European Championship for Bennett at the Sachsenring

There was a general agreement for the drivers who discovered the hilly and curvy course of the Sachsenring, third and last round of the European Superkart Championship. For many of them, however, the driving pleasure was spoilt in the races by the degradation of tyres, which took a real hammering from the great downforce in the fast left hand corners and on the abrasive surfacing of the track.

Had it not been for these tyre problems, which only a few drivers escaped, Peter Elkmann would probably have won as he was head and shoulders over the others. Every time he appeared on the track in practice and in the races, Elkmann broke the speed records, relegating all his fellow competitors a full second behind! At an average of 164 km/h, he achieved a practice time 2 seconds faster than the best lap time ever obtained in MotoGP! The local spectators were flabbergasted by the level of performance of the Superkarts. In race 1, because of his completely ruined right tyres, Elkmann had to be content with second place, and his rear right tyre forced him to retire from race 2 while he was well ahead of the others.

Equipped with tyres of a different make which were a little less tricky to manage, Malcolm Crowe prevailed in race 1, while Gavin Bennett, by finishing third, secured the European title – his first one at this level – even before the last race of the season. But it does not mean that Bennett slackened off in race 2 as he carried off second place, i.e. his sixth podium in six races!

John Riley, who was betrayed by his engine in race 1, was rewarded of the night hours he spent repairing by a fine win in race 2. Covering the first lap in the lead, Phil Featherstone livened up race 2 from flag to flag and ended up third. Like many others, Lee Harpham saw his zeal curbed by the critical wear of his tyres but will nonetheless have made a strong impression as he led both races for a few laps.

Among other remarkable performances, the extraordinary recoveries of Stefan Malm in race 1 (from 51st to la 7th place) and of Benjamin Mahé in race 2 (from 48th to 6th place) will also be remembered.

The championship title is therefore taken by Gavin Bennett. The runner-up is Malcolm Crowe, who won two races. Michael Warn and Paul Kennings finish the season in excellent 3rd and 4th places.

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