Lucas Pace reaches world level of kart racing

By Alfred A. Farrugia

 In the pre-final race he covered the 12 laps, but in the final race Lucas covered only two laps of the 20-lap race and had to retire. The Estonian winner of the event was disqualified from the results on technical grounds. A total of 72 drivers from 45 countries around the world competed in the various stages of these Grand Finals, which are publicised as the “Olympics games of karting” by their promoters. 

 According to the specialist marketing officer of the company promoting this event, the Grand Finals are the biggest and most international karting series in the world. “To let Malta as a small country  be a part of the ... Grand Finals in 2010,we decided to offer a seat for junior category only.” Lucas has shown that Malta was not done any special favour, and he should have been invited on the merits of his kart racing skills. The senior champion should also have been invited.

 What the final result of Lucas does not reveal is the level of racing that he has reached. In the qualifying practice session, Lucas registered a best lap of 51.487 seconds to place 17th among 36 drivers – that is half the field, those drivers with an even racing number. Lucas was alotted the kart with racing number 54, and placed in Group D. On the basis of his time, the Maltese driver was ranked 24th among 66 drivers who finished the practice sessions.

 The winner of the Junior Grand Finals is Jordi Van Moorsel of the Netherlands. His best lap in qualifying practice was 51.482 seconds, that is 0.005 seconds better than that of Lucas, and he was ranked 23rd in qualifying practice – just one place ahead of Lucas!

 In the first qualifying heat for groups C and D, Lucas finished in the 8th position, while Jordi finished in the 20th position. At the end of the second lap of this heat Lucas was running in 4th place, but then he was overtaken by 4 drivers and had to settle in 8th place, which was still an excellent result. Lucas covered the 8 lap race in 7 minutes 8.831 seconds, at an average speed of 83.9 km per hour. His fastest lap in this heat was 52.205 seconds at a speed of 86.2 km per hour.  

 In the next two heats – for Groups B and D, and A and D, Lucas did not succeed to repeat his earlier performance. In the second heat he finished in the 18th place, while in the third heat he finished in the 30th position.

The results of the 3 heats were taken together scoring points for the position in each, as a result of which Lucas accumulated a total of 56 points (8+18+30). This time he was ranked in the 34th position among 72 drivers from around the world. To participate in the pre-final and the final races Lucas had to take part in the second chance heat, and this time he passed with flying colours.

2nd in second chance heat

 Lucas jumped into the lead and led the first two laps of the second chance heat after which the Portuguese driver Guilherme Gouveia took the lead to the finish. Lucas went on to finish in an excellent second position ahead of Jordi, the Dutch overall winner in the final race, by a fraction of a second. This could have been a good turning point for Lucas as it was for Jordi. Unfortunately, fate decided otherwise.

It is clear that although Lucas did not do as well in the pre-final and the final, there were races when he finished ahead of the winner. This means that Lucas has reached the world level of kart racing. With more luck and consistency, he could challenge for top honours.

If one compares our karting track with that of all the others in the world, one can easily conclude that our drivers are performing miracles! How many thousands of euros – not to say millions – have been spent on football stadia and pitches in Malta during the past 40 years, and how much have the public authorities spent on facilities for motor sports? Our kating drivers are lucky that there is a small commercial private karting track in Malta!

Is it not clear that if our drivers, young and old, had the proper facilities this is one form of sport that can make us proud?

On the basis of the result of the final race alone, it may be seen that Lucas Pace has succeed to classify ahead of 40 other drivers, including four Americans, two Canadians, and a French driver. These are the “huge countries that deserve more than one driver” and because of which the senior driver from Malta was not invited.

In addition to the drivers from the above mentioned countries, Lucas placed better than drivers from Russia(2), Mexico (2), Venezuela, New Zealand, Austria, Switzerland, Finland, Denmark, Lebanon, Slovakia, Thailand, Portugal (2), Germany, Italy (2), Hungary, Spain, Malaysia (3), Japan, Colombia, Belarus, United Kingdom, Ireland, Chile, Costa Rica, India, Indonesia and Israel. 

In how many sports disciplines our athletes and sports men or women succeed to do better than such a wide range of competitors from all over the world? It is time for the authorities concerned to note what our drivers are capabale of doing and begin to provide the necessary facilities.

It is correct for the sports writers and the Malta Sports Council to recognize Lucas’ achievements and nominate him for a national award. There are more motor sports participants who are giving a good account of themselves at home and abroad. They all deserve recognition in substance with the appropriate facilities.  

