Round 3 of the FIA Karting Academy Trophy at Cremona, Italy, proved a difficult weekend for Queensland’s Hamish Campbell, bringing to a close what has been a challenging international campaign.
Campbell showed encouraging pace in free practice but was unable to convert it into a front-running position and qualified 18th, securing row five starts for the heats.
In Heat 1, a last-minute switch to wet tyres saw Hamish climb to fourth early, but contact forced him off track and dropped him outside the top 10. He battled back to ninth, only to be handed a penalty for a pre-race parc fermé infringement. Heat 2 ended mid race with a mechanical issue while running inside the top 10, while Heat 3 was littered with on-track incidents. Despite this, Campbell fought through the pack to finish eighth, matching the pace of the race winner.
Unfortunately, with only one heat finish, one DNF and a DQ, Campbell was classified 39th overall and missed the cut for the Final. The result saw him conclude the championship 26th overall, in a campaign marked by misfortune, penalties, and DNFs despite showing flashes of genuine pace.
“It’s disappointing not to have been able to fully showcase what we are capable of in this championship,” said Hamish.
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“But I’ve learned a huge amount racing on the world stage in equal machinery. I’d like to sincerely thank my sponsors and supporters back home; your backing has been instrumental in helping me take part in this series.
“A special thanks also to Karting Australia for the honour of representing my country, and to the FIA for staging such a prestigious championship. I also want to thank Matt McLean, whose support on kart setup and coaching throughout the series has been invaluable in helping me continue to develop as a driver.”
Campbell will now take a short break before returning to international action. Next on his schedule is the FIA World Cup in Malaysia in mid-November, once again with a Vortex-powered OTK, followed by the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals in Bahrain in December, his final races of a busy and formative 2025 season.
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