From motorbikes to karts according to Tommaso Marcon!

The gym of champions. This is how karting is often nicknamed, a true and proper motoring universe that captivates folks from childhood and continues to wield its charm for all the years that follow. It is certainly not new to see the big names of motorsport go back to basics to train, such as Nico Rosberg in the year of his F1 World Title. The German driver, in fact, revealed to Vroom microphones how much training on a kart was fundamental to his being able to withstand the pressure of F1 races and fight with the eternal rival and former teammate - in karting, too - Lewis Hamilton. Season after season, there are many names that alternate on the track, from Sebastian Vettel a few months ago, to the historic participation of Michael Schumacher in the 2001 Kerpen World Championship.

 

Training with karts, however, is not reserved only for F1 aces, but it rather often and willingly also extends to the centaurs of the two wheels. During the test organized in Jesolo, it was Moto E World Championship rider Tommaso Marcon to find delight for the first time with the KZ. The Veneto driver, born in 1999, has now upped his motorcycle career by moving from the CIV, the Italian motorcycle champion, to the European Moto 2 CEV where he won the 2018 Rookie of the Year Trophy, also managing to collect two excellent appearances in the Moto 2 World Championship in Valencia (2018/2019). A palmares of all respect for the Italian promise that, for the first time at our microphones, tells us about this first approach to karting. (FULL VIDEO ON OUR INSTAGRAM PAGE)

 

 

- Tommy, in general, how was the first approach to competition karting?

"The first approach was really nice. Before the test in Jesolo I tried to gather as much info as possible thanks to some on-board of the track, above all to understand the changes and the trajectories. Until some time ago, I'd tried only rental karts on the track where I train every day, the Bi-Karting of Padova. So I tried to get as ready as possible to go fast right away."

 

- You come from motorbikes, a different world; did you find any similarities?

"Actually, few. When you're on a motorcycle, you obviously only have two wheels and you cannot afford any kind of error; with the kart, instead, you can push even more to the limit as the risk, albeit high, is less than it is falling off the bike. You can get to the limit very quickly. What coincides so much is the discourse of grip. It was very important to manage and exploit it at the right times; this I think is the great similarity." What came in handy from your motorcycle experience to quickly learn kart changes and trajectories? "The thing that certainly came in handy was the sensitivity. Despite all the on-board and all the videos I had seen in the previous days, the first time I got on the kart was as if I had forgotten everything and only then started to feel the kart to understand how it was driven, when to brake, when to accelerate, the engine revs, etc. Everything I had prepared at home was ignored, or almost."

 

What did you most appreciate about the KZ?

"Certainly the acceleration. It's truly something spectacular. Feeling all the power available immediately was fantastic; in relation to Moto 2, I can say that it pushes more right away, it doesn't compare on the stretch but the thrust it gives you is definitely greater. The grip is really fun and impressive, everything goes faster and is useful for reflexes, eyes, etc., that can be applied on the motorcycle. Doing certain actions at a higher speed is certainly something very useful."

 

 

 

Why is it so important to train?

"In addition to what I said before, I would say that on a physical level it is perfect, especially for the arms that are very stressed. Doing kilometers on asphalt with so much power is something that you cannot always do in my world; from this point of view it's excellent. Driving something that is not necessarily my bike, certainly gives me something to improve my riding style on two wheels."

 

And so, once again, karting proves to be a complete sport and, above all, applicable to all other motorsport disciplines.

 

S.Corradengo (scorradengo@vroom.it)