. In the pre-final race he covered the 12 laps, but in the final race Lucas covered only two laps of the 20-lap race and had to retire. The Estonian winner of the event was disqualified from the results on technical grounds. A total of 72 drivers from 45 countries around the world competed in the various stages of these Grand Finals, which are publicised as the “Olympics games of karting” by their promoters. 

According to the specialist marketing officer of the company promoting this event, the Grand Finals are the biggest and most international karting series in the world. “To let Malta as a small country  be a part of the ... Grand Finalsin 2010,we decided to offer a seat for junior category only.” Lucas has shown that Malta was not done any special favour, and he should have been invited on the merits of his kart racing skills. The senior champion should also have been invited.

What the final result of Lucas does not reveal is the level of racing that he has reached. In the qualifying practice session, Lucas registered a best lap of 51.487 seconds to place 17th among 36 drivers – that is half the field, those drivers with an even racing number. Lucas was alotted the kart with racing number 54, and placed in Group D. On the basis of his time, the Maltese driver was ranked 24th among 66 drivers who finished the practice sessions.

The winner of the Junior Grand Finals is Jordi Van Moorsel of the Netherlands. His best lap in qualifying practice was 51.482 seconds, that is 0.005 seconds better than that of Lucas, and he was ranked 23rd in qualifying practice – just one place ahead of Lucas!

In the first qualifying heat for groups C and D, Lucas finished in the 8th position, while Jordi finished in the 20th position. At the end of the second lap of this heat Lucas was running in 4th place, but then he was overtaken by 4 drivers and had to settle in 8th place, which was still an excellent result. Lucas covered the 8 lap race in 7 minutes 8.831 seconds, at an average speed of 83.9 km per hour. His fastest lap in this heat was 52.205 seconds at a speed of 86.2 km per hour.  

In the next two heats – for Groups B and D, and A and D, Lucas did not succeed to repeat his earlier performance. In the second heat he finished in the 18th place, while in the third heat he finished in the 30th position.

The results of the 3 heats were taken together scoring points for the position in each, as a result of which Lucas accumulated a total of 56 points (8+18+30). This time he was ranked in the 34th position among 72 drivers from around the world. To participate in the pre-final and the final races Lucas had to take part in the second chance heat, and this time he passed with flying colours.

2nd in second chance heat

Lucas jumped into the lead and led the first two laps of the second chance heat after which the Portuguese driver Guilherme Gouveia took the lead to the finish. Lucas went on to finish in an excellent second position ahead of Jordi, the Dutch overall winner in the final race, by a fraction of a second. This could have been a good turning point for Lucas as it was for Jordi. Unfortunately, fate decided otherwise.

It is clear that although Lucas did not do as well in the pre-final and the final, there were races when he finished ahead of the winner. This means that Lucas has reached the world level of kart racing. With more luck and consistency, he could challenge for top honours.

If one compares our karting track with that of all the others in the world, one can easily conclude that our drivers are performing miracles! How many thousands of euros – not to say millions – have been spent on football stadia and pitches in Malta during the past 40 years, and how much have the public authorities spent on facilities for motor sports? Our kating drivers are lucky that there is a small commercial private karting track in Malta!

Is it not clear that if our drivers, young and old, had the proper facilities this is one form of sport that can make us proud?

On the basis of the result of the final race alone, it may be seen that Lucas Pace has succeed to classify ahead of 40 other drivers, including four Americans, two Canadians, and a French driver. These are the “huge countries that deserve more than one driver” and because of which the senior driver from Malta was not invited.

In addition to the drivers from the above mentioned countries, Lucas placed better than drivers from Russia(2), Mexico (2), Venezuela, New Zealand, Austria, Switzerland, Finland, Denmark, Lebanon, Slovakia, Thailand, Portugal (2), Germany, Italy (2), Hungary, Spain, Malaysia (3), Japan, Colombia, Belarus, United Kingdom, Ireland, Chile, Costa Rica, India, Indonesia and Israel. 

In how many sports disciplines our athletes and sports men or women succeed to do better than such a wide range of competitors from all over the world? It is time for the authorities concerned to note what our drivers are capabale of doing and begin to provide the necessary facilities.

It is correct for the sports writers and the Malta Sports Council to recognize Lucas’ achievements and nominate him for a national award. There are more motor sports participants who are giving a good account of themselves at home and abroad. They all deserve recognition in substance with the appropriate facilities.