Cabrera emerges No. 1 karter in ROK Cup

MANILA, Philippines - Seaoil-DC karter and ART Grand Prix Asia driver Gabriel Tayao-Cabrera continued to stamp his class in the Petron Blaze 100 ROK Cup Karting Super Series, scoring a repeat win and emering the top karter in the second leg at the Carmona Racetrack in Cavite recently.

Cabrera, 14, flashed top form and swept the qualifying heat, the pre-final and the final races to clinch both the premiere ROK overall and the ROK junior crowns again over a tough field that included veteran Bobby Domingo.

A pioneer Boy Ochoa Memorial awardee, Tayao-Cabrera thus grabbed the ROK overall and ROK junior lead, making him a strong candidate for both the coveted Karter of the Year and Junior Karter of the Year awards.

Toughened up his stints abroad, Tayao-Cabrera has been showcasing his racing skills while continuing to impress with timely strategy and decisions.

Posting the fastest time of 44.335 seconds in time trials, Tayao-Cabrera surged ahead in the qualifying heat and claimed the top spot nearly four seconds ahead then ruled the pre-finals by 1.960 seconds ahead of Domingo.

He wrapped up the 20-lap race in 14 minutes and 41.738 seconds or 2.183 seconds ahead of Jacob Ang of Eagle Cement.