KLIPPAN CUP 2023: DEVEN GRABKO MAKES STRONG MINI 60 DEBUT FOR AD MOTORSPORT

Will The Klippan Curse Strike Again?

​It was a solid opening race weekend for Grabko GP as Deven Grabko showed his potential to his new boss.

Klippan Cup is the traditional season opener for the Swedish kart racing season, and over the years has become the unofficial Nordic Championship, attracting some of the best drivers from Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Its high status was especially reinforced in the mini 60 category, where nearly 50 drivers from all over Scandinavia came to fight for victory on Easter Weekend.

This is a track that has previously been somewhat of a bogey for the team, finding it difficult to zero in on the pace in previous seasons, and with strokes of bad luck sprinkled in the mix, the 4th round of the Southern Sweden Kart Champion Cup last year being a particular sore point, where failure to fuel the kart for qualifying had meant a last place starting position for the qualifying heats, and then after having worked our way up into the top ten in the final, crashing out at the end of the 1st lap, and limping home near the back of the field.

But this weekend was a new year, a new team, a new category, and a new opportunity, and Deven Grabko was determined to make the most of it.

FRIDAY - FREE PRACTICE

A cold and crisp morning greeted the team as they came up to the AD Motorsport tent complex early in the AM. It was going to be pretty ideal conditions in the afternoon, but first it was time to settle in, and prepare for some testing and get the carb jetting right before moving on to gears and then front axle settings.

Professionalism in the AD Motorsport organisation is impressive to behold. Well ordered chaos is the best way to describe it. Mechanics, coaches, parts runners, drivers, catering - all important cogs in the wheel that keep things running smoothly. Everyone knows their tasks and what is expected of them. It is a beautiful machine to behold, but also a bit intimidating walking into it for the first time in proper action. Through the rollíng seas of activity waded the big boss himself, Alex Dahlberg. Laughing and joking with his team, he has a natural commanding presence that demands respect. For a young driver, his approval is the biggest form of praise. It was a good feeling to be a part of it.

Overall, free practice testing was a success. Due to the massive entry list in several categories, it was a long day, with practice sessions going on all the way to 7:00 PM. As the day wore on it was becoming apparent that we were showing more pace than anticipated against the field. Almost every adjustment made either improved the setup itself or made it easier for the driver to get the most out of the chassis and motor. It was only late in the day when an Ackerman steering angle adjustment was tried that didn’t have the desired effect, Deven coming in after the session, saying, “What did you guys do? That felt horrible!”

After returning to the previous setting, and going out for the last session, a personal best laid down at the feet of the mechanics. All Deven had to say coming into the weigh station after the session was, “That felt waaaaayyyy better. Don’t. change. anything.”

SATURDAY - RACE DAY

Free Practice | 6 min x2 | P11 & P11

With the disadvantage of being assigned the first group both in the free practice warm up sessions as well as qualifying, it was just another one of those things that prickled a little bit for the team, especially given the historically bad luck the track has brought for Deven. The two early morning practice sessions were awash with small items to check off the preparation list and times weren’t the highest priority. Based on data from earlier testing, fresh tires were put on from the first practice session and not saved for qualifying. This meant pushing too hard was out of the question, but you still wanted to get them a full temp cycle or two before it really mattered.

Deven worked on his lines in the twisty sector 3 and the team were looking forward to qualifying after finishing with two P11 finishes on the Group 1 timing sheets after the practice sessions were over and it was time to prepare for qualifying.

Qualifying | 8 min | P10 Group 1 - P24 Overall

Now it was time to push. The mini 60 category is punishing if you can’t get yourself a decent position on the grid for the sprint heats. Everything seemed prepared and ready to go. Except it did not go as planned. Already on the out lap, Deven began gesticulating and slamming his fist down on the wheel. The motor was not giving him full power down the back straight and those he sailed passed earlier in the day and during testing flew by him as he was powerless to do anything about it.

Hearts sank within the team as it was felt the Klippan Ring curse had struck again. The first flying lap, lap 2, came and went with Deven visibly frustrated in the driver's seat, thrusting himself forward, vainly trying to get the motor to do something, to come back to life, as he sputtered down the back two straightaways. By the time he came around to start his 2nd flying lap, the team had basically given up hope.

