Miguel Quiñones has added a fresh new trophy in his collection – to go alongside his 4 championship titles. Although it wasn’t the usual clean sweep that we’re used to, his performance at the 2024 Asian Karting Open Championship’s (AKOC) finale was just enough for Miguel to capture the International Senior Karter of the Year title by a few points.
With the championship on the line, the competition was tighter than ever before. Only half a second separated the Top 8 karters in Qualifying Practice with Miguel ending the session 4th fastest at the Carmona Race Track (CRT). Immediately, he knew that there was going to be a tough road ahead if he wanted to get to the front.
Unfortunately, things got off on the wrong foot in Heat 1. An early incident with another karter dropped him down the order and finished dead last. But he was back at the sharp end of the field in Heat 2 and found himself fighting for a podium position. At the end of 9 laps, Miguel completed a clean race to secure a hard-earned 3rd. Things only got better and better as the weekend progressed. Heat 3 saw the DRQ Motorsports karter deliver another strong performance to take 2nd across the line.
Now starting from P3 on the grid, Miguel got a holeshot at the start of the Super Heat and took the lead. Although he came under attack immediately after, he was eventually able to open up a gap from the rest of the field. In the end, Miguel was able to take a commanding victory with a 1.605 secs lead.
Only the 22-lap Finals stood between Miguel and the International Senior Karter of the Year crown. He would start from pole position giving him a clear shot at another win. But as luck would have it, Miguel lost the lead in the opening laps and fell behind as far back as P5. Thankfully, once he was able to regain his bearings, began to claw his way back up the standings and slot into P2. While the leader was already too far to catch, finishing 2nd was more than enough to earn Miguel the title. Then at that point, another karter collided with Miguel’s #15 kart in a feeble attempt to pass, undoing all of his hard work, but was still able to salvage 7th place once the chequered flag dropped.
More importantly, it earned him enough points to secure the coveted International Senior Karter of the Year trophy. It also bagged Miguel a ticket to the ROK Cup Superfinal at South Garda Karting in Lonato, Italy this October.
Miguel Quiñones: “Winning AKOC and International Karter of the Year was a dream and it feels amazing to have finally achieved this feat. It was something unexpected and looking forward to racing at the ROK Cup Superfinal in Italy. I want to thank my parents who supporteed me all the way, Mikey Jordan for his coaching, Burong Salazar for giving me the best engines, Dodong who really brought out the best in my chassis setup, and the whole DRQ Motorsports team.”
Miguel Quiñones is sponsored by RZQ The Aesthetic Surgery Clinic, RZQ Aesthetic Medicine Institude, Derma Medica, and Coca-Cola.
[Photos by Bong Boado and Basty Guin]