By Avenash Ramzan
Reigning Easy Cup Rookie champion, Raymond Baksh, will be making the step up to the 125cc Senior category for the 2018 season, which gets underway on Saturday (March 3) with the first Georgetown Grand Prix meet at GT Motorsports.
Baksh was by far the most dominant driver in the Easy Cup Rookie in his debut season, emerging with the joint-most wins by a single driver across all categories in 2017, copping first place in nine of the 12 races.
He raced up 273 points, comfortably ahead of Ralph Persaud with 184 points and two wins, and Dharmendra Dharmo, who impressed with a third place finish overall, managing 154 points and a win and four second place finishes against his name.
However, the young driver is making the step up to what is expected to be a highly competitive category, and he knows it won’t be an easy journey.
“(It will be) an entirely different challenge for me because there’s a big increase in speed and overall driving would be much different. But I’m looking forward to the challenge and willing to learn as much as I can all over again,” Baksh told News Room on Tuesday.
Sponsored by Truck Masters, Top Power Racing and Cyril’s Taxi Service, the #86 driver is keen on employing the same strategy that brought him tremendous success in 2017.
“I did a lot of practice. I did a lot of research, a lot of preparation and I always tried to get faster, and basically the key was learning how to go faster and trying to understand what the kart is telling you when you’re driving it. You must be able to understand and analyse what the kart is telling you on track and what you need to do to get faster,” he explained.
With the likes of 2017 champion Matthew Phang, Kristian Boodoosingh, Mikhail Persaud, John Phang, Rayden Persaud and others set to suit up in the 125cc Senior, Baksh is aware of the challenge that lies ahead.
“I’m a rookie all over again you can say, because it’s my first year in a new class so with a little bit of experience I think I can be right up there. I need to adopt to the kart a little bit more and probably by the next Grand Prix I should be fully competitive,” he reckoned.
He is also cognisant of the weight of expectations from fans and his team, after a breakout year in the Easy Cup Rookie where he was simply an unstoppable force on track.
“You know I’ve been thinking about it a lot and I’m trying not to put myself under that pressure in terms of expectation. I just need to adapt to the kart and have fun out there and not put too much pressure on myself,” he said.
With the experience of mechanic Brian Tenpow in his corner, Baksh is confident he can make the transition to the higher class of racing.
“It’s a major boost for me (to have Brian Tenpow in my corner); I owe most of my success to him. He’s a very good friend of mine, a brilliant mechanic, a brilliant coach and he’s the one that’s behind me and pushing me to do well,” Baksh stated.
Saturday’s event will see rivalry in the usual categories, namely Sun Burst Kids Cup, 125cc Junior and Senior, Easy Cup Rookie, Easy Cup Light, Easy Cup Heavy and Shifter Pro Cup.
Admission to the event is free, but the VIP experience costs $6,000 per person. Action will get underway at 18:00h (6pm). Corporate support has been garnered from Stag Beer, Exxon Mobil, GMR&SC, Rayne Inn and Sun Burst Juices.
