2008 Indoor Kart World Championship Recap!
After 3 years at the F1 Race Factory Indoor Racing Center in Phoenix - USA, the Indoor Kart World Championship finally got enough strength and support to truly "go global". It was decided after the 2007 IKWC that the event would now be run on a yearly rotation between Europe, North America, and South America, and the decision was very celebrated by the IKWC participants. The move however, was not without a few bumps on the road, but once all organizational sides came into agreement, the 1st IKWC held outside the USA was confirmed in February 2008. It would be in Europe in early August 2008, and the track ultimately chosen was Worldkarts - Flanders Indoor Karting, in the city of Kortrijk, in Belgium.
Worldkarts is a fantastic indoor racing facility. Although not as "gigantic" as the F1 Race Factory, Worldkarts Flanders Indoor Karting Kortrijk still quite big on its own, with meeting rooms and a very nice restaurant and bar. Worldkarts features a 900 meter (0.56 mile) track allowing different circuit configurations. It has a smooth (but extremely grippy) asphalt surface, and even elevation changes, in the form of a crossover bridge & tunnel feature. The grip level of it's racing surface was much higher than what drivers experienced at the previous IKWCs, and driver's opinions varied greatly over what was the better surface for indoor racing (slippery vs. high grip). Worldkarts was quite confident in their ability to provide very matched karts, and even planned to prep and use 2 completely different fleets of karts during the 2008 IKWC: a new fleet of Alpha karts and a fleet of JB-Worldkarts karts. The Alpha karts were impressive, boasting an ultra modern chassis design, using what appeared to be the latest carbon-fiber technology. These were nicknamed the "Formula 1 karts" by some drivers. The JB-Worldkarts chassis were of the more traditional design, using a tubular frame chassis construction. Kart equality had been of the biggest issues faced at the previous IKWCs run at the F1 Race Factory in Phoenix. The American track put its best effort in prepping the karts for the IKWCs, but drivers (mostly) Europeans thought the result was below European standards. Worldkarts had plans to live up to these claims, and decided to take the challenge even further, by prepping twice as many karts. Could they do it? Amazingly, yes they did! Based on the opinion of the majority of drivers that had been at the Phoenix IKWCs, the 2008 IKWC had the most equal karts to date.
However, one of the major problems the IKWC encountered with the tracks in Europe, was that although there are a significant number of tracks that have big enough facilities to host the Indoor Kart World Championship event, none could meet certain current standards of competition that were already in place. The most significant of these limitations was ballast. The Indoor Kart World Championship has always been an event where drivers of all ages and sizes compete directly against each other, so a ballast system that can add 100lbs (45kg) to the karts was developed for the chassis used at F1 Race Factory in Phoenix, allowing all drivers to race at a 200lbs (90kg) minimum weight. A track with a similar ballast system (or willing to implement such a ballast system) could not be located in Europe. The decision was then made that the 2008 IKWC at Worldkarts would be run with 2 divisions: a Light Class (75kg), and a Heavy Class (at 90kg). This would be an exceptional case, for 2008 only.
Politics and limitations aside, the Indoor Kart World Championship has developed a dedicated fan following in Europe, Brazil, and USA through its 4 year existence. A record number of drivers was expected for this 1st European IKWC, and although the race was confirmed very late (adversely affecting travel plans of some participants) the record expectation was still met. Over 90 drivers were able to make their way to the 2008 IKWC in Kortrijk, and with the change in continent, the majority of these drivers were European based, and competing for the 1st time at the IKWC. The new International IKWC events are a "dream-come-true" for the many drivers who can not afford the intercontinental travel costs to participate in the World Championship, and the new rotation concept was well received by the Europeans, with 10 of the 15 nations represented at the 2008 IKWC being from Europe. Competing in Kortrijk were drivers from Austria, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Spain, Denmark, United Kingdom, Hungary, Portugal, and yes, plenty of Belgians. Drivers from Brazil, USA, Colombia, Hong Kong (China), and Japan completed the always very international entry list. The Belgians had the greatest number of entries at 31 drivers. Brazil would, for the 4th year in a row, be the nation with the 2nd greatest number of entries, this time with their largest group ever: 20 drivers.
As seen in previous IKWCs, the first international drivers begin to arrive the week prior to the IKWC, to practice on a fairly empty track and to do a bit of tourism, enjoying the local surroundings. First time IKWC drivers are always impressed by the quality of the indoor racing facilities picked to host the Indoor Kart World Championship. These are always substantial in size, and with all possible modern comforts and amenities. Worldkarts in Kortrijk was no different, and got a "two-thumbs-up" from all drivers, including the veterans who raced at F1 Race Factory during the 3 previous IKWCs.
Curiously, "home track advantage" had never been a factor at the Indoor Kart World Championship events that took place at the F1 Race Factory in the USA. The South American and European drivers consistently overshadowed the best local drivers from Phoenix and USA in general. However, the story was very different in Kortrijk, and the locals were the class of the field. The Belgian drivers were very fast in practice, took most of the pole position spots on "Pole Day", went on to win 16 of the 26 races run (8 out of 12 races on Race Day 1, 3 out of 6 races on day 2, another 3 out of 6 races on Day 3, and both Final Grand Prix races on day 4), with 2 Belgians ultimately winning the Championship. However, even with this Belgian dominance, the 2008 Indoor Kart World Championship was far from being a snoozer. In fact, both Light and Heavy Championships produced the closest and most exciting points finishes in IKWC history!!
