INTERVIEW WITH ONG KIAN LEONG

An interview with Veteran Category Championship leader, Ong Kian Leong.

Race Team: Kart Kinetics Age: 46 years old Karting Experience: 22 years

With 22 years of karting experience under his belt, Veteran Ong Kian Leong shares his views of being a karter and the current leader at the X30 Challenge Singapore 2015.

Q: You are the leader on the board, how are you going to defend your position? A: I will have to finish all my remaining races, and importantly, finish ahead of my closest competitors.

Q: How has leading the championship changed your perspective on the upcoming rounds? A: With the previous two rounds, my approach was to be aggressive, about taking risks and grabbing as many points as possible. Now that I am leading the table, every point earned over my closest competitors means a point closer to the championship title. So adopting a more defensive and cautious approach from now on would be the way to go.

Q: In terms of race craft, who is your biggest competitor in your category? Why? A: Having racing up close with the best drivers of this class, I would say my closest competitor would be Michael followed by a close second, Lung. Race craft wise, I believe we are quite equal but Michael has better speed. This is evident by the pole and fastest lap times in each of the two rounds.

Q: Round 3 & 4 are going to be clockwise, which is different from Round 1 & 2. Is that going to be a yay or nay for you? Why? A: I am a cautious yay. My time spent testing the clockwise direction is limited but initial impression that it is more technical, more challenging and offers more opportunities for overtaking compared to the anti-clockwise direction.

Q: What is your practice regime? How does it help during races? A: My practice regime is straight forward. I try to do a race weekend distance every time I practice. This helps to condition my body to the rigors of a race weekend, especially the final when you are exhausted, both mentally and physically.

Q: You are 46 this year, did you ever think that you would be racing and leading? What motivates you? A: Indeed. I have no doubt that I will still be racing at this age, since my passion for the sport is still as strong as that day 20 odd years ago when I picked it up. As for leadership of the table midway through the season, that’s quite unexpected, considering the fact that I am still grappling with the X30 engine. As for my motivation, it’s the satisfaction of winning a race, having everything clicking perfectly, and its attendant high.

Follow the Veterans closely at the next round of the X30 Challenge Singapore 2015 as the Top 5 contenders close up on their points! Ong Kian Leong – 57 / Lee Lung Nien 54 / Michael Robson 50 / Pongchai Malakul 46.