Aston Sharp among the best in OK

Aston Sharp (CL Racing) shone on Sunday, finishing 3rd in his Super Heat after gaining seven positions. Unfortunately, a race incident stopped his momentum as he battled for 3rd place in the Final.

Noah Wolfe (VAR by Birel) and Vladimir Ivannikov made superb comebacks in the Final, after a complicated start to the race: Wolfe gained 11 positions to finish 11th, while Ivannikov gained 17 positions to finish 13th.

Eloi Gonzalez and Skye Parker, although not qualified for the Final, showed an unfailing fighting spirit and are ready to put this experience to good use at the next European event.

In OK-Junior, the young drivers also learned a great deal from a very strong field. Pietro Bagutti shone in Qualifying, setting the 7th fastest time in his session, but was unfortunately involved in two collisions at the start of the Super Heat and then the Final. Ludovico Mazzola and Gustavo Marques Da Silva both failed to make it through to the Final, despite putting in a strong performance and showing good pace, but both showed clear signs of progress over the course of the weekend.

A word from Team Manager Jordon Lennox

"Even if we don't come away with a podium finish, Aston Sharp proved that we have the potential, as did the impressive comebacks by Noah Wolfe and Vladimir Ivannikov, who were just outside the top 10 despite starting from the back of the grid. The whole team will now be fine-tuning the final details of its preparation to come back even stronger next weekend."

Birelart will go straight on to the second round of the FIA Karting European Championship, again on the Portimão circuit, on Friday morning with Qualifying Practice.

Birelart is an Italian manufacturer of kart chassis that combines long experience and a keen sense of innovation with a boundless passion for motor sport.

Founded in 1959 by Umberto Sala, whose precise nickname was Birel, the company has played a pioneering role in the development of karting around the world since its very beginnings. The demand for quality has always been part of the DNA of the Lissone-based brand through its quest for success in competition. Over more than 60 years, Birelart has won 26 world titles, countless European titles and numerous national championships.

Birel has accompanied the careers of many great racing drivers, including Riccardo Patrese, Keke Rosberg, Stefano Modena and Emanuele Pirro, as well as the more recent Formula 1 stars Mika Hakkinen and Juan Pablo Montoya, Robert Kubica, Jenson Button and George Russell. Robert Kubica, Daniel Ricciardo and more recently Charles Leclerc have called on Birelart's expertise to launch their own chassis ranges.

Three generations have succeeded one another at the helm of Birel. Today, Ronni Sala, the founder's grandson, presides over Birel's destiny. In 2014, he ushered in a new era by joining forces with ART Grand Prix, a famous team on the single-seater scene, thanks to its association with Nicolas Todt and his partners. Birelart was born.

Ronni has contributed to the creation of an ambitious new project that will be at the forefront of the karting industry, thanks to original sporting, marketing and communication initiatives that will benefit the brand, the dealer network and, of course, Birelart's customers.

Birelart has built on its prestigious heritage to enter the 21st century and make full use of technology in terms of R&D, production, logistics and communication. Its area of expertise, based on high-level competition, has been extended to include production quality control for a large number of competitors around the world, as well as the leisure sector with its Rental range with both internal combustion and electric engines. The factory at its original site in Lissone, near Monza and within easy reach of Milan, has undergone constant modernisation.

Birelart's high level of expertise, with its well-balanced blend of tradition and innovation, is reflected in the results it has achieved in racing, offering fans around the world the opportunity to become real drivers or to have fun and experience the thrill of adrenaline on the track.