratio. Still, the 11-year-old did his best and, most importantly, made no mistakes, securing sixth place in the end.
Won the Pre-Final
With the combined results from the Heats, Xavier Lázaro raced in Pre-Final B, starting from pole position. Efficient off the line in the eight-lap race, the young DR driver maintained the lead from the start, at one point holding a gap of about one second over his closest rivals. However, without a slipstream—a key factor on a fast track like Sarno—he was caught by the two BabyRace Driver Academy drivers, Mason Robertson and Alessandro Nanni. In the penultimate lap, the Scot driving the Parolin/Iame/VEGA took the lead, but two corners later, Xavier Lázaro regained first place. In the final corner before the finish line, the Portuguese dropped to third, but with a remarkable final push, he overtook both rivals, winning by just 0.022 seconds over Alessandro Nanni. With this result, Xavier Lázaro secured pole position for the Final.
First Win in a WSK Competition Round
Starting from pole position, Xavier Lázaro took on the responsibility of leading the race from the outset. Authoritative, the DR driver led the pack until he dropped to third place, overtaken by two Baby Race Driver Academy drivers, Stan Ratajski and Mason Robertson. Lázaro never stayed out of the lead for long, but from the middle of the race, he began to be pressured by Ratajski and the then leader of the category, Italian Niccoló Perico (Team Driver Racing Kart-KR/Iame/VEGA). Near the end of the race, an intense battle for second place began, involving at least five drivers, which allowed the young DR driver to build a gap. As they entered the final lap, Xavier Lázaro was in the lead, with about a one-second advantage over Mason Robertson (Parolin/TM Kart/VEGA). The Portuguese driver managed this distance perfectly, winning ahead of Robertson, with Italian David Moscardi finishing third in the LenzoKart/LKE/VEGA for Novalux.
Photos: Sportinphoto Kart Photo-Agency and Vasco Lázaro
