Alex Powell and Anatholy Khavalkin were the surprise winners of the OK and OK-Junior class finals respectively at the third round of the European Championship held in Sweden on the weekend.
Australia’s Harry Arnett and Dante Vinci competed in the OK Junior field, both on Parolin/TM with the Shamick Europe team.
Arnett qualified 49th (of 73), just 0.535s off pole on a circuit with a 52-second lap. A DNF in one of the heats soured his score – his other heat results (13, 16, 15 & 12) had him on the bubble to make the final. 18th in the Super Heat improved his ranking from 44th to 39th, but not enough to transfer.
Dante Vince qualified 55th, but he too did not make the final, carding 22-23-17-16-16 in the heats. 29th in the Super Heat classified him 55th overall.
The official FIA Karting finals day report, photos and live stream from both days are below.
- full results HERE
The hierarchy seemed well assured at the end of the Super Heats of the FIA Karting European Championship – OK and OK-Junior at Kristianstad. However, the Finals allowed Anatholy Khavalkin to win in OK-Junior while Alex Powell (JAM) won in OK. The provisional rankings for both Championships remain unchanged, but the conclusion will only be closer in a month’s time in Franciacorta (ITA).
Sunday’s weather was even better than the day before, with a uniformly blue sky and temperatures approaching 25°. The races were demanding for the equipment while the drivers fought each other for hundredths of a second. The results of the Swedish event were somewhat different from the first two in Portugal and Spain. The more winding configuration of the Åsum Ring probably played a role in these variations, as did the constant work from the teams. In any case, the event was very strongly contested from start to finish in excellent sporting conditions, providing a great spectacle for the racing fans.
Under the Scandinavian sun, the numerous spectators present enjoyed the entertainment of the Finals. CIK-FIA President Akbar Ebrahim was again present at this well-organised European event.
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Following the results of this event, the battle for the titles will be more exciting than ever in a month’s time in Italy at the final round of the FIA Karting European Championship – OK and OK-Junior, which will take place from July 7th to 10th at the new Franciacorta circuit.
OK-JUNIOR: KHAVALKIN A NEW WINNER
Enzo Tarnvanichkul (THA – Tony Kart/Vortex/Vega) won Super Heat A ahead of Anatholy Khavalkin (Parolin/TM Racing/Vega) while Guillaume Bouzar (LUX – Tony Kart/Vortex/Vega) won Super Heat B against Kirill Kutskov (Birel ART/TM Racing/Vega) The Final was to change the balance of power again. Khavalkin negotiated his start perfectly from the outside lane and took the lead over Bouzar on the second lap. Jan Pzryroswki (POL – Tony Kart/Vortex/Vega) tried his luck, but remained second behind Khavalkin in a long neck-and-neck battle. Tarnvanichkul was in third place for most of the race. However, Kutskov stepped up his effort and moved into third place with three laps to go.
Khavalkin won with the fastest lap, 1” ahead of Pzryroswki, followed by Kutskov by 4” who was to be demoted to 18th later by a penalty while Tarnvanichkul dropped back to 10th with a badly positioned front fairing. Bouzar recovered third place ahead of Lewis Wherrell (GBR – Exprit/TM Racing/Vega) and Tiziano Monza (SGP – KR/Iame/Vega), Miguel E. Costa (BRA – KR/Iame/Vega) and Emanuele Olivieri (ITA – IPK/TM Racing/Vega) obtained flattering results ahead of the provisional leader Nathan Tye (GBR – Sodi/TM Racing/Vega), who maintained his position by ranking eighth in the Final ahead of Dmitry Matveev (Tony Kart/Vortex/Vega).
Provisional ranking of the 2022 FIA Karting European Championship – OK-Junior after the Round 3
1- Nathan Tye (GBR) 64 points
2- Anatholy Khavalkin 60 points
3- Dmitry Matveev 47 points
4- Enzo Tarnvanichkul (THA) 39 points
5- René Lammers (NLD) 38 points
POWELL THE FIRST JAMAICAN WINNER IN OK
Kean Nakamura-Berta (GBR – KR/Iame/MG) had confirmed his status of favourite with another brilliant victory during the Super Heat A against Alex Powell (JAM – KR/Iame/MG) and the World Champion Tuukka Taponen (FIN – Tony Kart/Vortex/MG). Tomass Stolcermanis (LVA – Energy/TM Racing/MG) won in Super Heat B ahead of Olin Galli (BRA – CRG/Iame/MG) and Luka Sammalisto (FIN – KR/Iame/MG).
Kean Nakamura-Berta was unsettled by a small exit from the track on the first lap of the Final and Powell took the lead on the following lap to never leave it. Maksim Orlov (Parolin/TM Racing/MG) was second until the ninth lap. Nakamura-Berta was back in second place, but Powell controlled the situation and kept his lead until the finish line, where he crossed the finish line 1,1” ahead of Nakamura-Berta.
Stolcermanis took third position far ahead of Taponen and Orlov. Evan Giltaire (FRA – KR/Iame/MG) had to fight hard to reach sixth place in front of the leader of the provisional ranking Joe Turney (GBR – Tony Kart/Vortex/MG). Arvid Lindblad (GBR – KR/Iame/MG) finally progressed to eighth position followed by Galli and Juho Valtanen (FIN – Tony Kart/Vortex/MG). Enzo Deligny (FRA – Parolin/TM Racing/MG) could count on a gain of 10 places to 11th position to stay well placed in the Championship while Ean Eyckmans (BEL – Tony Kart/Vortex/MG) finished a complicated weekend in 25th position.
Provisional 2022 FIA Karting European Championship – OK standings after Round 3
1- Joe Turney (GBR) 79 points
2- Kean Nakamura-Berta (GBR) 70 points
3- Alex Powell (JAM) 53 points
4- Enzo Deligny (FRA) 47 points
5- Evan Giltaire (FRA) 45 points
The results of the Kristianstad event can be found on the official FIA Karting Championship app for mobile devices and on the website www.fiakarting.com.
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