Lachica rallies from 10th to cop cadet novice plum

MANILA, Philippines - With the heart of a champion and the stubbon will to win, One Racing young ace Jose Luigi Lachica came back to beat the odds and win the championship round of the 2012 Coca-Cola Karting Super Series to finish the season as overall formula cadet novice champion.

If the past races flaunted his superb skills, which kept him at the top of his class, the final leg drew out the unique winning character that completed his transformation from a promising talent into a certified champion through the huge support of MyPhone, Tony Kart, AIM Racing Gauges, ORG Racing Gear, Sparco, HJC Auto Helmets and the Active Group.

The season finale turned out to be the biggest test to his potentials as one of the next champion stars of Philippine Karting.  A racing incident in the qualifying heat forced him to start at the tailend of the 10-man combined field for the pre-finals.

Instead of losing hope, the eight-year-old Grade 3 student of Colegio San Agustin exploited every opportunity to pass one karter after another. He finished fourth just behind the top three Expert drivers in both the pre-final and final races to seal his title-clinching feat.

He wrapped up the eight-leg journey in the Formula Cadet Novice division with a total of 452 points to claim the overall crown with a 27-point advantage.

Looking back, Luigi went off with an inspiring start of sweeping the races in the Carmona kickoff and the Batangas leg and copped a strong runner-up finish at Boomland.

As the competition leveled up, the pressures took its toll on Lachica, resulting to demoralizing finishes in Carmona, the first Asian Karting race and at the Enchanted Kingdom.

But his big win in the second Asian Karting race despite tough pressures and several racing incidents revived his confidence as it taught him to believe in himself first and the bigger lesson of what determination can do to surpass all obstacles

“It was one rough journey that taught Luigi big lessons in his budding racing career developed the foundation and distinct character of champion at such a young age.  This firmed up our expectations on his big future in Philippine Motorsports in general,” commented One Racing Team Manager Chito Benito.

For more info and inquiries on how to join One Racing, interested parties may contact Mariel Wong at 348-0278.