Enzo Vidmontiene excelled in both wet and dry conditions in Ocala,
but missed the victory after a near perfect weekend
(Photo: Canadian Karting News)
Fort Lauderdale, Florida – It was almost a perfect weekend for Enzo Vidmontiene during the second round of the ROK Cup USA Florida Winter Tour. Competing aboard a Benik Kart in the Vortex Mini ROK class, Vidmontiene was the star of the field claiming the pole position, three heat race wins and prefinal victory, only to find himself on the third and final step of the podium on Sunday. Marco Romero, driving a Benik for Zanella Racing, claimed the prefinal victory and second step on the podium in Micro ROK capping off a good weekend for the Benik brand.
After the impressive results leading up to the final day of competition and excelling in both wet and dry weather competition, Enzo Vidmontiene jumped to the lead early but was unable to hold his competitors at bay. Battling at the front of the field and eventually finishing the sixteen-lap main event in the third position, Vidmontiene had a somber celebration on the podium feeling that the win had slipped away.
“I think the Mini ROK win slipped away from us this weekend,” explained Nick Mitchell. “Enzo drove great all weekend and proved the speed of our Benik chassis, but we missed it on Sunday. Salvaging a podium result was good for our quest in the championship and we will resume that points chase in March.”
Fellow Team Benik driver and Mini ROK teammate Asher Ochstein showed flashes of brilliance and pace this weekend as he ran well inside the top-ten. Overcoming a disappointing wet weather qualifying effort that saw him back in ninth, Ochstein claimed a pair of eighth place finishes in heats one and two before rocketing up the charts for a third-place result in heat three. Starting the prefinal in fifth and running as high as second as he and Benik teammate Vidmontiene held the top two spots, a last lap attack by fellow drivers relegated him back to P8 when the checkered flag had flown. Running with the best Mini drivers in the country, Ochstein ended his weekend with a solid seventh place result in the main event on Sunday.
Junior ROK driver Michael Costello drove forward from his 16th place main event starting position and when the dust had finally settled, earned an 11th place result in one of the toughest classes on the weekend. Progressing through the heat races with good pace, Costello was the victim of a heat two incident that ruined any momentum for a good result on the weekend. Showing his speed, the young driver was able to come home 11th in both heat three and the weekend’s main event. Logan Vajda failed to finish the main event but had a strong run in the wet qualifying 12th and finishing ninth in the first Senior ROK heat race before gaining eight positions in the prefinal to finish just outside the top-ten.
Competing under the Zanella Racing program but aboard a Benik, Marco Romero secured a second-place podium result after never running outside the top-four and topping the results chart in the Micro ROK prefinal.
Next on the docket for Team Benik will be the opening round of the United States Pro Kart Series (USPKS) March 11-14, one week prior to the final round of the 2021 ROK Cup USA Florida Winter Tour.
For more information on the BENIK Kart or Team BENIK, please contact Nick Mitchell via e-mail to Info@Benik-Kart.com or by phone at 561.348.4406. To keep up to date with news, photos, results, and information on Team Benik, please follow them on social media by searching ‘Team Benik’.
