Kiwi ROK Cup Karters Get First Hit-Out In Italy This Weekend

The two Kiwi karters who have travelled to Italy to contest this year’s ROK Cup Superfinal meeting at Lonato in 10 days’ time get their first hit-out at the South Garda Karting facility at the new ROK Cup Trophy meeting on Sunday.

Arie Hutton, 25, from Palmerston North, and Jacob Douglas, 15, from Christchurch, have both entered Sunday’s ROK Cup Trophy meeting and the pair expect to be on track from today (Thursday). Both earned their seats for the ROK Cup Superfinal via the ROK Cup NZL series which concluded in early September.

Up until last year the traditional ‘weekend before’ meeting has been called the Trofeo d’Autunno (Autumn Trophy) and the Kiwis who earned the right to compete at the annual ROK Cup Superfinal meeting joined hundreds of local Italian and visiting Superfinal event drivers on the grid.

In deference to the 270+ entrants from across the globe who – despite the difficulties many have had to go through just to get to Italy thanks to the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic - have entered this year’s Superfinal event, track management has this year agreed to create a new single-day meeting this Sunday solely for ROK-engined karts under the ROK Cup Trophy tag line.

As well as an opportunity to dial themselves and their karts in for the big Superfinal meeting from October 14-17 at the same venue, this Sunday’s Trophy meeting is officially Rnd 2 of this year’s (Italian) ROK Cup Challenge, and – because under Italy’s current COVID-19 regulations spectators are not allowed at the venue – it will be livestreamed via the vortex-rok.com website.

In order to contest both the Trophy and Superfinals meetings, Arie Hutton, and Jacob Douglas and his mother Rowena, had to leave New Zealand in late September and quarantine themselves in Italy for two weeks.

Hutton will remain in Italy after the Superfinal meeting, where he will complete a post-graduate degree in automobile design in Milan. Jacob and Rowena Douglas plan to return home straight away however, where they will enter quarantine for a second period of 14 days.

Jacob Douglas has travelled to Italy with the support of his ROK Cup NZL series winner prizemoney and the Motul/KartSport International Travel Fund.

Arie Hutton has travelled to Italy with the support of the Lascom Motorsport/Dunlop/Motul NZ/KartSport International Travel Funds.

Both will race in new Team NZL custom designed OMP race suits supplied by Racer Products.

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