The first leg of Europe 2008 did not see overwhelming domination from one manufacturer or pilot. The implementation of the new start procedure has penalised several drivers among the best performers.
In KF1, Tonykart did not reprise their results from last year, and only Gary Catt scored well at Angerville. The BRitish driver now leads the championship ahead of Armand Convers (PCR/TM), who was penalised in the first enforcement of the start rules of 2008. In third is Arnaud Kozlinski (CRG/Maxter) also suffered a penalty of ten seconds for the same reason. Jean Philippe Guignet’s return to the forefront is pleasing to see after a particularly difficult 2007 season. CRG and Maxter have made a great effort to return to the front. Jack Te Braak was the fourth driver to have been penalised at the start, and he forfeited his excellent position.
The Kosmics were not really in the picture, while at Birel there were two exceptional young drivers – Toman Libor and Mika Kunranta. In the Sodikart team, much work was done on the chassis throughout the weekend and Alban Varutti reaped the benefit with 10th place overall. Maranello made major development engines prepared by KVS, but the performance is not there yet. Finally Intrepid could not take advantage of their good performance at the hands of Yannick De Brabander and Jeremy Iglesias.
The French have been the most successful with three drivers among the top five. World Champion Marco Ardigo, although still in good form, has been slowed by minor concerns which have been costly. This has also been the case for Anthony Abbasse, who did not score any points.
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