The "practice week" was in full swing at Worldkarts during the last week of July, culminating on August 1st, with the running of the IKWC Nations Cup race. This was the 1st year that the Nations Cup would be run as a separate event, and it was planned as a 3 hour Endurance race for teams of 4 drivers. Originally, the new Nations Cup rules required a minimum of 3 drivers from the same nation to form a team, but this rule was found to be restricting entry to certain teams such as Hong Kong and Austria, which wanted to compete but had less than 3 drivers from their countries available. In the name of promoting camaraderie and more competition, the minimum number of drivers was reduced to 1, and the IKWC also extended an exceptional entry to Hong Kong, which is a "Special Administrative Region" of China, but not a country/nation on its own.
The Nations Cup race involved 12 teams representing 6 nations: Austria (1 team), USA (1 team), Brazil (4 teams), Belgium (4 teams), Netherlands (1 team), and Hong Kong (1 team). It was a very competitive race, and after 3 long hours of continued racing, Team Hong Kong took the victory. At first, a win by Hong Kong over such favorites as Belgium, Austria, or Brazil may sound surprising, but not quite. The team, led by Hongkonger Steven To, is composed by all local drivers with plenty of experience driving at the WorldKarts indoor kart track. To, is actually the only Hongkonger in the team, which also included Belgians Gregory Laporte, Kenny Geldhof, and Geoffrey Mertens, all top quality Belgian drivers.
Team Hong Kong was very strong, and employed the right strategy by having their lightest driver (To) drive at the end. Team Brazil Point Kart's drivers had been doing a great job as well, and was leading the race with 10 minutes to go, but had chosen the complete opposite strategy, with their heaviest driver (Poul Horneman) at the wheel for the final stint. The ballast for the Nations Cup was calculated by finding the average weight of all 4 drivers in the team, and the weight to be carried in the kart was the difference between the limit and the average. All team drivers would drive with that same weight on the kart. To's weight advantage at that point in the race was allowing him to lap 1 second quicker than Horneman, and the Hongkonger quickly reeled in, and passed, the Brazilian for the lead with just a few laps to go. The drama continued for Horneman, who continued quickly loosing ground to the other karts behind him. On the last lap of the race he came under attack from 2005 World Champion Werner Truegler from Austria. Horneman's radio had stopped working and his team could not inform him during that last lap that Truegler was not a threat to the position. The Austrian team was running a lap behind due to an earlier accident suffered when driver Andreas Amon was behind the wheel, but like To, Truegler was much lighter and faster than Horneman, and was looking for a way by. Employing a defensive line against Truegler, Horneman began to lose even more time, allowing Team Belgium Waaihof.be to quickly close the gap. Horneman and Trugler touched just before the bridge, causing both to lose momentum. That was just the opportunity team Belgium Waaihof needed, and Belgium took the 2nd place from Brazil only two turns from the end of the race.
The victory itself was very significant to Hongkonger Steven To, who was emotional after the race: "It means a lot, a lot. Because all my family is in Hong Kong. They don't know much about the IKWC. My father said I could drive for the Nation, that it would be ok. This win is for him. I think he will be very glad. To win for the fatherland, which is what we call it... No words to say." The victory was also an emotional one to To's teammate Geoffrey Mertens, who had lost his grandfather just a week prior, and raced with a photo of him in his pocket. Steven To made the most of the opportunities presented, put himself and Hong Kong at the top of the 2008 Indoor Kart World Championship's Nations Cup podium.
After this exciting pre-event to the 2008 IKWC, two busy days of practice followed on Saturday and Sunday. Most IKWC drivers had arrived at Kortrijk by then, and the track was action packed. The format of the IKWC had been expanded to 5 days of competition, and Day 1 now included additional practice time, followed by the drivers meeting, the official weight-in for all drivers, and qualifying for the 1st six of the twelve 30 minutes races scheduled to be run on Tuesday.
Qualifying was dominated by Europeans (mostly local drivers), confirming the predictions. The Brazilians surprisingly did not score a pole on "Pole Day", but winning the races was what they were mostly interested in. The 6 drivers who ended Pole Day at the top of the charts were: Kristoff Van de Parre (BEL) from team Talent Promotion B, Filipe Vieira (POR) Team Portugal, Ruben Boutens (NED) Team Nederland 2, Mathias Grooten (BEL) Talent Promotion A, Marc Viskens (BEL) Talent Promotion A, and Robin Borremans (BEL) Talent Promotion A. The results confirmed that the current World Champion Team (Team Talent Promotion A) seemed a strong candidate to defend their Title, and their drivers were also serious candidates to both Light and Heavy World Championship Driver Titles.
A good night of sleep was what all drivers needed, as Tuesday would be the longest day of the IKWC. The reality however, was that very few probably got enough shut-eye, as the excitement of the races of the next day certainly caused insomnia to many drivers. A total of 12 races of 30 minutes meant there would be IKWC racing from morning to night at Worldkarts on Tuesday, so it would be a long day for everyone.
