Jamaica's Alex Powell celebrates his third place finish in Round three of the FIA European Karting Championships in Denmark on Sunday
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Starting a race weekend as championship-leading driver is never a bad thing, but doing so carries extra weight. However, there is also added pressure when a driver, who holds himself to high regard, has to make up grounds to deliver a championship win.
That's the situation Jamaica's karting sensation Alex Powell is in, as he heads into the business end of the season in pole position in the five-race Champions of the Future (COTF) series, but at the same time, is someway off the lead in the more illustrious four-round FIA Karting European Championship.
Still, Powell welcomes the challenge that both events present as part of his growth process in a budding career that could see him transition to the Formula 4 ranks next year.
"I want to win both the Champions of the Future and the European Championships, so I will do everything I possibly can to achieve that feat. I have been a little lacking in some cases, particularly where race pace is concerned, but I am confident with the direction that we are working in and we will be working very hard over these next few weeks," Powell told SportsMax.tv from his base in Italy.
The American-born driver's declaration came while he reflected on the second and third place finishes in the third round of both events, in the OK category, on separate weekends in Rodby, Denmark.
In the COTF series, Powell was beaten by Italian Gabriel Gomez, with Great Britain's Kean Nakamura-Berta in third. Despite placing second, Powell moved to the top of the series standings 24 points ahead of rivals with two more rounds to come at Cremona and Franciacorta, both in Italy on July 12-15 and September 13-16, respectively.
"Champions of the Future was quite a successful event in terms of consistency, as I was in the top five from the qualifying heats all the way through to the final. Unfortunately, in the final, we missed out as we were lacking a bit in pace.
"But it is good to be atop the overall standings with a fairly good lead and so the aim is to maintain that over the next two rounds. It comes with some amount of pressure because you have to ensure that you drive the best race possible for those two rounds," Powell said.
Just this past weekend, the 15-year-old Mercedes-Benz AMG F1 protégé, again showed good speed through the rounds, but faltered at the backend of the 21-lap final in European Championship action. He placed behind Dutchman Rene Lammers and Gomez.
"The weekend started off poorly as qualifying didn't go to plan so we had to completely change the kart and it did work for us to an extent because I won all three of my heats, but that race speed was missing in the latter stages of the final. It was a bit frustrating, but we did the best we could, and we just have to try to improve going forward," the Prema Racing representative shared.
Though he is 43 points off Lammers, who heads the European Championships on 208 points, Powell on 165 points, admits overhauling the leader will be tough but is by no means impossible. Gomez (202 points) currently occupies second position.
"I'm not saying that it is over but I'm going to need a really big points haul or some mishap for the first two for me to win the overall championship. But it is important that we stay positive, there are 81 points available and I'm 43 behind so with a perfect weekend we can overturn it," Powell, a cousin to former 100m World record holder Asafa Powell, said.
"We were in a similar position last year and just missed out on it so I'm not giving up and I will be giving it my all. All or nothing for the last round," he added.
With that last round of the European Championship scheduled July 27-30 in Italy, Powell pointed out that he will be putting in the necessary work, physically, mentally and otherwise in an attempt to once again prove his class.
In last year's championships, Powell won the last round but just missed out on being crowned European champion by a mere two points.
"We basically have a month to prepare, I'm actually off to Sarno, Italy for a race in Kz2 (shifter karts) in preparation for the last round of the European champions for that category which is the first week of July. So though its two different categories, it will serve as a preparation race and could be a good indicator of what I need to work on in terms of race strategy," he explained.
"Because we are going to need a very good last round but until then, we will have to focus on ourselves and do the best that we can and then hopefully we will be in the best possible position to challenge," Powell ended.
Sherdon Cowan is a five-time award-winning journalist with 10 years' experience covering sports.
Hamilton could 'take a holiday' after Sao Paulo disappointment
Lewis Hamilton says he "could happily go and take a holiday" instead of finishing the season after a dismal showing at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
He made early exits in both qualifying sessions and started the race at Interlagos from 15th on the grid.
However, unlike Max Verstappen, who impressively won the race having started in 17th, the Brit struggled to mount much of a fight, coming away from the weekend with just one point after finishing in 10th.
His performance was made to look worse as team-mate George Russell had been battling for the lead but narrowly missed out on a podium place as he finished fourth.
Hamilton only has three races left with Mercedes before his move to Ferrari next season, bringing an end to their 12-year partnership.
But he was left frustrated in Brazil, expressing his disappointment with the car.
