An encouraging 4th place finish in the Sunday Final points to improving performance on the way for Thomas Nepveu. Rounds 5 & 6 - SKUSA SummerNationals

Thomas Nepveu was working with a brand-new machine this weekend made by Italian manufacturer Kart Republic. He was racing at New Castle Motorsports Park in Indiana (USA) in the SuperKarts Series! USA SummerNationals (X30 Senior class).

After the track sessions on Thursday and Friday used to familiarise themselves with the kart, Thomas Nepveu and his sports manager, Coy Arbour, experienced a satisfactory and above all promising first day of racing on Saturday. "We are happy with the performance of the machine and the help we get from the Trinity Karting Group that Kart Republic put us in contact with. More testing and development will allow us to develop settings that will optimise the performance and our results," explained Thomas Nepveu.

The talent of the young driver combined with the penalties awarded to the competitors have played in favour of Thomas Nepveu this weekend.

Saturday - Round 5

"On Saturday, we were 4th fastest in the morning warm-up period. Due to contact with my front bumper, we were penalized for qualifying (from 9^th to 20^th). In the Final, I managed to move up through the field to eighth and sixth in the official results," mentioned Thomas Nepveu. 

Sunday - Round 6

"We started 14^th in the Pre-Final after being stuck behind slower traffic in qualifying, and finished 7^th in the Pre-Final. In the Final, Thomas Nepveu finished 8^th on the track which became 4^th after penalties." 

"Coy Arbour and I worked hard to improve the machine throughout the four days on track. We have a better understanding of the effect of the various settings on the behaviour of the kart. We also have some work to do on the engine. There is still a lot of work to be done but we are confident that the machine is well born. It's a question of finding the speed in it," declared the hard-working driver.

Next Races

• Cooper Tires USF2000Series: Rounds 14, 15 & 16: August 27 to 29, New Jersey Motorsports Park

Additional Information 

Karting Championships & USF2000 for 2021

Participating in three championships over the summer adds up to 23 professional events over the season (13 in karts and 10 in USF2000 cars). Each weekend is composed of multiple practice/qualifying sessions, Pre-Final and Final races depending on each series' rules. The considerable amount of racing time, plus the hours spent on simulators, will accelerate Thomas Nepveu's learning process given the high level of competition in every series.

Driving Instructor

Thomas Nepveu's personality and technical knowledge also make him an ideal driving instructor, capable of transmitting his knowledge while making the student and the family comfortable during these important and often emotionally charged moments. Thomas Nepveu began working with novices in the spring of 2019, when he was only 14 years old, and continues to do so for the BCR (Ben Cooper Racing) race team. Last winter, with he even helped some PSL Karting drivers at a track in addition to taking care of his own machine (track walks, debrief meetings after each track session).

Kart Republic

Founded in 2017 by Dino Chiesa, this Italian manufacturer has dominated kart racing at the international level since its inception. It quickly moved to American competition, taking its first win at the most competitive North American event, the Las Vegas SKUSA SuperNationals (1st - X30 Senior class - Nov. 2018). The brand has recorded a multitude of wins since then and solidified its position at the top of the kart racing world.

2021 Thomas Nepveu Karting Schedule

Photo Credit:  On Track Promotions

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Thomas Nepveu Career Path and Results

Born in Oka (Quebec), Thomas Nepveu has always shown a great interest in extreme sports, starting with small motorcycles on dirt tracks. He quickly moved on to karts first in the Montreal area, then on to provincial and national series in Canada, on to the United States, Europe and other continents.

2020

• Single seater debut in the Mexican F4 series at the Autodromo de Querétaro, Mexico
• 1 victory and 2 podiums out of 3 F4 races
• Victory in the ROK Fest East series - Charlotte (NC) (ROK Senior class)
• 6^th out of 52 entries, one pole from 3 races in ROK Cup Florida Winter Tour
• 6^th and 1 podium (3^rd) out of 4 races in the SKUSA Winter Series
• 8^th and 2 poles out of 6 races in the SKUSA Pro Tour

2019

• Transition to Rotax Senior class
• Canadian Karting Champion
• Canadian Shifter Open Champion
• Two top-5 finishes in the SKUSA Pro Tour (Senior class)
• Qualified for the Final in the WSK Euro Series (Sarno, Italy)

2018

• US Open Champion
• 3^rd in the ROK Cup USA Florida Winter Tour series
• 4^th in the Max Challenge class at the Rotax Grand Final (Brazil)
• 15^th in the CIK-FIA World Championship OKJ (Sweden)
• 5^th in the ROK the Rio (Las Vegas)

2017

• Transition year to the Junior class (12 to 16)
• 1st in the Florida Winter Tour (2^nd round)
• 2^nd in the Eastern Canadian Karting Championship  

2016

• Debut with PSL Karting
• Youngest driver (11) on the Canadian Karting Team
• Champion in the Eastern Canadian Karting Championship with 7 victories in 7 races, a first in this event
• Champion at the Mini Swift Super Nationals
• Runner-up in the Mini Max world championship
• Team Canada finishes first of 54 countries in the Rotax World Championships with Thomas Nepveu the top Canadian finisher in the Mini-Max class

2015

• Transition year (11 to 13 age group)
• Quebec Cup runner-up
• 4^th in the Eastern Canada Championship
• 3^rd in the Canadian Championship

2014

• Quebec Cup champion
• Eastern Canada champion
• 3^rd in the Canadian Championship
• 3^rd in the Florida Winter Series (first podium for Thomas Nepveu in the United States)

2013

• Wins all Canadian championships in the 9-year-old class
• Quebec Cup champion
• Western Canada champion
• Eastern Canada champion
• 6^th in the Micro Max class at the Rotax Grand Finals in New Orleans, Louisiana

2012

• First year in racing, in the Micro Max class, in Quebec and Ontario