Little ones light up Georgetown Grand Prix

By Avenash Ramzan

If ever there were doubts about the future of motorsports in Guyana, then those uncertainties were emphatically tossed out the window on Saturday night.

Not one, but two groups of eager and exciting youngsters, all below the age of 15 and as young as five years old, lit up the GT Motorsports track at the season-opening Georgetown Grand Prix.

The usually fun-filled 60cc category, sponsored by Sun Burst Juices, was split into two groups- the Kids Cup, which catered for the more experienced youths, and the Baby Cup, which featured newcomers.

In essence, it was a double treat for the fair-sized crowd, who cheered on the youngsters every time they hit the track. The Kids Cup brought its typical competitiveness, with the usual suspects finishing on the podium.

Nathan Rahaman, who ended the last season strongly, finished as champion driver, working his way to two wins and a second place finish. Jeremy Tenpow, who was crowned overall champion of the Kids Cup last year, had a night of mixed returns.

He started with a win in the opening race, but finished second to Rahaman in race two and suffered some mechanic issues on the final lap of race three when he was leading, and had to drop out.

His brother Justin got a second place finish, while their Pure Racing teammate Paige Mendonca, the lone female racer of the night, took two third place finishes.

The Baby Cup, which was based on lap time rather than position, was a very competitive affair, with Nicholas Sawh, who could hardly contain his excitement on the podium, emerging as champion driver.

The enthusiastic youth won two races, clocking fastest times of 35.772s and 35.363s, and ended second in the other, while Ben Phang clocked 34.814s to win the other race, to go with a second and third place finish.

Caleb Paul got a second and two third place finishes.

The 125cc Juniors was a very competitive field, with Gianni Carpenter copping the champion driver award after chalking up a win and a third place. However, it was Faraud Mohamed who impressed on the night, earning a podium spot in all three races.

Mohamed gained two seconds and a third, while Elan Rahaman and Rayden Persaud managed a win apiece. Rahaman got a third as well and John Phang a second place finish.

Stefan Jeffrey, with two wins, lifted the champion driver title in the Easy Cup Super, with Dharmendra Dharmo winning the other race. Steven Nobrega finished second in all three races, while Brian Tenpow finished third twice and Sachin Narine got a third place in the other race.

Shan Seejatan ruled the roost in the 125cc Masters, walking away with the champion driver accolade after two wins and a second. Haniff Mohamed got the other win, along with two second place finishes, while Raj Boodhoo finished third in two of the race.

Mikhail Persaud continued his great driving from 2017, winning the champion driver award in the 125cc Seniors by winning two races, while Trinidad and Tobago’s Kristian Boodoosingh won the other race and also claimed a second place finish.

Matthew Phang and Trinidad and Tobago’s Zachary Boodram got a second and third place finish each, while John Phang also copped a third.

Below are the summarised results.

CHAMPION DRIVERS

60cc Kids Cup- Nathan Rahaman
125cc Juniors- Gianni Carpenter
60cc Baby Cup- Nicholas Sawh
Easy Cup Super- Stefan Jeffrey
125cc Seniors- Mikhail Persaud
125cc Masters- Shan Seejatan