01/15/2009

Team News: RDD Motorsports/Kart Mini
Team drivers earn four podiums at opening round of Florida Winter Tour After weeks of on track testing leading up to the Florida Winter Tour, RDD Motorsports arrived at Homestead-Miami Speedway primed for the opening rounds. Aboard brand new Kart Mini chassis, team drivers Logan Sargeant, Dalton Sargeant and Sebastian Ordonez all performed to the best of their abilities and it was noticed as the team brought home four podiums in the five races entered. Anxiously awaiting the running of the second Mini Max final, another podium is possible as Dalton Sargeant lines up third for the make-up race.

Micro Max

Right out of the box, Logan Sargeant placed his RDD/Kart Mini on the pole position for Saturday’s race in Micro Max. Posting a time three-tenths quicker than second place, Sargeant quickly made it clear that he was the karter to beat on the weekend. In the pre-final, the Florida pilot maintained a solid pace and placed himself on the pole position for the final. Sargeant grabbed the lead into turn one in the final and never looked back. Holding off a battle with fellow karter Zachary Claman DeMelo, Sargeant cruised to victory throwing his hands and feet up in the air as he crossed the finish line.

Qualifying on Sunday witnessed Sargeant miss the pole position by three-hundredths of a second and lined up third for the pre-final. Battling with two SH TonyKarts, Sargeant held onto his position and started on the inside line of row two for the final. Taking advantage of a tough start by the pole-sitter, Sargeant jumped to the lead entering turn two. From there, he and Canadian Lance Stroll went to battle for win. Surrendering the lead only once in the fifteen lap final, Sargeant crossed the finish line only a hair ahead of Stroll to earn his second win of the weekend.

Mini Max

Competing in the ultra competitive Mini Max class, Dalton qualified for Saturday’s events. Up front in the pre-final, Sargeant found himself in the middle of a six-kart battle for second, ultimately having to settle for fifth at the finish. Seeking the podium in the final, Sargeant kept close contact with the leader from the drop of the green flag. Avoiding lapped traffic when needed, the Florida native crossed the line in third place.

Returning on Sunday morning seeking the win, Sargeant posted a time quick enough to start third for the pre-final. The start of the pre-final was a wild one as karts tangled all over the circuit. Sargeant steered clear of all incidents and stayed up front finishing third. The start of the Mini Max final witnessed a red flag incident, which postponed the race while officials sorted out the restarting positions placing them last in the order. As the karts regrouped on the grid, the sun began to set and FWT officials decided to call the event due to darkness. Official ruling states that the remainder of the Mini Max final will be run in conjunction with Rounds 3 & 4.

Junior Max

Sebastian Ordonez entered his RDD/Kart Mini in possibly the most competitive class of the weekend, Junior Max. Ordonez joined 46 other karters in qualifying and posted a time worthy of sixth place. The pre-final was much the same as many of the top positions held their own, placing the Columbian driver on the outside of row three for the final. Quickly moving up to fourth on the start, Ordonez battled all race long for the third and final podium position. Holding fourth for the second half of the twenty lap final, Ordonez finished one position shy of the podium. Fortunately after post race tech, Ordonez jumped up a position and gave RDD Motorsports their third podium on the day.

Looking to improve on his performance and bring RDD/Kart Mini another win, Ordonez placed himself third on the qualifying sheets on Sunday morning. The team watched the fifteen-lap pre-final as Ordonez looked to jump up to the front row for the final. Unfortunately, he fell a position and started the final on the outside of row two. Similar to many other final events at Homestead this weekend, the start was wild as karts got together all over the track. Unfortunately for Ordonez, he lost his nosecone exiting turn three and was forced to retire on lap four.

RDD Motorsports International will be back in action on February 13-15 for Rounds 3 & 4 of the Florida Winter Tour. For more information about the team or sponsorship inquiries please contact Andre Serra at andre@rddmotorsports.com or by visiting www.rddmotorsports.com

Photos by Cody Schindel – Autosports Media Group
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