With the European season about to begin, OKJ World Champion Dexter Patterson talks to us at Vroom Karting Magazine.
09/04/18 - Interview
Author: Vroomkart International
After the wonderful success at PF International 2017, the World Champion, Dexter Patterson, is ready for a new challenge. It is always difficult to defend the World Championship crown but not impossible to leave a mark in the new edition of the CIK FIA European Championship.
Patterson shares his views on the first part of 2018 and his thoughts on the new category.
Dexter, tell us about this first part of the season.
“I've shown good pace in the first few races this season but have been a little unlucky. I qualified 3rd overall after the heats at Round 1 of the WSK Super Masters Series at Adria. However, I've also had some set backs such as being involved in a massive pile up at the first corner last weekend in La Conca which meant I wasn't able to compete in the Pre-Final or Final. We knew that Senior OK would be tough but we've been working very hard on the set up of the kart and our engines and we're improving all of the time.”
What are the difficulties for a rookie in OK?
“A rookie in OK has to adapt to racing against experienced professionals that often have many years of experience in the class. The Senior OK engine is tricky and it’s hard to get the carburettor settings right as you need to adjust it while driving. Also, I'm relatively small and light in comparison to my competitors, which means it's more difficult to control and manage the kart.”
Imagine you're a driver coach. You're helping a young driver in his or her first experiences on a track.
“I would say that you should listen to your coach very closely and also ask questions to make sure you understand their advice. Also, don't worry if you are not the fastest straight away as it takes time to develop new skills and learn the perfect racing line around the track.”
Any more advice?
“Try to understand the kart so that you can give correct and useful feedback to your mechanic. This is vital because if you give them wrong information then the changes your mechanic makes will not improve your issues.”
Simone Corradengo (scorradengo@vroom.it)
Trd: Luigi Monteferrante
Credits: Raceframe - Fabrizio Boldoni
Patterson shares his views on the first part of 2018 and his thoughts on the new category.
Dexter, tell us about this first part of the season.
“I've shown good pace in the first few races this season but have been a little unlucky. I qualified 3rd overall after the heats at Round 1 of the WSK Super Masters Series at Adria. However, I've also had some set backs such as being involved in a massive pile up at the first corner last weekend in La Conca which meant I wasn't able to compete in the Pre-Final or Final. We knew that Senior OK would be tough but we've been working very hard on the set up of the kart and our engines and we're improving all of the time.”
What are the difficulties for a rookie in OK?
“A rookie in OK has to adapt to racing against experienced professionals that often have many years of experience in the class. The Senior OK engine is tricky and it’s hard to get the carburettor settings right as you need to adjust it while driving. Also, I'm relatively small and light in comparison to my competitors, which means it's more difficult to control and manage the kart.”
Imagine you're a driver coach. You're helping a young driver in his or her first experiences on a track.
“I would say that you should listen to your coach very closely and also ask questions to make sure you understand their advice. Also, don't worry if you are not the fastest straight away as it takes time to develop new skills and learn the perfect racing line around the track.”
Any more advice?
“Try to understand the kart so that you can give correct and useful feedback to your mechanic. This is vital because if you give them wrong information then the changes your mechanic makes will not improve your issues.”
Simone Corradengo (scorradengo@vroom.it)
Trd: Luigi Monteferrante
Credits: Raceframe - Fabrizio Boldoni
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