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| February 09, 2009 |
| Driver News: Devlin DeFrancesco - FWT International Rotax Max Challenge |
 | DeFrancesco enters round two tied for third in points
(Photo: Cody Schindel - Autosports Media) |
Devlin DeFrancesco returns to the track this weekend as the Florida Winter Tour resumes at Homestead Karting outside Homestead-Miami Speedway. Races three and four of the International Rotax Max Challenge are set to run and if the first round is any indication the young Canadian will be a threat for the Micro-Max podium.
At the opening round in January, the eight-year-old led the prefinal in race one and set the fastest lap of the prefinal in race two as he established himself as an International frontrunner. He started second and finished fourth on Saturday before starting seventh and finishing fifth on Sunday. All four races counted for points, and the firstkart.com driver gained 375 for a third-place standing in the championship. This weekend he will once again eye the podium as the drivers race the same venue as the opening round, yet in reverse direction and on a freshly paved track.
This will be the fourth major race weekend for the team as after opening the 2009 campaign at the World Karting Association KartWeek, back-to-back events at Homestead followed. Along with the IRMC weekend, DeFrancesco raced Cadet in the Formula Kart weekend, but it was one that brought two days of misery. After clocking sixth in his first practice session and improving to fifth in the final session Friday, DeFrancesco was third-quick in Saturday warmup with what proved his fastest time of the entire weekend. He nearly matched it in qualifying sixth, but afterwards motor issues plagued the effort.
First he became isolated in sixth position during the prefinal and when an ignition problem developed it allowed a train of karts to work past. DeFrancesco was left with eleventh on the grid for the main, and despite bettering his best time he finished ninth as the problem persisted. Switching to backup power on Sunday did little to correct matters, and the team struggled to the final checker. A weekend back in rotax brings renewed optimism, and a run at the podium is certain. Official practice begins Friday with rounds three and four following on the weekend. |
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