The 1st set of 6 races of the day would be won by 5 Belgians, and 4 of these were team Team TalentPromotion.be A & B drivers. The only non-Belgian winner during the 1st round was Brazilian Lucas Motta, racing for the TopKart.com.br / C&C Lofty team. 2006 World Champion Alexander Gumpenberger from Austria had a good 1st round, with a 2nd place in his race, and so did Pedro Washington from Brasil in his. Notably, the other 2 World Champions racing at this year's IKWC did not have a good start. 2005 Champion Werner Truegler and 2007 Champion Rodrigo Faulhaber had trouble in their races and had to contend with a 9th (Truegler) and 13th (Faulhaber) place results. Looks like the 2008 IKWC would be a very steep uphill battle for these two previous Champs.
Results of Day 2 (Race Day 1):
Podium: Day 2 - Race 1 - Group 1 - Heavy (15 drivers)
1- Mathias Grooten BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 31.212
2- Alex Gumpenberger AUT - PlusCity.at Austria 31.334
3- Luir Miranda BRA - TopKart.com.br / C&C Lofty 31.285
Podium: Day 2 - Race 1 - Group 1 - Light (15 drivers)
1- Kenny Geldhof BEL - Blue Star Racing Team B 30.664
2- Filipe Vieira POR - Team Portugal 30.605
3- Gregory Laporte BEL - Blue Star Racing Team A 30.739
Podium: Day 2 - Race 1 - Group 2 - Heavy (16 drivers)
1- Bart Van de Vel BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 31.212
2- Ruben Boutens NED - Team Nederland 2 31.334
3- Steven To HKG - Blue Star Racing Team A 30.739
Podium: Day 2 - Race 1 - Group 2 - Light (15 drivers)
1- Robin Borremans BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 31.008
2- Pedro Washington BRA - TopKart.com.br / C&C Lofty 31.143
3- Geoffrey Mertens BEL - Blue Star Racing Team B 31.227
Podium: Day 2 - Race 1 - Group 3 - Heavy (15 drivers)
1- Marc Viskens BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 31.097
2- Humberto Rubin BRA - Equipe Point Kart Indoor / KR 31.143
3- Timothy Vogels BEL - Team JPR.be Belgium 31.391
Podium: Day 2 - Race 1 - Group 3 - Light (16 drivers)
1- Lucas Motta BRA - TopKart.com.br / C&C Lofty 30.855
2- Kristoff Van de Parre BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium B 31.093
3- Andrea Sorbello ITA - Dados Racing Milano / Dadi Kart 30.884
If there was any doubt about the 2008 Belgian strength still in the air, it had pretty much evaporated after the 1st set of 30 minute races on Day 2... The 2nd set of 6 races later in the day saw a 50/50 split, with Belgians taking 3 and Brazilians taking 3 wins. It seemed like the rest of the world would have to wait for Day 3 of competition for a chance at victory. Faulhaber and Truegler were able to redeem themselves from the 1st round with a victory and 2nd place respectively in Round 2, but Championship hopes were now dimming out for both, based on the Championship leader's results. The big stars of Day 2 were evident: Marc Viskens (Heavy), and Bart Van de Vel (Light) won both races, and were at the top of both Championships. Both drivers belonged to the same team (Talent Promotion Belgium A), and the team consequently was looking very strong to repeat their 2007 Team World Championship Title.
Podium: Day 2 - Race 2 - Group 1 - Heavy (15 drivers)
1- Luir Miranda BRA - TopKart.com.br / C&C Lofty 30.967
2- Alex Gumpenberger AUT - PlusCity.at Austria 30.950
3- Ma'rton Massa't HUN - Team Hungary 31.063
Podium: Day 2 - Race 2 - Group 1 - Light (15 drivers)
1- Gregory Laporte BEL - Blue Star Racing Team A 30.559
2- Kenny Geldhof BEL - Blue Star Racing Team B 30.628
3- Sidney Van Nieuwenhove BEL - Blue Star Racing Team B 30.531
Podium: Day 2 - Race 2 - Group 2 - Heavy (15 drivers)
1- Pedro Washington BRA - TopKart.com.br / C&C Lofty 30.906
2- Dan Burke USA - GO FAST Energy Drink Team USA 30.968
3- Geoffrey Mertens BEL - Blue Star Racing Team B 31.064
Podium: Day 2 - Race 2 - Group 2 - Light (16 drivers)
1- Bart Van de Vel BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 30.444
2- Fabio Konrad BRA - Equipe Point Kart Indoor / Speedracer 30.481
3- Steven To HKG - Blue Star Racing Team A 30.518
Podium: Day 2 - Race 2 - Group 3 - Heavy (15 drivers)
1- Marc Viskens BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 31.039
2- Mathias Maas BEL - Team Waaihof.be 31.068
3- Carlos Nadaes BRA - TopKart.com.br / Raceland / Kart Granja Viana 31.017
Podium: Day 2 - Race 2 - Group 3 - Light (16 drivers)
1- Rodrigo Faulhaber BRA - Equipe Point Kart Indoor / Speedracer 30.489
2- Werner Truegler AUT - PlusCity.at / Kartsport.at 30.347
3- Christophe Cornette BEL - Eurokart.be 30.437
Fastest Lap of the Day (Heavy):
Diego Morales COL - Team Formula Americas 30.806
Fastest Lap of the Day (Light):
