RMC Ontario Round 1 is officially in the books, and it was an outstanding event for Prime Powerteam. With 17 Rotax drivers under the tent, it was one of our largest race weekends of the season, so far, and a great opportunity to measure ourselves against some of the best competition in the country.
While our Briggs drivers were competing in the HRKC club event, our Rotax drivers were focused on the opening round of the RMC Ontario Championship and the pursuit of the coveted Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals tickets that are up for grabs throughout the season.
We are especially excited that Round 2 at Mosport will also feature the inaugural Briggs & Stratton Challenge Ontario (BSC Ontario), giving our Briggs racers even more to race for.
For this report, we’ll focus on our Rotax drivers and their performances in Mini Max, Junior Max, and Senior Max. Suffice to say, our Briggs drivers did great and Owen finished P1 on track so let’s just call that a win.
Mini Max
Prime Powerteam fielded four Mini Max drivers: Yousef Adi, Damian Stirling, Tom Gagnon, and Jackson Duncan.
All four drivers showed excellent progression throughout the weekend, but the story of the class was undoubtedly Yousef Adi.
Yousef delivered one of the most dominant performances we’ve seen in recent memory. He qualified on pole position by more than two tenths of a second, won all three heat races, won the Super Heat, and capped off the weekend by winning the Final by more than 14 seconds.
It was a complete sweep.
Yousef has been putting in countless hours on track, competing internationally, and dedicating himself to improving every aspect of his craft. That hard work paid off in a big way at Hamilton. Combined with the support of our engine partner, Aurum Engines, who were on-site to ensure our drivers had the power needed to compete at the front, everything came together perfectly.
Great driver. Great equipment. Great preparation. Great result.
While Yousef disappeared into the distance, the battles behind him were fantastic.
Damian Stirling, Tom Gagnon, and Jackson Duncan qualified 11th, 12th, and 13th respectively and spent much of the weekend battling through the field. Stirling highlighted his weekend with two P7 finishes in the heats, while Gagnon impressed with a P9 finish in Heat 3.
Duncan had a tougher start to the weekend but steadily improved with every session. He saved his best performance for the Final, charging forward to finish P12.
All four of our Mini Max drivers showed tremendous growth throughout the weekend, gained valuable experience, and left Hamilton stronger than when they arrived.
Junior Max
Junior Max featured one of the strongest fields of the weekend, and Prime Powerteam was represented by six drivers: Stefano Lanzillotta, Olivier Chassé, Carlo Lot, Mateo Pai, William Rossetti, and Melville Dos Santos.
The weekend started with a statement from Stefano Lanzillotta, who qualified an impressive P2 and immediately announced himself as a contender in the Junior category.
Olivier Chassé was also quick from the outset, qualifying P4, while Carlo Lot impressed in his first major Junior competition after moving up from Mini Max, qualifying P11.
Mateo Pai, William Rossetti, and Melville Dos Santos found themselves further down the order in qualifying in P17, P19, and P20 respectively, but there was still plenty of racing left.
Throughout the heat races, Chassé was outstanding. He consistently ran inside the top three and capped off the heats with a victory in Heat 3.
Lanzillotta suffered a difficult opening heat that dropped him to 19th, but he responded exactly how great drivers do. He rebounded with finishes of P4, P3, and P6 in the Super Heat to put himself back into contention.
Lot continued to impress, running around the top ten throughout the weekend and finishing as high as P6 in one of the heats.
Rossetti and Pai immediately began recovering from their qualifying setbacks, gaining positions in every heat race and steadily moving toward the front of the field.
Dos Santos endured a difficult opening day with back-to-back DNFs but refused to quit. He bounced back with a P15 finish in the Super Heat and entered the Final ready to fight.
In the Final, Chassé put on a tremendous performance. Starting P2, he steadily closed the gap to the leader and by the midpoint of the race looked capable of delivering Prime Powerteam’s second victory of the weekend. While the win ultimately remained just out of reach, Olivier drove a fantastic race and secured a well-earned podium finish.
Since joining Prime Powerteam late last season, Olivier has consistently impressed us. Watching his growth and development has been incredibly rewarding, and we’re excited to see him keep owning the podium.
Lanzillotta delivered another strong drive to finish P4 and collect valuable championship points. With Mosport up next—a track Stefano knows extremely well—we’re eager to see that momentum continue.
Lot capped off an impressive Junior debut with a P7 finish in the Final, proving he belongs among the front-runners despite being new to the category.
Rossetti, Dos Santos, and Pai completed excellent recovery drives, finishing P9, P11, and P12 respectively after difficult starts to the weekend.
Senior Max
Senior Max featured the largest grid of the weekend and Prime Powerteam brought seven drivers into the fight: Ryan Maxwell, Logan Pacza, Noah Landry, Arnaud Sabourin, Ari Theodoropoulos, Jaden Hundal, and Tristan Smith.
Qualifying immediately showed the strength of our lineup as six Prime drivers placed inside the top ten, led by Ryan Maxwell in P3.
Maxwell went on to have an excellent weekend. He consistently ran among the leaders, spent much of the event inside the top three, and ultimately secured a podium finish in third place.
It was a strong start to his championship defense as he looks to become the first repeat RMC Ontario Senior Max Champion. Interestingly, Ryan also finished third at Round 1 last year, so it’s safe to say we’re off to a good start.
Logan Pacza impressed in his return to national-level two-stroke competition. His lowest finish all weekend was P7, highlighted by a P3 finish in Heat 2 and an exciting late-race battle to secure P4 in the Final.
Pacza was fast, consistent, and demonstrated that he will be a factor throughout the championship.
Noah Landry also delivered a strong weekend, consistently running inside the top ten and saving his best performance for last with a P6 finish in the Final.
Arnaud Sabourin, our 2024 RMC Ontario Champion, showed strong pace throughout the event, but DNFs in Heat 2 and the Super Heat significantly impacted his weekend. Despite the setbacks, he battled back to finish P8. The final result doesn’t fully reflect the speed he showed.
Ari Theodoropoulos qualified an impressive P8 and finished Heat 1 in P5, but difficult starts in Heats 2, 3, and the Super Heat forced him to start the Final from deep in the field. He fought back admirably to finish P13.
Jaden Hundal’s weekend was similar to Sabourin’s. He demonstrated excellent pace throughout the event, but a DNF in Heat 1 and another in the Final prevented him from achieving what likely would have been a top-ten result.
Rounding out the Senior Max lineup was Tristan Smith. This was Tristan’s first major competition in the Senior category and, with less than a year of Rotax racing experience, it was always going to be a significant challenge.
Tristan rose to that challenge admirably, gaining positions in every heat race and showing consistent improvement throughout the weekend. Unfortunately, his event ended with a DNF, but the experience gained and progress shown were extremely valuable.
Looking Ahead
Round 1 was a tremendous start to the season for Prime Powerteam. Across all three categories, our drivers demonstrated speed, determination, and continuous improvement.
Most importantly, we leave Hamilton with momentum.
A huge thank you goes out to all of our drivers, families, mechanics, and staff who made this weekend possible. We’d also like to thank Hamilton Karting Complex and RMC Ontario for putting together an outstanding event.
The focus now shifts to Mosport for Round 2, where the championship battles continue and the Briggs & Stratton Challenge Ontario joins the program for what promises to be another fantastic weekend of racing.
We’ll see you at the track.