Luckily Deven had not. He drove his racing machine as hard as he possibly could and suddenly, halfway down the back straight, the engine finally came to life. It was like a turbo boost from the gods in comparison, as he came flying down to the turn 5 banked hairpin at the end of the straight and powered back down the hill to the fast turn 6 left hander.

With the material agreeing with him again, he now unfortunately had to navigate his way past those that had gone by him earlier in the session. It was a compromised situation but he made the best of it that he could. He managed 3 real push laps out of the next 6 where he didn’t have to make an overtake during the lap, putting himself up to 10th on the timesheet, and still had time for 2 more. Then the next disaster came.

As the Kid came down the back straight he was bearing down fast on two karts ahead who were bumper to bumper going into turn 5. The kart just ahead of him ran into the back of the kart ahead, and then spun himself out. Right in front of Deven. With no time to react, Deven had to just go straight and not turn into the corner, forcing him out onto the marbles. At that speed there was no chance - with zero grip at 95+ kph there was nothing he could have done. He went flying up the bank and into the grass.  No damage to the kart, as he drove back to the pits under his own power after the checkered flag had gone, but his session ruined as he lost 2 more flying laps. Two more chances with better tire temps and a keyed up engine gone.

He would end up 10th in Group 1, but was extremely frustrated that he effectively lost 4 flying laps to the rest of the field and felt there was so much more time in it for him to get. His own estimation was “at least 2-3 tenths I could have gotten!”

A strange decision was made by the race stewards to not stagger the results of the two group qualifying sessions, even given the extreme track evolution in the morning, with the 2nd qualifying group much faster with better grip on track. In the end it meant that Deven's time was only good enough for 24th overall instead of 20th had the results been staggered. It marked another minor tick on the Klippan Curse scoresheet - and it was a testament to the competitiveness of the mini 60 category that Deven missed out on 7th spot in his group by less than 0.07s and only 0.3s up to the top ten overall. Exactly where the Kid thought he would have ended up if he had gotten a clean qualifying session.

But with the timed sessions done, now it was time to race!

Sprint Heat B+C | 10 laps | P16 → P12

The field was split into 3 groups for the qualifying sprint heats - A, B, and C. Each group would race against each other and the results would be used to make up the grid for two semifinal races, which in turn would separately determine the grid for the ultimate final.

The Grabko GP and AD Motorsport driver was P8 in group C and thus would start on the 8th row of the grid for both of his sprint heats, on the outside in P16. It was another irritating niggle to start on the outside for both sprint heats, but above and beyond that, it was also the Kid’s first ever mini 60 race start.

He had earned a reputation for his powerful and aggressive starts in Formula Mini in previous seasons, but mini 60 is another kettle of fish, and in this group of drivers, he was seen as just another rookie to take advantage of. He would need to really gather all his nerve to not only survive the start against hardened international competition, but make any headway as well.

An extra formation lap was needed to start the race as the leaders were too eager the first time around and didn’t let the whole pack behind catch them up to make the start. It was only slightly better the second time around, but the lights went out and we were racing!

Deven held his own out of the gates, but lost a few positions in the shuffle to line up for the turns 2 and 3 combination that leads out onto the back straight. Then he gained a couple spots back coming back down the hill towards the infield section of the track, and another net position in the shuffling of the last sector of the track to end up back in 16th spot after lap 1.

From there he settled in to a nice bit of racing with the kart in front, and together they moved up through the field a bit after deciding tussling with each other wasn’t going to get them anywhere. Halfway through the race, Deven found himself in P14 and catching the group ahead with his sparring partner, the #13 of Swedish pilot Wilhelm Abelmann.

They caught and passed the next kart up the road, who then out-broke himself right in front of Deven almost ending both of their races but for some quick reactions from Deven, avoiding the spinning kart at the last second.

The evasive maneuvers meant that he lost a bit of momentum after that but caught back up on the final two laps and had a nice shootout for 12th position on the final lap, Deven drag racing his opponent to the line and only just missing out by less than 0.04s. However, a pushed in front fairing penalty for that same kart meant that Deven would be classified 12th of 31 in his first ever mini 60 race - not a bad way to start!

