The flag of Portugal rose higher today on the podium of the Mini Sub-10 class at the Coppa Italia Karting, an event organized by the Automobile Club of that country (ACI), at the Valle del Liri Circuit in Arce.
Xavier Lázaro won the final of the class, completing a weekend that bordered on perfection behind the wheel of the official DR. The Portuguese driver dominated the Mini Sub-10 throughout the weekend, leaving his mark on the track where he first drove on Italian soil, before confirming his contract with the brand well developed by the five-time Karting world champion, Danilo Rossi.
Being the only non-Italian to compete in Mini Sub-10 for this event, in the presence of some big names in the class in that country, with whom he has competed in the Italian Championship and in WSK Promotion competitions, the Portuguese driver only failed to put himself in the top of the standings on Friday, during which he was second fastest in Qualifying.
Dominance of the Portuguese Driver Was Noticed in the Qualifiers
Xavier Lázaro began to emphasize his victorious ambition on Saturday morning, winning the first of the two qualifiers that would define the starting grid for the Pre-Final. The DR driver came out behind Italian Achille Rea, who had been fastest in Qualifying. After overcoming the young man who was driving a Tonykart, Xavier Lázaro never left first place, triumphing with an advantage of 0.390 seconds, in a race in which he also performed the fastest lap (53.303s).
During the afternoon, the driver from Várzea de Sintra confirmed himself as the favorite, triumphing in the final round, this time with Lorenzo Di Pietrantonio (BabyRace Driver Academy) finishing second, more than two seconds behind.
Tough Pre-Final
This morning, the Portuguese driver had to be at his best to win the Pre-Final, after a fierce duel in the final laps with local Achille Rea (Tonykart). The Italian had an excellent race, starting from 12th on the grid. In the final laps, Achille Rea even overtook Xavier Lázaro, but soon began trying to block the Portuguese driver. On the last lap, with a couple of corners to go, Xavier Lázaro chose a trajectory to try to overtake the Italian driver, but he threw himself in front of him and then braked hard. The crash was inevitable but Xavier Lázaro rose to first place and won, while Achille Rea was overtaken by Lorenzo Di Pietrantonio and had to settle for third place.
Irreproachable in the Final
In the Final, starting from first position, Xavier Lázaro immediately stayed in the lead when the lights went green and did not give his opponents the slightest chance, consolidating during the race an advantage that at the end of the 13 laps was more than eight seconds. In the last four laps of the race, when he could limit himself to managing his advantage, the Portuguese driver found motivation to improve the fastest lap of the race in all of them, setting it at 53.164 seconds. Behind the portuguese driver, racing at DR's home track, Lorenzo Di Pietrantonio (BabyRace Driver Academy) finished second, followed by Diego Bertellini (KB2 Racing Team), who overcame their various opponents in the final laps of a very intense race, in the fight for the remaining podium plositions.
‘I’m very happy to get my first victory in Italy and on a track that is so special for me and my team’, said Xavier Lázaro at the end, after triumphing on the track that is very close to the DR SRL facilities. ‘I want to thank my team in advance, especially Danilo Rossi, Marco Salemi, my mechanic, Gregorio, as well as my sponsors, my parents and everyone who supports me. I am very happy with this result, which will further strengthen and motivate me for the future. Winning races is not easy and in Italy the competitive level is very strong and much more demanding than what I knew in Portugal. That's why this win feels even better and I hope I can have this feeling more often in the future', said the young driver who was very happy after recently celebrating his 10th birthday.
Photos: Vasco Lázaro and Miguel Silva
