A French tuner at the peak in Italy
4th in the CIK-FIA European Championship in 2003 in the ICC category, Vice-Champion of France 125 (KZ2) the same year, Frenchman Cédric Goudant continued to race occasionally until 2018. At the same time, he launched his own racing team, Cédric Sport in 2007, before devoting himself full time to engine preparation at the end of 2017 after having powered the winners of the second CIK-FIA Endurance Championship. Cédric Sport Motors has reached the top by powering Jérémy Iglesias, winner of the FIA Karting World Championship – KZ in Lonato.
Cédric, can you retrace for us the important points of your journey?
Setting up my own team was a logical step from the moment I stopped driving myself with a certain ambition. I learnt a lot by leading a team that worked well. However, the workload was too heavy to be able to devote enough resources to what I was already most interested in: engine preparation. I was interested in KZ, OK and OK-Junior engines as well as Minime and Cadet in France, Rotax Max and IAME X30.
How have you built your expertise?
I have always had good relations with Vortex and TM Racing Italian factories. But above all I learned a lot alongside Olivier Liégeois, a great name in the preparation of kart engines. Then, there is no secret, everything is a question of work, carburetion being a key point to master. This is why I have been specialising in my favourite field for the last two years. The season never stops for a tuner!
How did your international ascent go?
I am a French tuner with a national clientele in several categories. I have been able to progress at international level thanks to drivers like Thomas Laurent with whom we won the KZ2 International Super Cup at Le Mans in 2015. My collaboration with Paul Bizalion’s CPB Sport team was an important step. I started in KZ with Adrien Renaudin and the Sodi Racing Team last year with success.
Tell us about the 2020 FIA Karting World Championship – KZ!
Powering the World Champion, Jérémy Iglesias, is of course a magnificent reward. In Lonato, I equipped the various official IPKarting drivers. It was a challenge to compete directly with the TM Racing factory engines. Having said that, a victory remains the result of a perfect fit between the chassis, the tyres, the engine and the Driver. Jérémy was at the top of his form in Lonato and I’m most of all very happy for him.
How would you like to see Cedric Sport Motors evolve in the future?
My main wish is to be able to continue to prepare good engines, which is an eternally renewed challenge. I don’t have the ambition to become a big company, because I like to keep my hands on my work. I will continue to supply engines for the French categories, while still progressing at the highest level in KZ/KZ2. I’ve also started working on OK and OK-Junior engines, which are very interesting because of their development possibilities. I believe that boredom is not going to be a problem for me any time soon!
2020 FIA Karting Best-of / Photo © KSP