Live: Southern Open Championship 2023 Go-kart Racing

Welcome to the Southern Open Championship (SOC) 2023 - one of the largest go-kart racing events in Vietnam in 2023. This is a special event for go-kart and racing enthusiasts, and we'll take you straight to the thrilling journey of speed!

1. What's in store for the first race of SOC 2023?

The first race of the championship focuses on the 2-stroke go-kart category, where professional drivers will compete to showcase their talent and create peak moments on the track. Additionally, to increase competitiveness and bring diversity to the race, the 4-stroke go-kart category has been moved to round 2.

Moreover, Southern Open Championship 2023 also brings you a special speed festival: OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK. This is a great opportunity for new drivers or go-kart enthusiasts to not only enjoy the excitement of the race but also experience test driving Racing Go-karts on the Dai Nam track.

2. Highlights of the SOC 2023 go-kart race

8:00 AM

Drivers along with their technical teams have arrived early to double-check their cars before the race begins. Besides, drivers also take the time to discuss race regulations and prepare questions for the Race Director in the upcoming technical meeting.

8:40 AM

OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK officially begins, drivers are moving to the pitstop area to wear safety gear and receive route instructions. There will be a total of 4 Heats for the OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK event, and the top-performing drivers from these 4 heats will qualify for the Final Heat in the afternoon.

The drivers are on the track and starting Heat 1 of OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK.

9:10 AM

Drivers registered for SOC 2023 move to the grandstand area for the race opening ceremony. Then, the Race Director briefs once again about the race regulations and answers any questions regarding the rules.

The list of drivers participating in the F7 Sprint Race category (2-stroke go-kart) for Pro and Rookie classes is as follows:

9:40 AM

Afterward, the drivers move to the SOC 2023 designated area to wear safety gear and prepare to go on track for the practice session.

All cars are on the track and start their practice session. In the 2-stroke category, there's only the Sprint Cup race, which is divided into 2 separate classes: Rookie and Pro. The Rookie class will use the Rotax Max 125 Junior MAX EVO engine, while the Pro class will use the Rotax Max 125 Senior MAX EVO engine.

10:20 AM

The practice session ends, and drivers along with their technical teams move their cars back to the designated area for drivers to check and adjust their cars for the next run.

At the same time, drivers registered for the OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK experience event start moving to the pitstop area to begin receiving technical instructions.

10:25 AM

Heat 2 of the OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK event officially begins. Drivers start getting familiar with the cars and follow the instructors to the track.

10:50 AM

Heat 2 of the OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK event concludes, and under the guidance of the Organizing Committee, drivers bring their cars into the pitstop. SOC 2023 drivers are preparing for the Qualifying session to secure starting positions for the next runs.

At this point, the weather has changed, and rain has started. However, the drivers will still start their qualifying session. As they enter the official racing sessions of the championship, drivers begin to intensify their competitive actions.

11:25 AM

The Qualifying session concludes, and the drivers... have secured the leading positions. This will be advantageous for the drivers... in the next racing session in the afternoon.

Heat 3 of the OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK event, drivers are moving on the track to start their run.

To ensure 100% participation in OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK, FRV - Formula Racing Vietnam decides to move Heat 4 to the morning.

1:30 PM

The weather has improved, and due to the increased number of drivers registering for OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK, the organizing committee decides to run Heat 5 and Heat 6.

SOC 2023 drivers regroup and prepare for the Pre-final run. Heat 1 of the F7 - Sprint Race category is canceled to make time for other categories. The results in the Pre-final session will be used to determine the starting positions for the drivers in the Final round.

2:30 PM

The Pre-final session of the SOC 2023 race concludes. Driver David Nguyen Parker continues to maintain his excellent performance. Chasing closely behind is the "veteran" in the Vietnamese Go-kart community, Tsai Yi Chen. Tsai Yi Chen closely follows David with a gap of only 0.684s. Surprisingly, following Tsai Yi Chen is the rookie driver Tim Dupire (one of the young talents in the Vietnamese Go-kart community).

After the Pre-final race, heavy rain returns, and drivers are forced to seek shelter in the pitstop area and driver's tents.

3:00 PM

The weather has started to improve, and the organizing committee decides to start the Final session. Due to the unfavorable weather, the cars of 4 drivers Jack Estaugh, Đặng Thế Gia Huy, Susan Trần, and Shervin Steven Evans couldn't operate. The technical teams of the drivers as well as the organizing committee tried their best, but these 4 drivers couldn't participate in the Final round.

Overall, driver David Nguyen Parker remains the driver who maintains his performance and lifts the championship trophy of SOC 2023 in the first race. Perhaps David Nguyen Parker had excellent preparation for the bad weather. Unlike the previous sessions, David Nguyen Parker also extends the gap with the runner-up to 11.184s. It can be seen that the championship trophy that David Nguyen Parker holds is well-deserved.

Following David Nguyen Parker is one of the talents from the famous Motorsport team in Vietnam - Doug Phạm (LP Motorsport). Doug Phạm is known as one of the first Vietnamese drivers to achieve high results in international Go-kart competitions. Perhaps due to the unfavorable weather, Doug Phạm has not been able to demonstrate his skills much. But anyway, this is a very good start, surely in the following races, Doug Phạm will have more eye-catching performances than ever.

Finishing in 3rd place is driver Mathew Cook Donald, a rising star in the Vietnamese Go-kart community. His performance on the Dai Nam track is extremely fiery! If under good weather conditions, perhaps Mathew Cook Donald, Doug Phạm, David Nguyen Parker will be able to show more, contributing more thrilling moments to the audience.

In the Rookie class, young talent Tim Dupire continues to raise the championship trophy of SOC 2023 in the first race. Surely, with better weather, Tim Dupire will be able to show more in the upcoming races.

It seems that the unfavorable weather has also had a significant impact on the drivers. Two drivers encountered technical issues right from the first laps of the race.

Final results of SOC 2023 race:

3:30 PM

After the Final session of the SOC 2023 race ends, the organizing committee brings together the top-performing drivers in the OPEN DAY: TIME ATTACK heats to participate in the Final Heat to find new outstanding drivers joining this go-kart racing discipline.

4:00 PM

The first race of the Southern Open Championship 2023 has officially concluded. Although the weather was not very favorable, the drivers collaborated with the organizing committee to ensure the smoothest race possible.

OVERALL RESULTS:

PRO CLASS:

• David Nguyen Parker
• Doug Phạm
• Mathew Cook Donald
• Chen Wei Chih
• Jules Meyer
• Tsai Yi Chen
• Pham Luu Khanh Hoang
• Phan Hong Son
• Dang The Gia Huy

ROOKIE CLASS:

• Tim Dupire
• Hoang Minh Quan
• Hoang Quoc Thinh
• Nguyen Thanh Hung
• Jack Estaugh
• Susan Tran
• Shervin Steven Evan