The first round of the 2025 Australian Kart Championship at Port Melbourne’s Todd Road Circuit was a tough but valuable learning experience for me.
I raced my Parolin kart with Project X Racing, sponsored by Next Level Motorsport and Project X Racing. It was great to have the support of my driver coach, William Yarwood, my dad as my mechanic, and my mum cheering me on from the sidelines. There were 49 Cadet 12 drivers, and I was eager to give it my all.
Friday was practice day with four sessions. I wasn’t happy with my driving in the first two sessions. I felt like I wasn’t putting in the laps I needed, and drove a bit like a turkey. I was struggling to find clear space on track, and that really impacted my lap times. In session three, I improved a little, but I knew I still had a lot more to give. By session four, I was getting better, but I knew I had to step it up for qualifying.
On Saturday, I went into qualifying feeling ready but knowing I had to improve my consistency. I qualified 17th in my group, but when the two groups were combined, I ended up 38th overall. I got caught in traffic, and it really hurt my chances to set a faster time. But I knew I still had a shot in the heats.
Heat one started well for me. I made a great start and gained three places on the first lap. But on lap two, a kart in front of me had a small lose, and I didn’t have anywhere to go but into him. That dropped me to the back of the field, and I ended up finishing in 24th.
Heat two was even worse. A kart behind bumped me during an overtake and it was enough for the chain to come off. That ended my race early, and I was really frustrated.
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In heat three, I turned things around. I passed five karts on the first lap, and from there, I had some good battles. I managed to finish 17th, which gave me some important points going into the final heat.
For heat four, the grid was set by the results of the previous heats, so I started 24th. At the start, I managed to avoid a big pile-up at Turn 1, and that put me up to 7th place. There was a full-course yellow, but I stayed focused. When the race restarted, I passed another kart to move into 6th. Another full-course yellow came out and lasted until the end, so I finished in 6th. That result gave me enough points to qualify for the final, which I was happy about.
In the final, I started 38th. Unfortunately, the kart developed some mechanical issues, and the engine started to “four stroke,” which slowed me down. Despite that, I still kept pushing and managed to finish 32nd.
It wasn’t the weekend I had hoped for, but I’m happy I made it to the final despite the bad luck in the heats. I’m already looking forward to round two in Monarto, South Australia, in May, and I’m hoping for a better result there. With everything I’ve learned this weekend, I know I’ll be better prepared for the next round.
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