MAD Performance travelled to Cheb in the Czech Republic last weekend for the second round of the German Kart Championship. At the DKM’s first-ever appearance on the 1.202-kilometre Fun Arena Cheb circuit, a strong field of 145 drivers across five categories awaited the team. Following its German debut in Mülsen, the weekend in the Czech Republic became another important learning curve for MAD Performance.
The sporting highlight came from Carlos Nees in OK-N Junior. The MAD Performance driver delivered a strong weekend in Cheb and was among the front-runners for long stretches. He already secured a promising starting point in qualifying by taking fifth place. In the heats, battles for position and penalties made things more difficult: Carlos finished the first race in 13th place but received a five-second penalty. In the second heat, he crossed the line in 15th, leaving him only twelfth after the heats.
On Sunday, the Motorsport Team Germany junior driver made a clear step forward. Carlos produced a strong run in the Super Heat and moved up into the top five. From this promising position, he went into the final and once again held his ground in the leading group. With sixth place, he collected important points and now sits fourth in the championship. After the second race weekend, Carlos therefore remains within striking distance of the front-runners.
In OK-N, Conor McPolin delivered the strongest individual result within the category. After a difficult qualifying session in 21st place, he made a clear improvement in the first heat. The MAD Performance driver worked his way up to tenth and sent out a positive signal. However, the rest of the weekend brought several setbacks. A five-second penalty dropped him back in the second heat, leaving him 18th after the heats. A difficult starting position and another penalty in the Super Heat and final also prevented a stronger result. In the end, Conor was classified 21st in the final.
Charlotte Tille delivered a consistent performance. After qualifying 23rd, she worked her way forward step by step through the heats. With finishes of 23rd and 19th, she was already around the top 20 after the heats and also held that position on Sunday.
In Mini, Luca Mattis Brixius competed for MAD Performance. After qualifying 18th, he showed solid signs on Saturday. In the first heat, he finished 19th. However, in the second race he was involved in a collision and had to end his weekend early due to bruised ribs.
Max Hesse drew a mixed conclusion after the second DKM weekend: “Cheb was a weekend of highs and lows for us. Carlos achieved a strong result in OK-N Junior and showed with sixth place in the final and fourth place in the championship that he can run at the front. At the same time, some of our other drivers had difficult race weekends. Conor showed in the first heat that the pace is there, and Charlotte delivered a consistent weekend. Of course, Luca’s retirement after his collision on Saturday was particularly unfortunate. We wish him a speedy recovery and hope he will be fit again soon. Now it is important to take the lessons from this weekend and keep working in a focused way.”
The German Kart Championship continues in mid-July in Ampfing. One week earlier, the same venue will host the second round of the ADAC Kart Masters. MAD Performance will be represented by its drivers at both events.
