SM opener 7 Laghi: Waterproof winners

At the season opener of the autobau Swiss Kart Championship in 7 Laghi, three drivers stood out particularly in the adverse conditions. Tiziano Kuzhnini (Super Mini), Savio Moccia (X30 Challenge Switzerland) and Fabio Scherer (OK Senior) won all their three races.

Oppressive superiority
Savio Moccia's superiority in the wet was almost overwhelming. The 2019 and 2020 X30 champion gave his rivals no chance. In qualifying, he distanced second fastest Matteo Domenico Rotta by more than six tenths of a second.

The rider from Lyss also left no stone unturned in the races, storming into the lead immediately in each case and securing commanding heat wins in the X30 Challenge Switzerland with gaps of four to eight seconds in each case. The closest rider to Moccia was the SM returnee Kilian Streit. The rider from Berne with the striking green helmet always made it onto the podium, finishing 3rd, 2nd and 3rd.

Young talent also demonstrates strength in the wet
Although he is actually not such a self-confessed fan of rain races, Tiziano Kuzhnini also decided his three races in the Super Mini category in his favor.

In the first heat he relegated his Spirit teammate Dan Allemann and Elia Epifanio to the places of honor. In the second heat, Epifanio and pole man Matt Corbi fought out 2nd and 3rd place among themselves. And in the final the order was Kuzhnini ahead of Allemann and Chiara Bättig, who thus celebrated her second podium after Mirecourt 2020.

Race car driver Fabio Scherer shows no mercy
Actually, two-time Swiss karting champion Fabio Scherer has long been at home in motor racing. But he didn't want to miss the season opener in 7 Laghi as a "finger exercise".

With a new kart and his father Patrick as an experienced mechanic, Scherer set the best time in the qualifying of the OK Seniors. Because four drivers, including runner-up Patrick Näscher, started with rain tires, which is not allowed, Florent Panès moved up to second place on the grid.

Näscher & Co. had to start the race from the back without timed laps. By the time of the final, the Liechtensteiner had "recovered". Nevertheless, he was no longer able to threaten Scherer, but took a commanding 2nd place ahead of Alain Baeriswyl. It remains to be seen whether the Engelberger will compete again in 2021 as the overall leader.

Nicolas Rohrbasser advances to the final victory
Nicolas Rohrbasser almost won all three races in the KZ2 category of the switch karts. But the reigning KZ2 champion had to admit defeat to Italy's Paolo Castagnetti in the final. The tall Frenchman nevertheless scored the full number of points for the Swiss championship.

In the final, Tobias Widmer was the first to see the checkered flag. But because of an early start, five seconds were added to his overall time. As a result, Widmer slipped to third place in the final standings behind winner Castagnetti and Rohrbasser.

Off-road insert prevents Pappacena's bull's-eye
Elia Pappacena also almost won all the races in the OK Junior. In the first preliminary heat, he won in a commanding manner ahead of Gaspard Le Gallais and Jérôme Huber. Spirit rider Pappacena was also on top in the final. This time ahead of Tina Hausmann and Huber.

The only blot in the clean sheet for the soon-to-be 14-year-old from Rudolfstetten came in the second heat. There he had to settle for second place behind Le Gallais and ahead of Kevin Rabin after testing the off-road qualities of his kart outside the marked track in Turn 1.

The detailed report can be read on the official homepage of Auto Sport Schweiz or - illustrated with many current photos - on their Facebook page.

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