A fully booked 2024 season continues for Ethan Ong as he recently competed in Round 2 of the Rotax Max Challenge (RMC) Asia Trophy last weekend. The 15-year-old made his presence felt in the Senior category by going toe-to-toe against some of Asia’s best, only held back from a Top 10 finish due to tire issues.
Competing under Stratos Motorsports in the #375 OTK kart, Ethan was quick to find his footing on his very first outing around the 1.321 km Bira Kart Circuit in Thailand. He was less than a second shy off the fastest times in Official Practice and even set the 4th quickest time in the second session thanks to a good kart setup from coach Edgen Dy-Liacco and mechanics Rolly and Nante.
With full confidence, Ethan set off for the two Qualifying Heats head on. He would notch 10th place in Heat 1 and managed to shave his lap times to within half a second of the fastest karter on the grid. It was a similar story in Heat 2 where he finished in 11th after 9-laps of racing.
His combined results in Quali was good enough for him to start P8 in the Pre-Finals later on, giving him a good shot at a strong result. However, as the race rolled on, Ethan simply didn’t have the same pace as he did in earlier runs. He struggled for grip and was a few tenths off his previous best. Thus, he dropped down a few places and ended up in 12th.
Things failed to improve for Ethan during the 18-lap Finals. With temperatures reaching boiling point, Ethan’s tire woes worsened. He skillfully held his ground despite losing a few more tenths per lap to nab a 12th place finish against a 25-kart strong grid.
Despite failing to make it into the Top 10, Ethan’s performance at Bira showed a lot of promise. Given the right setup and right conditions, it’s clear that he can put up a fight against some of the best karters in Asia. He now looks forward to Round 3 of the RMC Asia Trophy as the championship moves to Langkawi, Malaysia on May 18/19.
“Trying to beat racers that know the place will be challenging, but we have shown that we can be fast too. We just need more experience with the tracks,” Ethan expressed.
Ethan Ong is sponsored by Auto Vault Speed Shop the distributor of Modesta Premium Glass Coatings, Autozkin Paint Protection, Repsol Philippines, Powel Chemicals, Fremuff, GT Radial, D1 Spec, Maxspeed, Hardrace, ASR, Recaro, Tagaytay Viewpark Hotel, Siglo Modern Filipino, JRJ Windows and Doors, Pierre’s Reserve, and Devil’s Burger.
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