Top 3 for Thomas Nepveu at NOLA Motorsports Park!
Thomas Nepveu wrapped up a satisfying weekend at NOLA Motorsports Park in Louisiana. The 1.5-kilometre track hosted the first event of the SKUSA Pro Tour Winternationals, a championship that the young Oka native will not be able to complete full-time due to a scheduling conflict.
Rain added an extra challenge for the 17-year-old driver who was participating in the X30 Senior class. Nevertheless, he did well, taking advantage of the long track to make some daring passes.
"The first final on Saturday went very well," said Thomas. "It was a great opportunity to redeem myself from the tough qualifying session in the morning when the rain added a level of difficulty, plus the constant traffic and some driving errors on my part prevented me from setting an acceptable time."
Indeed, the qualifying session proved to be difficult as Nepveu was only able to post the 23rd fastest time. However, he quickly made up for it in the pre-final. "The track dried out a bit and I was faster with dry tires. I finished 7th, but I got a penalty which made me start 11th in the final."
It was a particularly intense race as Thomas quickly found himself in the Top 3. "It was a tough race, but the pace was good. I made two small mistakes in the last few laps that cost me the podium." As the checkered flag was about to come out, Thomas tried to make an outside pass on the straight that didn't work out. He had to settle for 4th place, a very satisfying result considering the adversity encountered earlier in the day.
On Sunday, under a radiant sun, Thomas clocked in the fastest lap time in the practice session. However, he qualified in 10th place but was quick in the pre-final, claiming a 6th place finish.
His trip to NOLA Motorsports Park was not in vain as he climbed on Sunday's final podium. "The goal was to win the race, but the first two drivers were so fast that they were in a league of their own," he said. "We had a great Kart Republic prepared by Trinity Karting Group, so we were able to maximize the machine to our advantage."
"Although I was fast in practice in the morning, there was a lot of traffic in the qualifying session. We came back strong in the pre-final and final. I tried to pass again for the first position, but the two drivers in front were too fast, I was far from being able to make their times," concluded Thomas.
"I am very happy with Thomas' results this weekend," said Coy Arbour, Thomas' athletic trainer. "He did a great job considering we were on one of the most difficult tracks on the calendar with very intense conditions. I want to thank everyone involved who made this podium possible, and a huge thank you to Nash Motorsportz, who hosted us this weekend. Now time to switch our focus to the USF2000 Championship for the next couple of months."
Thomas' next event will be in USF2000 at Barber Motorsports Park, where he will take command of the #10 DeForce Racing Formula 2000 for the 3rd and 4th races of the season.