Arnaud Kozlinski was awarded his first CIK-FIA World Karting Championship winner’s trophy at the FIA Gala in Monaco this evening. This marked a positive step up for the 28-year-old who had won second place in the 2003 and 2004 Championships. The 46th edition of the CIK-FIA World Karting Championship, which is run over a single event, took place for the first time ever in Asia, at the Macau Motorsports Club. There were 43 entries and among them, for the first time in the history of the CIK-FIA Karting Championship, there were two Chinese drivers at the start of the event.

Kozlinski, driving a CRG Kart with Maxter engine and Bridgestone tyres, started in pole position, comfortably winning the pre-final before starting again in pole position for the afternoon final. Although the championship was halted five laps early due to heavy rain, this did nothing to detract from the exciting on-track action. Being the first Frenchman ever to win a world championship in the sport’s highest category, Kozlinski was ecstatic to have been crowned at the FIA Gala.

Kozlinski said: "Winning the World Championship in Macau was a huge relief. In 2008, I was really disappointed when my engine let go, as it did a month earlier when I was on my way to being European Champion. These two failures were very difficult for me to get over. Fortunately, I was well surrounded by friends and family and it gave me the desire to come back even stronger. That’s why I dedicate this victory to all those who supported me, especially my parents."

Giancarlo Tinini, President of winning constructor CRG, said: "The 20 minutes of the Karting World Championship finale are always the most intense of the year, never failing to bring on a huge adrenaline rush. No other race could be compared to the World Championship, and for a constructor, securing a win is obviously very exciting. Winning changes everything from one day to the next: the company’s image is strengthened overnight and the publicity generated is incredible, benefiting our entire network."

By MotorSport

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa and former team mate Michael Schumacher completed a one-two finish in a kart race on Sunday in the Brazilian’s first competitive event since his life-threatening accident in July. Race organiser Massa, who suffered a serious head injury during qualifying at the Hungarian Grand Prix and missed the rest of the Formula One season, won Sunday’s race ahead of record seven-times world champion Schumacher.

The German lifted the title in the International Challenge of Go-Kart Champions following a victory on Saturday. Massa, third on Saturday, was overall runner-up in the event held in Florianopolis in southern Brazil.

"It’s fantastic to do a one-two with Felipe. It was like in the old days," Schumacher told reporters after the race in which other current and former F1 drivers took part, including Rubens Barrichello and Force India’s Italian Vitantonio Liuzzi. The 28-year-old Massa will return to Formula One for Ferrari next season alongside Spain’s Fernando Alonso.

By Reuters