Werner Truegler AUT - Plus-City.at / Austria 1 30.347
After Races 1 & 2, the Top 10 positions in the Light Championship were:
| Pos. | Driver | Nat. | Team | Points |
| 1 | Bart Van de Vel |
BEL 
|
Talent Promotion A | 51 |
| 2 | Kenny Geldhof |
BEL
|
Blue Star Racing Team B | 48 |
| 3 | Gregory Laporte |
BEL
|
Blue Star Racing Team A | 47 |
| 4 | Lucas Motta BRA |
BRA 
|
TopKart / Lofty C&C | 46 |
| 5 | Steven To |
HKG 
|
Blue Star Racing Team A | 44 |
| 6 | Fabio Konrad |
BRA
|
Point Kart Indoor / Speedracer | 43 |
| 7 | Filipe Vieira |
POR 
|
Team Portugal | 42 |
| 8 | Romano Franssen |
NED 
|
Team Nederland 2 | 41 |
| 9 | Ruben Boutens |
NED
|
Team Nederland 1 | 40 |
| 10 | Christophe Cornette |
BEL
|
Team Eurokart.be | 40 |
| (47 drivers in total) |
||||
After Races 1 & 2, the Top 10 positions in the Heavy Championship were:
| Pos. | Driver | Nat. | Team | Points |
| 1 | Marc Viskens |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 50.5 |
| 2 | Pedro Washington |
BRA
|
TopKart / C&C Lofty | 48 |
| 3 | Luir Miranda |
BRA
|
TopKart / C&C Lofty | 47 |
| 4 | Alexander Gumpenberger |
AUT 
|
PlusCity.at / Austria 1 | 46.5 |
| 5 | Geoffrey Mertens |
BEL
|
Blue Star Racing Team A | 44 |
| 6 | Carlos Nadaes |
BRA
|
TopKart / Kart Granja Viana / Margeon | 43 |
| 7 | Mike Smith |
USA 
|
Team Formula Americas | 42 |
| 8 | Ma'rton Massa't |
HUN 
|
Team Hungary | 42 |
| 9 | Mathias Grooten |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 41.5 |
| 10 | Matthias Maas |
BEL
|
Team 't Waaihof / Rudays | 41 |
| Humberto Rubin |
BRA
|
Equipe Point Kart / Kartriders | 41 | |
| (45 drivers in total) |
||||
On the night of Day 2, drivers were treated to a party hosted and sponsored by 't Waaihof restaurant in Kortrijk, just a few minutes away from the Worldkarts racetrack. The Waaihof specializes in catering to corporate group parties, events, and celebrations. It was a welcoming environment for all drivers, as well as their friends and family, to enjoy and spend time with each other outside of the racetrack. Needless to say, the facilities, the food, drinks, and the service were superb, and the overall atmosphere was one of celebration and camaraderie. 'T Waiihof also sponsored a driver in the 2008 IKWC, Mattjias Maas, who was doing well and was currently in the top 10 in the Light Championship. 'T Waaihof also sponsored one of the Belgian teams in the Nations Cup race, finishing in 2nd place. It was a great night, and perhaps the first of similar party events to be seen at future IKWCs. A great big thanks goes to 't Waaihof for their effort and support of the IKWC and its drivers and team members.
The next day (Day 3) would be decisive to many drivers. Those with bad results on yesterday's races could not afford another, or even qualifying for the Final Grand Prix would be a long shot. For many other drivers, the focus was now exactly that, just making it into the Final Grand Prix race, no matter what position. However, many others still had a fair shot at the Championship, as even with Viskens and Van de Vel's double victories yesterday, things were far from decided at this point.
Each driver would be doing just 1 race on Day 3, but this race was 1 hour in length, twice as long as yesterday's races. The IKWC is specifically designed in a way that the physical challenge increases as the competition progresses. The races keep getting longer as the drivers get more tired and worn out. Some of the "Marathon" aspect of the IKWC, which existed when the 4.5 hours of racing was all completed in just 2 days (2005 & 2006), was lost when the competition increased to 4 - 5 days, but its still fairly significant. Specially with the excessive heat and humidity that was present during the competition in Belgium. The change was also made in the interest of safety, as during the 2005 and 2006 IKWCs in Phoenix, a few drivers had abandoned and/or passed out from exhaustion during the Final 1.5 hour Grand Prix race, some even needing medical attention. The new 5 Day format lessens the chance of exhaustion related medical problems, and at the same time, gives drivers more time to get acquainted with each other and enjoy the host city and its surroundings.
On Day 3 a longer track was used, which included the section with the crossover bridge. This made the track more interesting, and Hongkonger Steven To (Blue Star Racing A), Brazilian Fabio Konrad (Point Kart Indoor / Speedracer), and Dutchman Rouben Boutens (Team Nederland 2) were able to score their 1st IKWC victories, sprinkling a little extra international flavor in victory lane, and keeping things close at the top of the charts.
