Two of our most promising young motor racing drivers have returned to their roots this weekend, at the City of Sails kart meet in West Auckland.
Formula Two racers Liam Lawson and Marcus Armstrong are driving in the top KZ2 division, competing against a host of excited local drivers from the North and South Island. Even under the Red Light Covid protocols the two day meet has still been able to go ahead. Official splitting all the categories into separate roped off zones, well under the 100 maximum, with distancing and mask wearing compulsory.
Lawson says it's a massive shame we're now in this system right now because this event would've been amazing to have spectators at , at the same time he’s appreciative of all the hard work put in by officials to make sure the competition continued.
He says it’s a thrill to be back in karts where he started as a kid, with the physical challenge at high speeds, a good entrée to the new Formula Two season ahead in Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
Armstrong says it's a breath of fresh air, doing what you feel, as opposed to Formula Two where they have to take in screens and screens of data coming off the car, from aerodynamics to tyre pressure. He says karting is true grassroots racing.
Both Lawson and Armstrong head back to their bases in the UK in the next fortnight, with the first F2 race of the season in Bahrain in mid-March. There are 14 rounds this year, compared to just eight in 2021. Both New Zealand drivers are racing in new teams in 2022.
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