GP Racing and Syazwan take RMC Round 1 Victory

Syazwan Mohd Noor established himself and his GP Racing GP10 as the combination to beat in the junior class in Malaysia with a dominant display during the 1st round of the Rotax Max Asia and Malaysia championship at Speedway Plus Circuit in Kuala Lumpur on 12th March.
In DD2 Syazwan showed very good speed for most of the weekend but was plagued by gear selection problems. In the final, Syazwan took the lead initially but the problems resurfaced and he had to retire from the race.
In the junior class, Syazwan and his GP Racing GP10 dominated from the start of the weekend and set the fastest lap in all sessions and races. In the pre-final, he initially was led by main rival Gilbert Ang but passed after a few laps and gained enough lead to cruise to an impressive victory. The final was more straightforward, Syazwan taking an immediate lead and pulling away to a very comfortable win, with Gilbert again finishing 2nd. Syazwan said after the race: “My new GP10 was really good all weekend and I always felt in control. The DD2 was disappointing but if I win next time I’ll recover most of the points lost today. It’s great to be leading the junior championship but Gilbert and some of the others are tough competitors so I have to keep practicing and improving”.
Team Manager John King said “Syazwan will now be the clear favorite for the championship so there’s a lot of pressure on him and the team but I’m sure we can all cope with this. Syazwan’s driving was tremendous – in the final once he established a small lead, he consistent set laps fastest than any of his competitors could match and ended up with an unassailable lead. All the hard work he’s done during testing to get the right set-up for the kart really paid off. The new GP10 was simply amazing – Syazwan looked like he was on rails all weekend. “
The new DD2 driver from Singapore KEN SMITH in his first race in DD2 start dominating the DD2 class but have to settle to 4th place due to wrong flagging by marshals and due to throttle jam at the Finals.
He was doing fastest lap through out the heats and went in to finals with high hope to rapping up for GP for 1st and 2nd with shyswan for the DD2 but has to settle for 4th place. Overall we are very happy with our team performance.
GP RACING ASIA
Kapila Jayasiriwardena
Managing Director
GP RACING ASIA

Team News: Evolution Karting/GP Chassis - Florida Winter Tour Palm Beach Report

Evolution Karting driver Kurt Mathewson scored two wins in the Masters Shifter and scored two second place finishes in Stock Moto at Palm Beach International Raceway February 20-21 during the second round of the Florida Winter Tour Series. In addition, Innsfil Karting/GP Canada driver Zach Meyer scored two second place finishes in the KZ2 category.

While he swept the pre-final and finals both days, it was far from easy for Kurt Mathewson as Canadian Michel LeGrand pushed him hard both days. Unfortunately for Michel he was involved in a three kart accident at the start of the Sunday Final and couldn’t continue.

In the Stock Moto class it was a two-kart battle between Lucas Johnson and Cole Mathewson. Cole missed his flight to Florida and only arrived with enough time for two practices on Friday, which had him a little behind on adjusting his chassis to the track. Johnson was the better of the two both days, but Cole closed the gap each time they were on the track and pushed Lucas hard in the Sunday final but still had to settle for second.

With their results this weekend, Kurt Mathewson leads the Masters Shifter division with a wide margin. Cole Mathewson also leads the Stock Moto division with a 50 -margin over Vicki Brian Hagar and Carly Mandarino in third. Lucas Johnson is 115 pts back due to a DNF and a technical DQ in first two races last month in Orlando. In KZ2 Zach Meyer leads the category with a 175-point margin over Matthew Di Leo.

Evolution Karting is the Midwest based importer for GP Chassis and is looking to build their presence with strong support from the GP factory in the shifter categories as well as the non-shifter classes as well. Plans are to compete in the WKA Manufacturer’s Cup series beginning in April at the South Bend round as well as the SKUSA Pro Tour Series.

Anyone interested in information on the GP chassis for shifter, TAG, Yamaha or cadet classes should contact Kurt Mathewson at kurt@evolution-karting.com or visit http://www.evolution-karting.com

Florida Winter Tour Orlando Report

Canadian GP Racing Karts driver Zack Meyer kicked off his 2011 karting season with a dominating performance at the opening round of the 2011 Florida Winter Tour at the Orlando Kart Center. Meyer, was quick from the opening session and ended the double race weekend with two poles, two pre-final wins and two final wins.

"It's a great way to start the year," Meyer said after Sunday's final. "We were fast right off the trailer. I have to thank Joe Launi for all his hard work on our GP Racing Karts program this winter at the Innisfil Indy - it really paid off this weekend."

On Saturday, Meyer dominated the KZ2 class, and repeated the performance again on Sunday with none other than Williams F1 driver Rubens Barrichello taking the runner up spot. "It was great to have a F1 driver - Barrichello - in the race today. I just had to keep pushing hard for the win."

Meyer will have to put the opening weekend behind him quickly as he now prepares to mount his GP Racing Kart Rotax DD2 to compete in the opening round of the FWT for the Rotax classes.

"This weekend will be as tough as the first round of the KZ2 class," Meyer said. "There are lots of good drivers in good equipment in DD2, but I am confident in my GP Racing Kart and Joe Launi to help me get to the front this weekend."

http://www.ekartingnews.ca/

Driver News: Austin Schimmel - Crockett Motorsports

After several discussions between Austin Schimmel Racing and Crockett Motorsports, we are proud to announce that Austin has joined Crockett Motorsports.

After finishing 3rd at SKUSA SuperNats and 2nd in the SKUSA Pro Tour, discussions for the 2011 season began. With such a strong run in Vegas, it became once again obvious that Austin was meant to be in this sport. The move to Crockett Motorsports seemed to be the best business decision to make.