However, Heavy Championship leader Marc Viskens collected another victory in Round 3, further solidifying his lead in his class. Viskens now enjoyed a 6 points lead over Brazilian Pedro Washington in 2nd place. In the Lights, Van de Vel had a strong 3rd place finish, and was also able to maintain the lead in his category. He still had a 3 point advantage over 2nd place, which now belonged to Hongkonger Steven To. With a 100% success rate, Marc Viskens' performance to this point had been nothing less than remarkable. The chances of winning 3 consecutive IKWC races is incredibly small due to the competitiveness and caliber of drivers in the field, and even harder this year with the performance parity seen from the karts prepped by Worldkarts. The bad news for the 2 Talent Promotion stars was that, historically, the Championship leader at the half way point of the IKWC does not go on to win the World Title... Would this IKWC "curse" strike again in 2008?...
Results of Day 3 (Race Day 2):
Podium: Day 3 - Race 3 - Group 1 - Heavy (14 drivers)
1- Robin Borremans BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 40.907
2- Geoffrey Mertens BEL - Blue Star Racing Team B 40.895
3- Pedro Washington BRA - TopKart.com.br / C&C Lofty 41.106
Podium: Day 3 - Race 3 - Group 1 - Light (16 drivers)
1- Steven To HKG - Blue Star Racing Team A 40.262
2- Romano Franssen NED - Team Nederland 2 40.330
3- Rodrigo Faulhaber BRA - Equipe Point Kart Indoor / Speedracer 30.545
Podium: Day 3 - Race 3 - Group 2 - Heavy (15 drivers)
1- Marc Viskens BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 40.810
2- Daan Vanhamme BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium B 41.050
3- Dan Burke USA - GO FAST Energy Drink Team USA 41.082
Podium: Day 3 - Race 3 - Group 2 - Light (15 drivers)
1- Fabio Konrad BRA - Equipe Point Kart Indoor / Speedracer 40.191
2- Filipe Vieira POR - Team Portugal 40.375
3- Bart Van de Vel BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 40.474
Podium: Day 3 - Race 3 - Group 3 - Heavy (14 drivers)
1- Mathias Grooten BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 41.021
2- Nicolas Vanpuyvelde BEL - Blue Star Racing Team A 41.095
3- Alex Gumpenberger AUT - PlusCity.at Austria 41.108
Podium: Day 3 - Race 3 - Group 3 - Light (16 drivers)
1- Ruben Boutens NED - Team Nederland 2 40.279
2- Christophe Cornette BEL - Eurokart.be 40.252
3- Sidney Van Nieuwenhove BEL - Blue Star Racing Team B 40.282
Fastest Lap of the Day (Heavy):
Marc Viskens BEL - Talent Promotion A 40.810
Fastest Lap of the Day (Light):
Fabio Konrad BRA - Equipe Point Kart Indoor Speedracer 40.191
After Races 1, 2, & 3, the Top 10 positions in points in the Light Championship were:
| Pos. | Driver | Nat. | Team | Points |
| 1 | Bart Van de Vel |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 73 |
| 2 | Steven To |
HKG
|
Blue Star Racing Team A | 70 |
| 3 | Kenny Geldhof |
BEL
|
Blue Star Racing Team B | 69 |
| 4 | Fabio Konrad |
BRA
|
Point Kart Indoor / Speedracer | 69 |
| 5 | Gregory Laporte |
BEL
|
Blue Star Racing Team A | 68 |
| 6 | Lucas Motta |
BRA
|
TopKart / C&C Lofty | 66 |
| 7 | Ruben Boutens |
NED
|
Team Nederland 1 | 65 |
| 8 | Filipe Vieira |
POR
|
Team Portugal | 65 |
| 9 | Christophe Cornette |
BEL
|
Team Eurokart.be | 64 |
| 10 | Romano Franssen |
NED
|
Team Nederland 2 | 64 |
| (47 drivers in total) |
||||
After Races 1, 2, & 3, the Top 10 positions in points in the Heavy Championship were:
| Pos. | Driver | Nat. | Team | Points |
| 1 | Marc Viskens |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 76 |
| 2 | Pedro Washington |
BRA
|
TopKart / C&C Lofty | 70 |
| 3 | Alexander Gumpenberger |
AUT
|
PlusCity.at / Austria 1 | 69 |
| 4 | Luir Miranda |
BRA
|
TopKart / C&C Lofty | 68 |
| 5 | Geoffrey Mertens |
BEL
|
Blue Star Racing Team A | 68 |
| 6 | Mathias Grooten |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 67 |
| 7 | Robin Borremans |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 63 |
| 8 | Daan Vanhamme |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion B | 63 |
| 9 | Dan Burke |
USA
|
GO FAST Energy Drink Team USA | 62 |
| 10 | Humberto Rubin |
BRA
|
Equipe Point Kart / Kartriders | 62 |
| (45 drivers in total) |
||||
The next day would be a very important and decisive day. Another 1 hour race would be run on Day 4, and it would be the last of the qualifiers. The IKWC would actually be over today for many drivers. However, 40 drivers (20 Lights and 20 Heavies) would qualify to be in their respective Final Grand Prix races. It is a day of extreme high and low emotions, and would set the stage for the exciting IKWC 2008 Finale.