Sprint Heat A+C | 10 laps | P16 → P12

After lunch it was time for the 2nd and final sprint heat before the semifinals. With a successful debut race under his belt, and a couple of grilled hotdogs, Deven was ready and raring to go. He seemed to have grown in confidence as the day had gone on and was bolstered by the first race result. Now he knew he could compete near the top.

The start went better for the Kid than the first one as well. He was finding his groove and it showed. He made up 3 spots during the first lap and then followed through with the 4 kart group he was in to be in 12th spot halfway through the race. The final 5 laps were a ruthless but clean battle for a top 10 position, an international fight between Sweden (#35 Charlie Jonasson) Denmark (#111 Zackarias Ringstrøm) and the USA (#14 Deven Grabko).

Deven was slightly quicker than the two in front, but couldn’t get himself in a position to try and make a pass, pushing a bit too hard in the wrong areas, denying himself an attacking opportunity at the best passing zones on the track, which are the entry to the hairpin at turn 5, the entry to the slow “W” section at turn 9, and the final turn 11 at the end of the sector 3 “W.”

It all came down to another drag race to the finish line on the final lap, all three karts taking different lines out of the final corner. Deven got the best exit, but only just lost out in the end, crossing the finish line 0.009s behind Jonasson and Ringstrøm. Good clean racing at its best, but it was also clear that the Kid needed to hone his race craft skills, as he had been quicker and should have been able to get by both of his competitors a few laps previous.

It is a steep learning curve, but Deven was in the best school there is - seat time and practical experience.

Semifinal 2 | 12 laps | P8 → P7

After the two sprint heats, it was time to tally up the points and split the nearly 50 strong field into two groups for the semifinals. Deven landed in the 2nd race together with his AD Motorsport and mini 60 teammate, Jonathan Landström, who was having a poster weekend to start the season himself! The experienced mini 60 driver had been inside the top 5 the entire day, with a P2 and P4 finish in his heat races, earning him a front row spot for the semifinal, 3 karts in front of our man Deven, who was rewarded with a 4th row start for his sprint heat results. This was heady stuff for our young intrepid racing driver, who had never expected to find himself this far up the starting grid in the semifinals of his debut race.

But he went out and showed the field that he deserved to be there. He went proper red mist mode at the start, flying through the wide radius turn 1 and diving down into the turns 2 and 3 combination hard and fast, gaining 1 spot there and then charging down the lead pack through sector 3, diving down the inside at the final corner to take another. P6 after lap 1!

His pace was strong as well, and he seemed to be able to hold a comfortable gap back to the kart behind, who had their hands full fighting over 7th spot with a few other karts. He wasn’t able to make any headway forward though, and as the race progressed, he lost touch with the lead pack a bit. This meant that he lost the all important draft down the two back straightaways and this fact brought a charging #2, the Danish Swede Benjamin Poulsen, right up onto the back of him. Deven was forced to let him go as he realized he was just too quick to keep behind, and instead smartly decided to try to keep up with him as best he could to try and reconnect with the lead pack.

That was easier said than done, though, and after a couple of laps of chasing, Deven lost any effective draft and instead refocused himself and started putting in 3 personal best laps in a row. This was good timing as well. The final 4 laps saw the field compress into defend and fight mode. No more working together to catch up to the group ahead. Now was time to fight for position.

Deven accepted the challenge and drove home a well deserved and strong 7th place. This was a first top 10 result in his new class, and a statement of intent for the rest of the day and the season as a whole. Very satisfied faces inside both the Grabko GP and AD Motorsport camps.

Teammate Landström finished the semifinal in P2, and would start P3 for the big 15 lap Final, while Deven would be starting in P13 for the main event.

Final | 15 laps | P13 → P14

So this was it. Everything that came before had served only one purpose. To get to this position in the Final. It was all to play for. Starting on the 7th row of a final packed with race winning drivers from the length and breadth of Scandinavia in your debut race in the category. First time out with the new team, different chassis, different tires and engine, new routines and new expectations, new people to try and impress. It was an achievement in itself - but now it was time to complete the mission. It could still just as easily all end in tears at turn one.

On the pre-grid before the race, The Kid was feeling it a bit. “Daddy, I’m a little bit nervous.”

“Don’t you worry, kid. It is good to be a little bit nervous, it keeps you alert and on your toes. Just remember, be aggressive at the start, remember your driving technique, and do your very best. You know that whatever happens, I love you the mostest. You can do this. Let’s go!”

