Kart-SM: Spectacle with surprises

SKM WOHLEN The third round of the autobau Swiss Kart Championship took place on Saturday in Wohlen. All 18 races were varied, sometimes turbulent, and there were also a few surprises at the end. The tightly angled track layout of the Wohlen kart track in the canton of Aargau presented special conditions, especially for the drivers in the larger classes. Overtaking maneuvers against equal [...]

KZ2: Tobias Widmer (sitting in the kart) also tore the scolding Arnaud Nussbaum out of the race with his failed overtaking attempt.

The angular track layout of the Wohlen karting track in the canton of Aargau posed special conditions, especially for the drivers of the large classes. Overtaking maneuvers against drivers of the same level were only possible with a lot of risk due to the narrow track without run-off zones, which was interspersed with many waves and humps.

The failure rate due to pile-ups and jostling was correspondingly high.

KZ2: Reinhard wins again and is new overall leader
After a weak start to the season, championship favorite André Reinhard had already returned to the top with a final victory in Vesoul, France. In Wohlen, Reinhard did the same. After a win and a second place in the two heats, he also won the final.

Until halfway through the race, he waited patiently for his chance behind Arnaud Nussbaum, who had dominated the season opener in Pavia. With a hard maneuver he squeezed past the leader and then immediately put a few meters between himself and the chasers.

André Reinhard: "26 laps in Wohlen are difficult, long and exhausting. We chose a setup that was perfect for the second half of the race. After overtaking Nussbaum, I was able to pull away immediately. Thanks to the many points, I'm now back in business in the race for the title."

Podium KZ2 (from left between the ladies of honor): Kevin Lüdi, winner André Reinhard and Samuel Weibel.

The defeated Nussbaum was not even allowed to enjoy second place. Four laps before the end, third-placed Tobias Widmer launched an overly optimistic overtaking maneuver that took both riders out of the race. This meant that Kevin Lüdi and Samuel Weibel were allowed to climb onto the podium alongside Reinhard.

Even Hicham Mazou, who had been leading the overall standings until Wohlen, did not escape unscathed. In the second heat he dropped out after a carom, but in the final he kept the damage within bounds with 4th place. Nevertheless, he had to relinquish the overall lead to Reinhard.

OK Senior: Formula 3 driver Fabio Scherer challenges Patrick Näscher
Patrick Näscher had already swept all the victories in Pavia and Vesoul. In Wohlen, he again left no stone unturned and won all three races, although he had a very strong opponent in Formula 3 guest driver Fabio Scherer (Top Kart/Parilla).

The two immediately and clearly set themselves apart from the rest of the field. Scherer, after all a two-time Swiss karting champion in 2014 (KF3) and 2015 (X30 Challenge), praised Näscher afterwards.

Fabio Scherer: "After all, I was the fastest in qualifying and set the fastest race lap in the final. But Näscher was driving strongly, attacking him would have involved too much risk, and I didn't want to interfere unnecessarily in the championship. But overall it was fun to be in the kart again and meet many of my former opponents and colleagues."

Third on the podium was Julien Apothéloz, who managed to keep last year's runner-up Pascal von Allmen behind him.

Podium OK-Senior (from left): Guest driver Fabio Scherer, who comes from Formula 3, Pratrick Näscher and Julien Apothéloz.

Alessio Fagone and Florent Panès were the only two OC juniors at the start in Wohlen. Fagone won all three of the races held together with the X30 Juniors.

Iame X30 Challenge: A trio sets itself apart
As is often the case, this technically highly regulated and, thanks to standardized engines, cost-efficient class also provided the largest starting field in Wohlen with 23 competitors. The scramble in the tight starting bend was correspondingly great.

Danny Buntschu, who had lost places and points in Vesoul due to time penalties, mercilessly struck back. With pole position, three race wins and the fastest race lap, he scored the maximum points and thus also moved to the top of the championship.

Alain Baeriswyl, who had won everything in Vesoul, and the previous overall leader Savio Moccia were left with the two places of honor. At the halfway point of the season, it looks as if these three drivers will decide the X30 championship title among themselves.

Iame X30 Junior Challenge: Eron Rexhepi won ahead of Michael Sauter and surprisingly scored the maximum points.

Iame X30 Junior: New role distribution
The bad news came already before the start in Wohlen: The young championship leader Hugo Giraud had a serious accident at an international race in Belgium (fracture of the thigh) and will not be able to compete in the SKM again this season.

In Wohlen, it was not Elia Sperandio, Michael Sauter and Samir Ben who fought it out for the race wins, but young Eron Rexhepi. He won all three races in a superior way and surprisingly scored the maximum of 75 points. Second in the final was Sperandio ahead of Sauter and Vaucher.

Supermini podium: Ekaterina Lüscher, Shannon Lugassy and Enea Frey.

Super Mini: From the very back to the very front
Hectic starts, race aborts and sometimes very hard fought battles for positions without regard for losses characterized the races of the youngest. Ekaterina Lüscher was able to stay out of the biggest turmoil thanks to a front row start and won both heats.

In the final, championship leader Shannon Lugassy caught her shortly before the finish. Through no fault of his own, Lugassy had had to start from far back due to a defective time transponder and fought his way through the field to the top.

Third place went to Enea Frey. At the top of the table, Lugassy and Lüscher are only three points apart (170:167).

Live and to follow on the Internet
All final races of Wohlen were broadcasted via live stream with commentary on the internet as at every SKM event. Who would like to watch the races afterwards, can do this under http://swiss-sport.tv/sports/3-andere-sportarten do

Information: Markus Lehner

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