Day 4 brought an end to Marc Viskens string of victories, but not by much, as he was able to come up with the next best option, a 2nd place result. This further solidified his lead in the Heavy Championship, maintaining a 6 points advantage over Pedro Washington in 2nd place. It seemed that no one in their right mind would have bet against the Belgian to clinch the Title. On the Light Championship class, Bart Van de Vel was able to sustain his lead with another 3rd place, but was now being chased by a very another very motivated Belgian, Gregory Laporte, only 1.5 points behind in 2nd. Things were busy at the top of the Lights, with 5 drivers placed within the same 6 points difference that split the top 2 drivers in the Heavies. There was surely no safe bet in the Lights, but as everyone would find out tomorrow, no bet is ever a "safe bet" at the IKWC until the last lap of the Grand Prix Final is complete...
Results of Day 4 (Race Day 3):
Podium: Day 4 - Race 4 - Group 1 - Heavy (14 drivers)
1- Humberto Rubin BRA - Equipe Point Kart Indoor / KR 41.137
2- Mathias Maas BEL - Team Waaihof.be 41.081
3- Manuel Tenschert AUT - Ruck Zuck Racing Team 41.493
Podium: Day 4 - Race 4 - Group 1 - Light (15 drivers)
1- Sidney Van Nieuwenhove BEL - Blue Star Racing Team B 40.489
2- Lucas Motta BRA - TopKart.com.br / C&C Lofty 40.572
3- Bart Van de Vel BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 40.564
Podium: Day 4 - Race 4 - Group 2 - Heavy (15 drivers)
1- Mike Smith USA - Team Formula Americas 41.009
2- Pedro Washington BRA - TopKart.com.br / C&C Lofty 41.099
3- Robin Borremans BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 41.127
Podium: Day 4 - Race 4 - Group 2 - Light (15 drivers)
1- Gregory Laporte BEL - Blue Star Racing Team A 40.461
2- Rodrigo Faulhaber BRA - Equipe Point Kart Indoor / Speedracer 40.689
3- Sebastiaan Circkens NED - Team Nederland 1 40.766
Podium: Day 4 - Race 4 - Group 3 - Heavy (14 drivers)
1- Mathias Grooten BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 41.193
2- Marc Viskens BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium A 41.267
3- Truman "Brad" Godfrey USA - GO FAST Energy Drink Team USA 41.476
Podium: Day 4 - Race 4 - Group 3 - Light (16 drivers)
1- Romano Franssen NED - Team Nederland 2 40.500
2- Kristoff Van de Parre BEL - Team TalentPromotion.be Belgium B 40.508
3- Kristof de Ryck BEL - Team JPR.be Belgium 40.546
Fastest Lap of the Day (Heavy):
Alexander Gumpenberger AUT - Team Austria 2 41.006
Fastest Lap of the Day (Light):
Gregory Laporte BEL - Blue Star Racing Team A 40.461
After Races 1, 2, 3, & 4, the Top 10 positions in points in the Light Championship were:
| Pos. | Driver | Nat. | Team | Points |
| 1 | Bart Van de Vel |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 95 |
| 2 | Gregory Laporte |
BEL
|
Blue Star Racing Team A | 93.5 |
| 3 | Romano Franssen |
NED
|
Team Nederland 2 | 89.5 |
| 4 | Lucas Motta |
BRA
|
TopKart / C&C Lofty | 89 |
| 5 | Kenny Geldhof |
BEL
|
Blue Star Racing Team B | 88 |
| 6 | Steven To |
HKG
|
Blue Star Racing Team A | 86.5 |
| 7 | Christophe Cornette |
BEL
|
Team Eurokart.be | 84.5 |
| 8 | Filipe Vieira |
POR
|
Team Portugal | 84 |
| 9 | Rodrigo Faulhaber |
BRA
|
Point Kart Indoor / Speedracer | 82.5 |
| 10 | Fabio Konrad |
BRA
|
Equipe Point Kart / Kartriders | 82.5 |
| (47 drivers in total) |
||||
After Races 1, 2, 3, & 4, the Top 10 positions in points in the Heavy Championship were:
| Pos. | Driver | Nat. | Team | Points |
| 1 | Marc Viskens |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 99 |
| 2 | Pedro Washington |
BRA
|
TopKart / C&C Lofty | 93 |
| 3 | Mathias Grooten |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 92 |
| 4 | Alexander Gumpenberger |
AUT
|
Plus-City.at / Austria 1 | 88 |
| 5 | Humberto Rubin |
BRA
|
Equipe Point Kart / Kartriders | 87 |
| 6 | Robin Borremans |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 84.5 |
| 7 | Luir Miranda |
BRA
|
TopKart / C&C Lofty | 83 |
| 8 | Nicolas Vanpuyvelde |
BEL
|
Blue Start Racing Team A | 83 |
| 9 | Daan Vanhamme |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion B | 83 |
| 10 | Carlos Nadaes |
BRA
|
TopKart / Granja Viana / Margeon | 83 |
| (45 drivers in total) |
||||
Stage was set for the final. The IKWC Final Grand Prix races are the most challenging and grueling of the competition. The drivers, who by now had logged between 3 and 5 hours of driving (between racing and practice) in high heat conditions during the last 4-5 days, now would have to endure a seemingly never-ending 1.5 hours of intense racing to decide the 2008 Indoor Kart World Championship's final positions. Neck muscles were sore, hands were blistered, and bodies were in pain, but all were eager to push themselves to their limits of endurance. If any drivers had not yet used their free pass provided by sponsor Passage Fitness First and used their pool or sauna facilities, this would have been the time to do it. With 2 Finals to be run, the 2008 IKWC Final day promised to deliver twice the drama of previous years.
