For the first time since 2019, the Celso Scribante Kart Track in Gqeberha will host the Motorsport South Africa (MSA) National Karting Championship (ROK Cup) that will see a host of debutants at the circuit when the event gets underway on 24 March 2023.
2022 Bambino driver Diego Antunes has since graduated from the entry-level class to become a regular in the six-to-nine-year-old Kid ROK class. While the TrevPar World-backed driver makes his national debut, he has been in splendid form at the Gauteng regional level, where he competes in the MSA Northern Regions Regional ROK Karting Championship. While the podium has eluded him thus far, Antunes has scored three fourth-place finishes at home, while he claimed a pair of fifth-place finishes at the past weekend’s Algoa Kart Club regional, held a week before the national round as preparation for most making the trip to the coast for the first time.
“Diego has surprised many of us with how quickly he has adapted to the Kid ROK class,” said Neil Basilio, Antunes’s driver coach and mentor. “Bearing in mind that he has only had three competitive outings since his first race at the end of the 2022 season, he has adapted quickly, and now it’s a matter of finding those few tenths that separate him from the frontrunners. But like we have seen in the past, it is just a matter of time before he steps up a gear. I believe we are in for a very competitive Kid ROK round this weekend, and I won’t be surprised if Diego gets onto a podium during one of the heats.”
Spectators are welcomed on the weekend, with Friday set aside for official practice. An entire racing program is set for Saturday, with the event also streamed live on the ROK Cup South Africa social media channels on Saturday.
Published by: Motorsport Fanatix – Raymond Cornwell
Picture Caption: Diego Antunes
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