Preparations are already underway for this weekend’s Formula Renault Italia events at Misano World Circuit in Italy as David Richert will once again be competing with Team Torino Motorsport. Richert will be Canada’s lone representative as drivers from around the world take to the track for the double-header race weekend.
The Misano World Circuit is situated on Italy’s east coast along the Adriatic Sea and hosts a round of the MotoGP World Championship. A new track means new challenges for Richert as he will have to adapt quickly in order to keep up with the heavily experienced competition. “Clearly I’m in at the deep end as most of the other drivers have experience at this circuit, so it’ll be a challenge but we’ll stick to the game plan and see what happens” stated Richert.
David Richert will head back to his roots and take part in this weekend’s kart race at Gimli Motorsport Park.
Like most professional race car drivers, Richert started his racing career with several years of training in the very quick world of kart racing. Kart racing provides an affordable way to break into the world of motorsport and due to the light weight of the kart, the high speeds and cornering capabilites provide the perfect training ground for anyone with aspirations of reaching the pinnacle levels of motor racing.
Richert will contest Round 3 of the Manitoba Karting Association’s 2011 race season with the GBR Manitoba Karting Team. GBR Manitoba, a division of Burkett Racing Enterprises based in Winnipeg, will provide Richert with a 125 CC Rotax powered kart for the weekend.
“I’m really looking forward to getting back into a Rotax as it’s one of the quickest racing machines you can drive anywhere in the world…” states Richert, ”…I spent many years racing karts in Gimli so to be able to go back and have fun with old friends will be a great time.”
Testing will take place on Saturday with qualifying and the main feature races taking place on Sunday. Richert Racing would like to welcome anyone with an interest in motorsport to come and check out this weekend’s event in Gimli. Whether you’re aspiring to become a professional race car driver or just looking for a fun family activity to take part in, the sport of kart racing may provide that opportunity.
Richert to Guest Host Red Bull Night Race
David Richert is back home in Winnipeg after his first race event in Italy earlier this month and he will be a special guest host at this Friday’s Red Bull Night Race event.
With the Canadian Grand Prix just weeks away, Red Bull is coming through Winnipeg with their Formula 1 pitstop game providing an opportunity to test your skills at changing the tires on a Formula 1 race car. Richert will be on hand to share his experiences of racing in Europe, answer questions, and will also step out from his usual spot behind the wheel to test his own abilities in the art of a pitstop tire change.
Richert will be present at the event, which takes place this Friday, May 27th, at Alive in the District (140 Bannatyne Ave), from 5pm till 10pm.
Richert Shows Well in Italy
David Richert completed his first ever open-wheel race this weekend and finished things off in style with a thrilling last lap pass through the grass at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola, Italy.
Richert, one of 25 race car drivers from around the world, took part in the Formula Renault Italia championship races as Canada’s only representative in this weekend’s event. Things got off to a tough start as Richert’s car suffered mechanical failure in two of Friday’s three practice sessions. With just a fraction of the experience as other drivers in the field this setback really made things difficult as Richert spent the rest of the weekend trying to catch up.
Starting from 19th position Richert was able to work his way up to finish 16th by passing French driver Herve Clement on the final lap of the race. In a wheel to wheel battle approaching the tight Variante Alta corner, Richert was forced to overtake by sailing through the grass and after holding off Clement through the final corner, was greeted by cheering Team Torino Motorsport crew members as he streaked across the finish line just 0.377 seconds ahead of the French driver.
Although there were 24 other drivers, Richert was ultimately racing against himself this weekend in an effort to bring his car up to speed in unfamiliar conditions. “I’m happy that I was able to improve my laptimes in every session this weekend…” stated Richert, “…and although it’s a struggle to compete with the higher experience levels and budgets that the other drivers have, I learnt a lot and managed to keep the car in one piece, so hopefully we’ll move towards the front soon.”
Richert will now head home to Winnipeg as he gears up to return to Italy for futures races this season including one at the world famous track at Monza.
Richert Ready to Race at Imola
Canadian race car driver, David Richert, is set to contest this weekend’s Formula Renault Italia race in Imola, Italy. Richert, sponsored by Silver Jeans Co, will be Canada’s lone representative at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari as 25 drivers from 5 nationalities will compete in the race weekend.
For the farm kid from Manitoba, competing in a single-seater race in Italy will be a dream come true. “Around 10 years ago I developed a passion for racing while living in a part of the world where it is not a common thing…” states Richert, “…so to be able to compete in Italy where the country is extremely passionate about motorsports, especially Ferrari, it is a huge privilege for me.”
Many of today’s top drivers have spent time in the Formula Renault category around the world including World Champions like Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen. The Formula Renault Italia series has graduated it’s share of drivers as well, three current Formula 1 drivers, including Ferrari’s Felipe Massa, are on the list, as is Ryan Briscoe who is racing in North America for Roger Penske in IndyCar.
With so much young talent in the series, Richert is expecting the weekend to be a serious challenge. Many of the other drivers in the series have not only more experience in the cars and on the Imola track, but also much larger budgets to work with. “I am here to work hard, learn and hopefully do well, but it will be very difficult as I have not even been able to afford new tires to test with, so this weekend will be the first time I get to experience them” says Richert.
The Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari is near the Italian town of Imola, east of Bologna and just 80 kilometers from the Ferrari factory in Maranello. The circuit has hosted many years of Formula 1 World Championship events and was the location of a weekend of tragic events in 1994 which took the life of F1 legend Ayrton Senna.
After a day of testing on Friday, official practice and qualifying sessions will go on Saturday with the two races being run on Sunday, May 8th. Visit RenaultSport Italia (http://www.renaultsportitalia.it/campionato/challenge-f-renault/) for full coverage of the race weekend.