Austin and Crockett Motorsports will be able to benefit from each other. Owner Derek Crockett, winner of the Pro Tour in the S2 class, will be able to closely work with Austin to better his on track and off track presence. Austin will be able to share his talents and abilities with the younger drivers on the team as well.

Crockett Motorsports was founded by Derek Crockett of Cahokia, Illinois at the end of the 2009 season. Derek has been karting for 13 years and has been working in a kart shop for 6. When asked about signing Austin Schimmel, Derek stated “We are very happy to have Austin on board with Crockett Motorsports, he will be a huge asset to our S5 program and I'm really looking forward to working with him in the 2011 season.”

Austin Schimmel started racing when he was 9 and never would have thought he’d be given an opportunity like this. When asked about moving teams Austin proudly stated “I am thrilled to be a part of such a close knit team like Crockett Motorsports. This is one of the best things that’s ever happened to me in karting!”

-For more information on Crockett Motorsports check out their Facebook or contact Crockett Motorsports at crockettmotorsport@yahoo.com

-To stay up to date on all of the latest Austin Schimmel Racing info check out our Facebook or contact Jessie Crowbridge at jessiecrowbridge@msn.com to be added on our Friends of Austin mailing list.

www.ekartingnews.com

GP TEAM VENEZUELA WINS!!

Awesome job in south america for the official GP TEAM in Venezuela.
First and second place for the drivers Kevin Alfredo Lopez Gonzales and Sidney Gomez Obiedo.

GOOD JOB TO ALL THE GP VENEZUELA TEAM!!

GP Chassis Claims 2 Series Championships.

At the final round of the Mi-Sedaap Pro Tour, both Mark Swetman and Daniel Bray wrapped up the Series Championships for Formula 125S and the premier KZ2 class, 2 of the 3 classes in the spectacular series in just the chassis’s first year on the New Zealand Market.

Going into the final round Bray had a whopping 17 point lead over fellow GP driver Daniel Dufty, who was running second in the points. Bray qualified on the front row with Dufty managing 5th, (which was respectable, as he could not make Friday practice with work commitments).
In the heat races Bray was in a hefty battle for the lead, finishing 2nd, 2nd and 1st, while working on the chassis set up. Dufty would be in another battle through the heat races finishing 4th and 3rd but unfortunately didn’t finish the 3rd heat race.
In the Pre Final, Bray settled for second place, as he was struggling with a leaking bead lock in the left rear tyre. Dufty once again had a fight to the end on his hands, only to loose 3rd place with 4 laps to go.
The Final lived up to all expectations as a great race. Bray got the lead with his GP chassis, bolting from the standing start (as he had all weekend long). Bray held the lead till lap 4, when he got shuffled back to 3rd and lost ground to the leaders. He pulled the leaders in, in just one lap and made the pass for second. Bray then stalked the leader for the next 5 laps until on lap 10 he made his move, and never looked back, winning the all important final and finishing the series in winning fashion.
Dufty would not have as much fun in the final, not finishing with motor problems. This dropping him to 3rd in the championship by 1 point.

Mark Swetman’s day was business as usual for the GP driver. Mark qualified on pole and won all the heat races, Pre Final and Final. Mark finished the year with the most points possible, getting all the bonus points for qualifying and winning every round.

The newest GP driver Kerry James would have another strong round, driving in the Formula 125S class. In the heat races he would finish as high as 3rd. Kerry finished the final 5th, one place higher than the previous round. Kerry finished the series 4th overall.

GP Driver News: Austin Schimmel - SKUSA Pro Tour SummerNationals - Report

Coming off several solid regional race weekend performances, Austin Schimmel (Colorado Springs, CO) arrived in Shawano, WI looking to continue his stellar 2010 season. The outstanding USA International Raceway was host to rounds 3 and 4 of the 2010 Superkarts! USA Pro Tour. The Pro Tour SummerNationals featured an exciting three day format. One full practice day of six on-track sessions, followed by two complete and separate race days.

Schimmel drove his S5 Rocky Mountain Kartworks GP fantastically through the Friday practice sessions, getting familiar with the track, and setting a pace that no competitors could match. He topped the time sheets in both of the Friday afternoon timed sessions. Saturday qualifying saw Schimmel on pole by nearly 1 second, posting a lap time of 1:12.871. He settled into a rhythm for heats 1 and 2, winning by over 3 seconds in both 6 lap races. In the 12 lap main event, Schimmel built a comfortable lead, but developed a chain/sprocket problem causing him to relinquish the lead and come to a halt on the final lap. A disappointing result for certain, but Schimmel’s pace was undeniably strong.

Saturday night brought foul weather and rain showers that continued at the circuit through warmup and qualifying on Sunday morning. Schimmel qualified 7th on the soaked track after spinning off early in the session. In the first of two heat races, Austin rocketed to the front, holding P2 after 2 laps and taking the lead after 5, winning by about a second and claiming the fastest lap by over half a second. Then, Austin lead the entire 2nd heat and won by nearly 5 seconds, displaying a strong pace for the main event to follow. In the 12-lap final race, it appeared that his competitors had gained a bit of ground, but it wasn’t enough to deny Schimmel. He won by 5 seconds, and set the fast lap of the race, gaining him additional championship points.

Schimmel and the Rocky Mountain Kartworks team are surely pleased with his first career Pro Tour win. Austin’s strong weekend in Wisconsin earned him some nice hardware on the podium, as well as the lead in the season’s points standings. Schimmel will look to score well and protect that championship lead at the SKUSA SuperNationals this fall in Las Vegas, NV.

For more information and racing updates, please visit Austin's fan page