Ariel Elkin, the motorsport hope of Israel

As we have often said, the season that is now behind us has not been easy at all, especially for drivers from further afield. Going out of your home country to train and compete was not an easy thing in the first phase of last year.

The Israeli driver, Ariel Elkin, belonged to that category of drivers who in the first quarantine the world faced could not set foot on the kart for many weeks, risking ruining an entire season. Thanks to his fortitude, Ariel, like other drivers, was able to resume his efforts as soon as he was able to cross his borders and complete a convincing season that also saw him win a race in the FIA Academy Trophy, his first for Israel.

- Ariel, how was your 2020?
«My 2020 season was great, I learned a lot with my new team VDK racing about being a good driver and being a good man too, at the start of the season we had a few good races and didn't step up on the podium because of bad luck, but it's part of the sport so it didn't stop as not even for a moment. At the second part of the season (after the first quarantine) I couldn't make it out of Israel until the first round of European championship in zuera, not surprisingly it was a very bad weekend because I had a big period without driving but I didn't give up.  The biggest change came in the 3rd round of European championship when I changed everything and from that moment we were only improving. In conclusion, my 2020 season was a learningfull one».

- You made yourself a protagonist in Lonato by winning the race, did you expect this?
«I absolutely didn't expect winning at Lonato, at the start of the weekend I was struggling and made a big mistake in qualifying, but when the condition changed from wet to dry I was very fast but still didn't even think about the prize, to be honest, I never think about it and just trying to concentrate on my targets, so I just continued working as hard as I can».

- You were the first Israeli winner, what does that mean for you and your country?
«When I won I understood how important this win is for me and especially for my country, it's a big honour to represent Israel, my country, at the top level competitions and even achieve good results. I am working to make myself not the only Israeli driver to win a CIK FIA race by helping all the drivers from Israel in everything so they can bring honour to us when I step up».

- What's new for 2021?
«For 2021 I have big plans, this season me and VDK racing will be challenged by steping up to the OK category, once again in the CIK FIA races and a few WSK races. Currently I am searching for a sponsor for this season that will help me to train and race more and as a result to bring better results».