De Maio gives his all to help Australia to first victory in cup
Shepparton kart racer Josh Demaio played his role in helping Australia to its first Rotax Max Challenge Nations Cup in the event’s 12-year history.
De Maio, 18, was among 285 drivers from 59 countries competing across four categories at the event dubbed the ‘‘Olympic Games of karting’’.
The grand final was held at Al Ain Raceway in the United Arab Emirates fromnovember 21 to 27 with Junior Max, Senior Max, DD2 and DD2 Masters categories.
De Maio was part of an 11-driver Australian team and competed in the Senior Max category.
His start to the world finals wasn’t as strong as he would have liked qualifying 36th fastest in a field of 72 drivers.
A crash in one of his heat races further hampered his overall speed and forced him to qualify for the main event through the last chance qualifiers’ race.
‘‘There were a lot of really good racers from all around the world, so the competition at the event was very tough,’’ De Maio said.
‘‘I didn’t qualify that well, which meant I started further back in the heat races than I would have liked.
‘‘I made a few mistakes which cost me a direct transfer into the main races, but in the end it turned out okay.’’
De Maio started in pole position and had to finish sixth or better to make the final event grid.
He placed second and started the prefinal from 30th.
De Maio charged to 13th place on the 14th lap to secure a seventh row starting position for the final.
De Maio maneuvered his way up the order to finish sixth.
His hard work on the track went towards Australia’s overall first place finish, with Canada placing second and South Africa third.
‘‘To be part of the winning team in the Nations Cup is a real honour and a great reward for the hard work put in by everyone involved in this year’s campaign at the event,’’ De Maio said.
His next focus is on qualifying for the 2012 Rotax Max Challenge grand final to be held in Portugal next November.