Although at least 8 drivers still had mathematical chances of winning the Lights World Championship Title, it was likely to go to one of 5 possible hopefuls. Van de Vel had led from the start and looked strong. But fellow countryman Gregory Laporte and Dutchman Romano Franssen had been steadily climbing up the charts, and now looked to be a serious threat to Van de Vel's Championship hopes. Brazilian Lucas Motta had never dropped below 6th place in points during the entire Championship, was now in 4th and only 6 points behind the leader Van de Vel. Belgian Kenny Geldhof also had a great IKWC to this point, never being below 5th place in points. Geldhof however, had been losing momentum, and the 5th place he now held in the Championship was his worst placement so far. 2007 World Champion Rodrigo Fauhaber and 2005 World Champion Werner Truegler qualified for the final, but with no hopes for a shot at the Championship Title, unfortunately. Both however, were hoping for a victory to protect their positions in the IKWC rankings and statistics charts.
On the Heavy Championship, Marc Viskens 6 point lead was reasonably comfortable, but far from secure. Pedro Washington looked like the strongest threat. A veteran of 4 IKWCs, Washington knew anything could happen, but a win would be his best hope for a chance at the Title. However, Washington was not alone in the pursuit of Viskens. Mathias Grooten, sitting in 3rd only 1 point behind the Brazilian, was looking very strong. Grooten, like Viskens, had also won 3 races on his way to the final, and looked keen on improving his 3rd place overall obtained at the 2007 IKWC in Phoenix. Austrian Alex Gumpenberger and Brazilian Humberto Rubin still had mathematical hopes, but needed a win desperatly in addition to hoping that Viskens, Washington, and Grooten had miserable results in the Final.
The Finals did not disappoint. In the Heavies, 36 year old favorite Marc Viskens had a tough time and had his worst race result to that point, coming in 7th. Although 7th is not a bad result, it opened the door to the other challengers. Viskens team mate, 20 year old Mathias Grooten, ran an incredible and impecable race, going on to score an amazing 4th victory in the 2008 IKWC (the only driver to do so, and a new record for victories at a single IKWC event). This resulted in a never before seen tie for the Title, with both drivers having summed up 117 points. Grooten was declared the 2008 Champion based on the number of race victories (the tie breaker criteria) 4, against Visken's 3. Grooten was the first driver to ever win 4 races during an Indoor Kart World Championship, and in the process became the IKWCs top race winner, having now accumulated a total of 7 IKWC victories to his IKWC record of wins. Grooten shares the spot with Pedro Washington from Brazil who also has 7 IKWC victories. However, the Belgian's victories record is better than the Brazilian's, having participated at only 2 IKWCs (2007 & 2008), while the Brazilian has raced in 4 IKWCs. Marc Viskens, who no doubt had a Championship winning performance in 2008 (but not quite, thanks to Grooten...), had at least the consolation of having been beat by such a small margin by his friend and team mate, keeping things within Team Talent Promotion. Still, only 1 driver can be Champion, and Mathias Grooten is the well deserving Champion of the 2008 Indoor Kart Championship (Heavy), and takes the Champion Trophy as well as the 500 Euro prize. Pedro Washington, a veteran at only 19 years old, managed a 6th place in the Final Grand Prix, which secured him in the 3rd place in points, equaling his previous best Championship result. With 7 victories and two 3rd Final positions obtained in previous Indoor Kart World Championships, Washington is currently the highest ranked driver never to have won the Championship. He hopes to turn this around in 2009, when the IKWC takes place in Brazil.
Heavy Final Grand Prix Podium
1- Mathias Grooten BEL - Talent Promotion Belgium A 32.233
2- Robin Borremans BEL - Talent Promotion Belgium A 32.142
3- Mike Smith USA - Team Formula Americas 32.106
Fastest Lap: Daan Vanhamme BEL Talent Promtion A 31.960 (4th place)
(20 drivers in race)
2008 Indoor Kart World Championship Podium (Heavy)
| Pos. | Driver | Nat. | Team | Points |
| 1 | Mathias Grooten |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 117 |
| 2 | Marc Viskens |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 117 |
| 3 | Pedro Washington |
BRA
|
TopKart / C&C Lofty | 112 |
| (45 drivers total. For full points results, please check the "2008 Results" page) |
||||
The Lights Final was no less dramatic. Much like in the Heavies, the Championship leader had his worst result in the Final GP. Bart Van de Vel coincidentally found himself finishing in 7th place (like team mate Viskens in the Heavies), a result which did not guarantee him the Championship Title. Another Belgian, Sidney Van Nieuwenhove from Blue Star Racing Team A, ran the race of his life, and went on to win the most sought after single victory at an IKWC event: the 1.5 hour Final. In 2nd place came Dutchman Romano Franssen from Team Nederland 2, and in 3rd, Belgian Kenny Geldhof from Blue Star Racing B. Gregory Laporte, who came into the Final GP 2nd in points behind points leader Van de Vel, finished 5th. Fingers were quickly tapping buttons on calculators and computer keyboards, as no one was quite sure what these results meant for the Championship. Once points were checked and rechecked, it was determined the Championship had been won by what would have otherwise been the slimmest ever margin of victory, if not by the tie-breaker situation seen in the Heavies. The top 3 drivers were separated by just 0.5 point, with 24 year old Belgian driver Gregory Laporte from Blue Start Racing Team A being announced as the 2008 Indoor Kart World Champion. Laporte had beat both Van de Vel and Franssen, thanks to the 0.5 point scored by making the fastest lap of the race in Race 4 on the previous day. Van de Vel and Franssen were tied, with 113 points each, but the tie-breaker advantage went to the Belgian, who had scored 2 victories against 1 of the Dutch driver. Laporte, had finished a disappointing 43rd (out of 84 drivers) at the 2006 IKWC (his only previous running in the event), and was overcome with emotion when he heard that he was the 2008 Indoor Kart World Champion (Light) and winner of the 500 Euro Grand Prize. Tears of joy rolled down his face as he was congratulated by his family, friends, teammates, and his opponents.
