- Regularity has marked the performance of the 18 drivers of the Barcelona team in the premiere of the 2024 Spanish Karting Championship at the Campillos circuit, Malaga.
- Santi Vallvé, with a victory and a third place, and Raúl Zunzarren, with a third and a second place, stand out in the KZ and Senior categories, respectively. Nicolás García (2nd in a Junior final) and Iván González (3rd in one of the Mini), complete the list of presences in the box.
- “ It has been a hard weekend, but we say goodbye satisfied and with our homework done. We have been on the podium in four of the five categories in which we compete and we have remained in the race for the title from the beginning ,” comments Rubén Simón, Team Manager of the Monlau Motul Karting Team.
- “ The rookies, or those of our drivers who jumped divisions, have achieved results very in line with what we expected from them. The work of the technical staff has also been magnificent, which fills us with motivation ,” says Jaime Serrano, CEO of Monlau Motul Technical School.
Positive start for the Monlau Motul Karting Team in the Spanish Karting Championship (CEK), which held its inaugural event last weekend at the Campillos circuit in Malaga. Although the majority of the team’s 18 drivers regularly appeared in the top 15, the best results came in the more performance divisions. Santi Vallvé signed the first victory of the year in the second KZ final, which he seasoned with a podium in the first race. The list of presences in the box was completed by Raúl Zunzarren in Senior, in his case twice, Nicolás García in Junior and Iván González in Mini.
The complete staff of Monlau Motul Technical School began the 2024 CEK season facing each event with regularity as the common denominator, and the podium or victory as the priority objective in any division. The enormous work carried out during the season invited optimism, but in categories with such a large registration, attention to detail and avoiding the slightest error would hide the key to success.
In Campillos, the KZ division was the one that took the biggest honors for the Barcelona team. With 31 registered on the starting list, the Monlau Motul quintet harvested a Saturday with Santi Vallvé, 2nd after the heats, as the spearhead, and two other karts in the top 10: Berta Ràfols 6th and Santiago da Costa 9th. On Sunday, Vallvé completed the job with a third place in the first final and the comeback to victory in the second. For their part, Sete Veà (9th and 5th) and Santiago da Costa (10th and 7th) did not move from the top 10. Berta Ràfols achieved that goal in the first round (7th), and crossed the checkered flag in 14th in the second. It was more difficult for her brother Arnau, who could only be 19th and 24th.
Five other pilots represented Monlau Motul Technical School in Senior, a category that included a notable list with a total of 44 names, the largest of the meeting. In his debut weekend, Raúl Zunzarren was solid as in his Junior stage, and from the official training sessions, where he set the second time, he did not move from the top 5. Fourth at the start of the first final, the Navarrese underlined a great Sunday achieving a 3rd and a 2nd place in the two finals. The list of results for the team was completed by Miquel Blascos (16th and 10th), Mateo Rubio (12th and 14th), Asier García (17th and 15th) and Francisco Cardoso (22nd and 19th).
In Junior, a division that brought together 34 participants, three of which with the Monlau Motul Technical School colors, Nicolás García was one of the great animators. The Andalusian driver completed times and heats in an optimal 4th place, but a problematic first final relegated him to 9th place. In the second round, García put on his overalls and managed to recover seven positions to achieve a magnificent second place. Less fortune for his teammates Egor Ivanchenko (twice 13th) and Beatriz Cardoso (30th and 25th), who will take lessons for the next match.
Monlau Motul went with four drivers to the Mini division, whose starting list registered 35 participants. A good part of the four representatives of the Barcelona team were among the hosts of the meeting, starting with Iván González, who already gave an initial warning by taking the best time in the official round, although later the heats ended up relegating him to fifth place of the starting order. In the Sunday races, the Catalan achieved a 4th and a 3rd place that keeps him at the top of the classification. Nuvola Morales was 5th and 11th; Álvaro Perelló, 14th and 6th; while Rafael Simón finished 15th and 27th.
The weekend for Monlau Motul Technical School was completed by the Academy division, intended for those drivers taking their first steps in karting. Eduardo Costa, the team’s only representative, learned important lessons from the start, concluding both races in 12th and 10th place, respectively.
Rubén Simón , Team Manager of the Monlau Motul Karting Team, gave a satisfactory assessment of the inaugural CEK event: “ It has been a hard weekend, but we say goodbye satisfied and with the feeling of having fulfilled our duty. We have been on the podium in four of the five categories in which we compete, which keeps us in the fight for the title from the beginning .”
Jaime Serrano , CEO of Monlau Motul Technical School, was equally satisfied: “ The rookies, or those of our pilots who jumped divisions, have achieved results very in line with what we expected from them. The work of the technical staff has also been magnificent, which fills us with motivation to start preparing for the second appointment .”
The CEK will return to activity between May 17 and 19 in Zuera, the first of the two consecutive visits of the 2024 season to Aragonese lands.
