Marcelo impresses in ROK World Cup

Ace karter Stefano Marcelo of Maranello-San Miguel Corporation-Marcelo Racing put the Philippines in the spotlight of world karting following his impressive feat in the 2008 ROK World Cup in Lonato, Italy.

The 16-year-old Marcelo, getting valuable coaching lessons from World KF1 champion Garry Catt, emerged seventh among the world’s best champion karters in the prestigious event – a much-improved feat from his 10th place finish last year.

But what really caught the world’s eyes was Marcelo’s feat of posting the best time in the qualifying round where he bested 120 hopefuls in the event and also won two of the three heats.

And he could have bagged a podium finish if not for the incidents and the pile-ups that spoiled his bid.

After ruling the first two heats, Marcelo figured in an incident at the second corner where his bumper got latched into the bumper of the second place driver.  Fortunately, he managed to get back on track and salvaged third position in the third heat.

That finish gave him good chances for a podium finish in the final race. However, he got tangled in another pile-up incident at the same second corner coming from the high-speed main straight. He slipped down to 16th but the crowd cheered for the determined Stefano who staged a fiery rally to climb back to seventh position in the tough race.

“An unlucky end to the weekend but nevertheless a weekend full of good results. That only shows how tough racing in Europe is. The pace was blistering and the drivers are ultra-aggressive,” said Marcelo.