Light Final Grand Prix Podium
1- Sidney Van Nieuwenhove BEL - Blue Star Racing Team A 31.750
2- Romano Franssen NED - Team Nederland 2 31.599
3- Kenny Geldhof BEL - Blue Star Racing Team B 31.713
Fastest Lap: Romano Franssen NED - Team Nederland 2 31.599 (2nd place)
(20 drivers in race)
2008 Indoor Kart World Championship Podium (Light)
| Pos. | Driver | Nat. | Team | Points |
| 1 | Gregory Laporte |
BEL
|
Blue Star Racing Team A | 113.5 |
| 2 | Bart Van de Vel |
BEL
|
Talent Promotion A | 113 |
| 3 | Romano Franssen |
NED
|
Team Nederland 2 | 113 |
| (47 drivers total. For full points results, please check the "2008 Results" page) |
||||
The 2008 IKWC Team World Championship competition was unified (not divided by weight categories), and calculated this year by adding the a team's best 3 driver's results from each round. Talent Promotion A were the Team World Champions with a total of 340.5 points. The margin was again close, with Blue Star Racing Team A in 2nd, with 337 points. In 3rd, Talent Promotion's B team with 310.5 points completed the all Belgian Team Championship podium. For full points results, please check the "2008 Results" page.
The 2008 Indoor Kart World Championship Masters Category, which included all drivers 40 years old and older regardless of weight division, was won by 40 year old Pablo Marlangeon (Team TopKart / Kart Granja Viana / Margeon) from Brazil, with 40 year old Colombian Diego Morales (Team Formula Americas) in 2nd. It was another close finish. Both drivers qualified for the Heavy Final GP, and their results in the Final would determine who between the two would be the 2008 Masters Champion. Marlangeon finished 14th in the race, with Morales not too far behind in 16th. The result gave the Title to the Brazilian. The 3rd place in the Masters went to 58 year old driver "Slow" Assis from Brazil, who did not qualify for the Lights Final GP, but had managed to score enough points (66 pts) to guarantee 3rd place even before the Final had been run. Marlangeon finished in 17th overall position in the IKWC (Heavy), with Morales in 18th. For full points results, please check the "2008 Results" page.
The 2008 Indoor Kart World Championship Woman's Category, which included all women drivers regardless of weight division, was won by Belgian driver Lindsey Vigne (Team Talent Promotion B) with 85 points, followed by Nicole Kronsteiner from Austria (Team Austria 2) with 61 points, and Camille Verstraete (Team Eurokart.be) from Belgium in 3rd, with 55 points. A record 6 women drivers competed at the 2008 IKWC, and all actually ran together, directly against each other in the Light Weight Category. They finished 17th, 31st, and 37th respective in the overall Lights World Championship results. For full points results, please check the "2008 Results" page
Please consult the 2008 Results page for the full results for all 2008 IKWC Categories.
The IKWC would like to take this opportunity congratulate and thank all winners and champions, as well as all drivers who competed at the 2008 Indoor Kart World Championship. The IKWC and all drivers also extend a big thank you to Worldkarts management and staff, for going the extra mile on kart prep and for putting on a great show. A big thank you also goes to 't Waaihof for sponsoring & hosting the best dinner party to date at an IKWC event, to Passage Fitness & Spa for allowing drivers to use their facilities at no charge, and for KartGrid.be for coming in at the last minute to set up the live internet feed allowing fans from all over the world to follow the IKWC races live.
The 2009 Indoor Kart World Championship is scheduled to happen in Brazil. Negotiations are under way, and the race will likely be in the exotic tropical city of Rio de Janeiro. Additional info about the track will be posted as soon as it becomes available. The IKWC hopes to confirm the 2009 Indoor Kart World Championship event by November at the latest, to allow proper planning for all international drivers that hope to attend.
See you at the beach in Rio!!
Please read these great additional "personal experience" race reports provided by IKWC drivers:
Diego Morales (18th Place Heavy) (Masters 2nd Place)
Mike Smith (6th Place Heavy)
Gregory Laporte (Lights Champion)
