Kas Haverkort stays optimistic after a challenging weekend at the DKM in Germany
Dutch Kas Haverkort described his weekend at the second round of the international German Kart Championship as “educational” when asked about his run of bad luck during the event at the ProKart Raceland circuit in Wackersdorf. Taking a very positive outlook on what most drivers would say is one to forget, the 15-year old has a unique approach to his racing.
Going into the event, the talented CRG Keijzer Racing Team driver was leading the series after securing pole position and winning the final race at South Garda Karting in fine style, having overtaken the current OK class World number 1 without hesitation at the opening round in Italy the month before. However, the 2017 DKM Junior champion suffered some rather unfortunate circumstances as the weekend unfolded that has dropped him back to P3 in the overall standings.
Once again, the mixed wintery weather proved really challenging for the competitors during the three-day program, with the track conditions changing constantly for qualifying and heat races. Still, Haverkort clearly showed his immense skill and impressive racecraft time after time. Having dominated the recent ADAC Masters meeting at the Wackersdorf circuit in preparation for the DKM, it was a good indication of his true potential at round 2. And yet, it was obvious that the #4 kart was missing horsepower, preventing the CRG driver from achieving the desired results.
Pushing a fraction too hard in the official timed practice session, Kas made just a small mistake and ran wide, getting dirt on his tyres which meant he was not able to post the optimum lap, ranking only P19 out of 48 drivers. The first heat was most encouraging, coming through the field on the slippery track to take the flag in P3, only to have a DNF in his second heat when the carburettor somehow broke with 4 laps remaining. This meant starting Final 1 from grid 21.
He never lost his motivation to succeed, but in fact, was only more determined to overcome the challenges he was facing. With a lot of ground to makeup, the young Dutchman drove his heart out with a faultless performance to finish just outside the top 5, setting himself up nicely on row 3 for the last race. Moving up to P4 in Final 2, Haverkort was on a good way; until an engine failure on lap 17 immediately ended any chances of making the podium Sunday.
Now, it is a matter of moving forward and concentrating on the next round of the championship at Kerpen. With fun tracks to drive on and a well-organised series, Kas enjoys racing at the DKM.
Kas Haverkort – “I think it was an educational weekend, with a lot of bad luck…but, I managed to gain many positions in the racing and I fought back every time. I’m able to adjust easily to the varying track conditions when it rains and dries, then is more half-half. It suits me well. I made a bit of a mistake in qualifying trying to push hard for a good lap and ran wide, getting my tyres dirty. We came a long way in the heats and passed many people in the shorter races, as I did in Final 1 to finish sixth. That was a great race! The problem started on lap 5 in the last final and I was getting slower before the engine seized. We seem to be behind in term of engines and can’t do much about it, just need to make the best with what we have. That’s sometimes frustrating, but it is what it is now and we remain positive. Hopefully, there will be an improvement soon.”