"We were just slow," Hamilton told Sky Sports F1. "The car was really, really tough. I do really want to say still a big thank you to the guys in the garage. They turned up super early this morning and still did a great job throughout the weekend.
"The team could have won also, so at least one car was behaving a lot better.
"The car is like a plank of wood. It's like no suspension.
"It's bouncing on the tyres everywhere, and you can't get on the power anywhere. It's just the worst ride, I think the worst ride that we've definitely ever had, particularly through corners. It's just so stiff.
"But hopefully we won't have any more bumpy tracks. I think the last three aren't so bumpy. But yeah, I could happily go and take a holiday."
Norris claims Verstappen 'got lucky' in Brazil as title hopes fade
Lando Norris said Max Verstappen benefitted from a rule "no one agrees with" as he won a dramatic Sao Paulo Grand Prix to leave the McLaren's title hopes hanging by a thread.
Verstappen surged to a terrific victory from 17th on the grid in Brazil, with Norris faltering after starting on pole.
Norris and Mercedes' George Russell – who were vying for the lead – both pitted on lap 29, but that strategy backfired as the red flag was shown following a crash involving Franco Colapinto.
With the race suspended, Verstappen was also able to change tires for the restart, negating Norris' advantage from pitting as the world champion raced to a commanding victory.
Norris had cut Verstappen's drivers' championship lead to 44 points by winning Saturday's sprint race but now sits 62 points adrift with just three races of the season remaining.
The Brit refused to hit out at McLaren's strategy after the race, though, putting his struggles down to bad luck.
"I have faith in the team in what they are saying and they have trust in me," he told Sky Sports F1.
"It was just unlucky. I don't care about the hindsight side of things, that's luck for them, nothing more.
"They got lucky on a rule that no one agrees with. Probably they agreed with it today but every driver has disagreed with it in the past.
"Today it benefitted them, it could have benefitted us if we just stayed out, but that's a stupid thing to think of.
"Just a bit unlucky today, nothing more. Of course, disappointing. Max drove well. He got a bit lucky but that's life."
Verstappen 'wanted to destroy' Red Bull garage before Sao Paulo triumph
Max Verstappen revealed he wanted to destroy the Red Bull garage in the hours before he delivered a wet-weather performance for the ages to win the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Verstappen had been left frustrated after Sunday's delayed qualifying session, when a crash by Lance Stroll and subsequent red flag saw him drop out of Q2.
The Dutchman's early exit saw him finish 12th, but a five-place grid penalty for an engine change dropped him to 17th, presenting an opportunity for Lando Norris to take a seismic chunk out of his drivers' championship lead.
But a determined Verstappen then overcame the rain-affected conditions at Interlagos, climbing to P11 on the very first lap before making his charge into the top 10.
His remarkable comeback, which included five consecutive fastest laps, culminated in him passing Alpine’s Esteban Ocon for the lead on lap 43 before romping to victory.
“My emotions were all over the place, from wanting to destroy the garage (after qualifying) to winning the race,” said Verstappen. “It has been a roller coaster.
“It is unbelievable to win here from so far back on the grid. I was expecting to lose points in the championship.
"Now, I just want clean races. But I am not thinking about clinching the title in Vegas.”
A rain-affected race saw several incidents, with Lance Stroll, Alex Albon, Nico Hulkenberg, Franco Colapinto and Carlos Sainz all failing to finish the race.
But Verstappen remained calm in those conditions, snapping his 10-race winless streak, while also becoming the first driver since Kimi Raikkonen at the Japanese Grand Prix in 2005 to emerge victorious after gaining 16 positions.
And the three-time world champion believed his latest win, which was his 62nd in the competition, was his best one to date.
“The rain came, we stayed out, which was very sketchy, and I had to just keep the car on track,” continued Verstappen.
“It was undriveable in the conditions. I felt like I was driving a boat, or a jet-ski.
“There was a lot at stake because I had to be aware of the championship, so for me this is the best one (victory).
"And it is a massive boost for the team because it has been a tough period.”
Verstappen is now 62 points clear of Norris in the drivers' championship with just 86 points remaining, and can win a fourth consecutive drivers' title at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
However, he insisted that the season was far from over, acknowledging he must remain perfect in the final three races to get over the line after an up and down season.
“Now it’s of course a great result, which if you look a few hours ago, was definitely the other way around, looking like we were going to lose a lot of points," he said.
“So I’m very happy, but still three tough races [to go], so we just need to stay calm and make no mistakes.
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