After back-to-back regional races, club racing returned at Goodwood Kartways for TRAK Race 6. On an all new layout, reverse long track with chicane, drivers had to adapt to the challenging circuit.
Friday practice was difficult for Daniel. Despite feeling comfortable on the new track layout, the No. 412 had stubborn issues with the motor cutting out, an issue which persisted despite cleaning the carburetor, replacing the fuel pump and adjusting the valves. After practice, and before his CRKC race started, Chris decided to switch out the race motor, replacing Uniqua with her twin Skyler, as a preventive measure.
Daniel topped morning practice, but curiously wasn’t as fast as he had been on Friday.
While inspecting the kart before qualifying, driving coach / team mechanic Enzo Chiovitti Jr. found a massive crack on the side of the seat. After installing a new fiberglass IMAF seat, the team bolted on a fresh set of Vega qualifying tires, and sent Daniel on track. Demaras set pole position by four tenths of a second ahead of his nearest rival.
Daniel warded off an attack in the start of the pre-final race and stretched his lead to a 6.272 second gap by consistently setting lap times half a second faster than anyone else on track, leading from flag to flag comfortably.
In the final race, Daniel once again maintained his lead off the start, and grew the gap. The race was not problem free. Daniel’s dad Chris had over-filled the gas tank (to make sure the kart reached minimum weight) but the excess fuel sprayed out the overflow hose, soaking Daniel’s right arm in the process. Daniel was worried he had a fuel leak before determining the issue would not sideline him. He mentally noted that as long as the gas absorbed into his race suit, he’d make weight.
A slight bobble over the curbs and a missed apex due to dirt on the track did little to slow Demaras down, and Daniel took his first win in Briggs & Stratton club racing.
A great day all around for New Speed Motorsports as the team took pole positions and wins in all three classes it competed in. Santiago Ramirez took the win in Mini Rok while Elijah Joshi earned his first win of the season by edging out teammate Rocco Simone in Briggs Cadet.
For Daniel, finally taking a win was a long time coming. He spent a year in Briggs Jr and two years in Briggs Sr, only finishing in the Top 10 at the club level. The move to Briggs Masters allowed Daniel to show how fast and competitive he is. With support from the whole NSM team, Daniel had a dominant race, and looks to repeat his success next weekend.
Daniel thanks Anthony, Leonard, Enzo, Max, Cale, Liam and the team at NSM for the support, Darryl and Curtis at PRO for the race winning engines, and James Treadwell at VRS for his unwavering belief and support.