Pep talk and patent-pending handshake done, it was time. The karts fired up and rolled out from the pre-grid onto the track.

Deven was confused for a moment as the karts in front of him were out of position after the red line, the #81 of Carl Nellegård falling back behind the #111 of Zackarias Ringstrøm. He quickly put it out of his head, though. It wasn’t his problem and he was still in the right spot.

Pushing the back of Nellegård through the start, Deven thrust them both through and together they made up a spot right at the first turn, having the inside grippier line. They held station through the rest of the lap crossing the line in P11 and P12 respectively, and made a run at Ringstrøm as they crossed the finish line to end the first lap. They both made it through, Ringstrøm pressed the issue from the outside and tried to hang there through the whole first corner, but was forced to concede or go off into the marbles as Deven had track position on the race line already. At the end of lap 2 it was up to P11 for the young Grabko GP and AD Motorsport pilot.

3 more laps of close, tight racing saw Deven forced to begin defending his position only a third of the way into the race though, which meant he dropped off the pace of the pack ahead. Focused too much on those behind, the Kid battled back and forth, determined not to let go of position. It was too defensive however, and he did concede first one spot, and then one lap later another, although he fought back and took 12th again for 2 laps, it cost him, and he ended up losing 2 more positions on lap 10.

Now in 14th, he tried to bring it home but was again being hounded from behind, this time by another quick Ward Racing rival, the #33 of Alexander Frykberg. It was on the final lap that Deven lost the position, and ending the race on the back foot never feels good.

It was the first race of the weekend in which he had not gone forwards from his starting position, and he was angry and frustrated about it, as any racing driver worth their salt would be. The pace just couldn’t be found in the final, the last few tenths of a second per lap that would have made all the difference. He knew a top ten finish would have been on had he found that race pace, but it just wasn’t on the cards today.

After an hour or so to cool down, though, he was in a more reflective mood, “Yeah I mean with almost 50 drivers here it was always going to be hard. Our first goal was just to make the final. Instead I was right up there with all these experienced guys. I have to be satisfied with today even though I feel there was a top 10 in it for me, that would have been a dream start to the season. But top 15, in my first race in this super hard core new class, that is a good place to start. We can do good stuff from here.”

WEEKEND SUMMARY

Overall a very productive debut weekend that saw Deven exceed all expectations from team, coaches, and boss. Deven showed that his entertaining and fearless driving style survived the change of class, and that he will be mixing it up with the top of the field this year. 

We are super impressed with how Deven went about the weekend. He showed no fear, and it was good to see him applying the feedback he was getting throughout the weekend. He has the potential to be up there with the front guys, and I am confident we can help him get there. It was a solid debut for him with us.”

​~ Alex Dahlberg, Team Principal, AD Motorsport.

This was so great. I loved it! Even though I don’t like this track at all, and I am super angry about the final. I was up in 11th and wanted that top 10 so bad for the team and for myself, but it just wasn’t happening today. But being here with this setup is so awesome! I love it here, and hope to be able to stay for a long time. They have a big heater so I didn’t freeze my fingers off in the morning, and Alex is the best, I will do whatever it takes to make him happy. Also Jonathan (Landström) - so happy for him, he’s been really nice to me and for him to get his first win today is so awesome!! I am happy I got to share that with him, he is so fast and I respect him as a driver and a friend.”

​~ Deven Grabko, Race Driver.

Really proud of the way Deven handled himself this weekend. He really exceeded all our expectations. Top 15 result is a great way for him to start the season, and get some confidence in the new class and his new surroundings. Really good setup here at AD Motorsport as well, been really impressed throughout the pre-season and now into the first race. Upwards and onwards from here!”

~ Dan Grabko, Team Principal, Grabko GP.

The weekend marks the first of 7 race weeks in a row for the team, who are off to Malmö next weekend for the Malmö Rookie Cup, a warm up event for the upcoming Southern Sweden Kart Champion Cup race to be held at the venue after the summer break.

Grabko GP would like to extend a special thank you to our sponsors, without whose support and trust, this journey would not be possible.

Brunbergs | Trollhättans Oljor | Chassis Autonomy | The Grabko Group 

Until next time, thank you all for the support!

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