A good scare and broken collarbone for Andy Ratel, but motivation intact
At the end of May, Andy Ratel was in Spain near Zaragoza for the 2nd round of the IAME Euro Series. The talented French driver knows the Zuera international karting circuit very well and looked set to challenge for the podium. Unfortunately, a collision ended in a spectacular spin, from which Andy recovered with a broken collarbone; quite a setback in the Pantano Racing Team driver's season! Fortunately, the driver from Cluses in the Alps is much better today and is already thinking about his next race...
Andy, can you tell us about this incident?
“In Spain, the performance was there. On Sunday, I was fighting in the leading group in the super heat. This was the last race before the final. There were around ten drivers wheel-to-wheel. I attacked to move up to 5th position, but the driver I was overtaking closed in on me a bit. We touched, and my kart literally flew over him. I landed on my shoulder!
How did you feel in the hours that followed?
At the hospital in Spain, they detected a fractured collarbone. As for the rest, I was fine. My family and I decided to return to France immediately and get treatment near my home in Haute-Savoie. The operation went very well. I started rehabilitation several days ago. The surgeon found that I was recovering very quickly from the accident. The signs are positive and there's a good chance that I'll be at the start of the 3rd round of the Championship in Germany, at Wackersdorf from 25 to 29 June. I'm working hard with the team in charge of my rehabilitation to get back into the best possible physical condition so that I can leave for Bavaria at the end of the month at 100% of my fitness.
Before this incident, were you confident about your chances of doing well in Spain?
Yes, I was. We had our ups and downs at the start of the meeting. In the end, we found a perfect technical solution with the chassis, thanks to a lot of work with the Pantano Racing Team. The Grice engines were very fast and I felt capable of fighting for another podium, after the one I scored on the opening day of the series in March. I'm currently 8th in the Championship out of 106 entrants, and there are still two races to go. It's not over yet, and I'm still determined and motivated for the rest of the season…”
Next event: IAME Euro Series, round 3/4 at Wackersdorf (Germany), June 25-29