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Birelart wins the World Cup and takes every podium in Portimão

FIA Karting World Championship - Portimao (PRT) - 13, October 2024

Birel ART was acclaimed at the FIA Karting World event in Portimão as the leading supplier of KZ chassis. This strong presence was reflected in the results of the event, with Cristian Bertuca winning the KZ2 World Cup, Matheus Morgatto making it a one-two finish and Artem Severiukhin finishing 4th. Pedro Hitlbrand came close in the KZ World Championship with 3rd place, and Davide Fore' finished on the podium in the KZ2 Masters International Super Cup. Mastery of chassis production and the use of race equipment were the keys to Birel ART's success this weekend.

However, conditions were not easy in Portugal. Rain had an impact on the start of the event, offering a wide variety of grip conditions from Qualifying right through to the end of the heats. The track was dry on Sunday for the Super Heats and Finals. All of which meant that the technicians had to adapt a great deal to stay in the race.

Cristian Bertuca put in an exceptional performance in KZ2, ticking all the boxes on the way to victory. After winning pole position, he went on to win all five of his heats in the wet, before continuing his winning form in the dry to win the World Cup Final. Matheus Morgatto, of the CL Racing team, climbed from 14th to 4th place throughout the heats and won Super Heat B with the fastest lap, putting the pressure on the leader throughout the Final before finishing less than 3 tenths off the pace after 20 crazy laps. The disappearance of Daniel Vasile after contact at Turn 1 deprived Birel ART of an important element, but Artem Severiukhin took up the torch by finishing 4th, while Jean Luyet climbed back up to 15th.

Pedro Hiltbrand was the unlucky hero of the KZ World Championship. His performance improved with each race, and he started the Final from pole position. Well placed in the wake of the leader, he went on the attack halfway through the race, but then had to give in to the aggressiveness of his rival so as not to risk losing everything, and had to settle for 3rd place on the podium when he had everything to win.

Davide Fore' needed time to climb back to the top of the KZ2 Masters International Super Cup standings. After dropping from 10th to 5th in the heats, he gained a place in the Super Heat and ended up in the top three in the Final. Andre Serafim lost ground when he retired in Heat 3, and could only manage 8th in the Final despite showing good potential.

‘We made a few adjustments after the preparatory race and we're heading in the right direction’, declared Team Manager Jordon Lennox. ‘We showed an excellent level of competitiveness in all three categories and in all circumstances. This is essential for a great team like ours. Bertuca has always been a cut above the rest in KZ2 and he thoroughly deserves to win this title. Hiltbrand certainly had the potential to win in KZ, and we must salute the performance of Fore' who is still capable of finishing on the podium at over 50 years of age.’

‘I'm delighted with Bertuca's victory in the World Cup,’ confided Ronni Sala, President of Birel ART, ’and Morgatto's one-two finish is also a very good sign, even if we can regret Vasile's misadventure at the start. There was certainly room for a top three or even a top four that was 100% Birel ART... Nevertheless, we won the team classification for the category. In KZ, I'm disappointed for Hiltbrand. He did all he needed to do to win, but he was up against an opponent whose behaviour bordered on unsporting... That said, the competitiveness of our chassis was a pleasure to see at all levels. It's a great success for our brand.’

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