HARD CHARGING DRIVE BY JOSEPH MAWSON IN BELGIUM (includes Video)

Joseph Mawson aboard his Top Kart at the Genk circuit in Belgium (Pic: KSP)

Australian Joseph Mawson put in a hard charging drive to secure his best finish of the year at the final round of the WSK Euro Series in Belgium on Sunday.

After qualifying 24th fastest from the 53 drivers in the KF category, the Australian Motor Sport Foundation-backed driver endured a challenging weekend before clawing his way back to cross the line 11th in the final. His result is even more remarkable given the fact that a DNF in his final qualifying heat left him placed 33rd in the standings entering the pre-final.

“My races in the pre-final and final were probably two of the best that I’ve had since I joined the Top Kart team at the start of the year,” said Mawson.

“I showed a lot of speed and was probably the most aggressive that I’ve been, which really helped make up a lot of positions. In the pre-final I went from 33rd to 17th, but then got a five-place penalty for a crash.

“In the final I got put off onto the grass and went back to third or fourth last before coming back to finish 11th. It was a crazy tough weekend but it feels great to be able to get a strong result on the board.”

Denmark’s Nicklas Nielsen won the round ahead of Brit Ben Barnicoat and Russian Vasily Romanov.

Mawson’s next event will be the opening round of the 2013 CIK-FIA European KF Championships at the Alcaniz circuit in Spain on June 14-16. He will be joined at this event by a pair of fellow Australians Dimitri Agathos and Josh Smith.