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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, December 19, 2014 | 42 Jon Kuiperij Sports Editor sports@oakvillebeaver.com Sports "Connected to your Community" Young go-karter has F1 dream by Jon Kuiperij Beaver Sports Editor Watching her 11-year-old son Zain zip around tracks at speeds as fast as 80 kilometres per hour, Soofia Ikram sometimes feels as though her heart is in her throat. "It's really hard to watch," Soofia said of the three go-kart races she saw Zain compete in this past season. "Even though they're not going as fast as the (Formula 1) cars, there were a few accidents and your heart still jumps. "But he's so passionate about it, and I don't see a reason for him not to do it. That's my issue if I'm scared." Zain's not only passionate, he's also quite good. This year, in his rookie season of club racing, he won both the 4-stroke Junior Light Drivers Championship and the Junior Driver of the Year award in the Mosport International Karting Association (MIKA) series that runs out of Bowmanville, Ont. Ikram was victorious in his first three races of the season, finishing the 12-event series with seven wins, two second-place finishes and two thirds. His 942 points on the season easily outdistanced the second-place finisher's Zain Ikram 886. "My dad (Asif) and I were actually expecting to finish midtable," said Ikram, a New Central Public School student who moved to Oakville from England four years ago. "But when I got three wins in a row at the beginning of the year, I thought, `If I keep this up, I'll have a good shot at (winning the series).'" Ikram has raced go-karts for three years, competing in the MIKA's arrive-and-drive program in the first two seasons. Club racing means competitors provide their own karts, which allows Zain and Asif to tailor the vehicle to Zain's preferences. Oakville 11-year-old Zain Ikram won the Mosport International Karting Association's 4-stroke Junior Lights Driver Championship and the Junior Driver of the Year award this season, his first as a club go-kart racer. | photo submitted "There are a lot of things you can do to suit the driver. You can change tire pressures, and some people run different rear axles depending on the weather," Zain said. "In arrive and drive, sometimes when I turned the kart it waited five seconds and then started turning. Now, I actually know what to expect." Zain prefers F1 to other types of auto racing because he feels it has better technology, drivers and overall professionalism. He has watched every F1 race on television over the past four years, and even attended a race in Germany. "I want to go to F1. I want to be racing," said Zain, who documents his karting exploits on an Internet blog. "Karting is where every single racing driver starts in my mind, every single F1 driver. That's where you learn your skills and your race crafts, how to overtake, how to push things to the limit." Soofia said her son's determination at an early age might make that F1 dream come true. "He's 11 going on 18, I think... He's quite hard on himself. He wears a camera on his helmet so he's able to watch after the race and see where he's gone wrong and what he can do to improve," Soofia said, noting Zain plans to race next season in a higher division and against older competition. "For him to improve, I think he has to race against those (older) kids. I said, `You're not going to win every race.' For him, it's about getting better." -- Like, share or comment on Oakville Beaver sports stories on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HaltonSports TO A Game Based LearninG Soccer Player Development R Brain Based LearninG O Y A L T R E A T M E N T Toca and IndIfooT In one specTacular HolIday camp! Holiday Training camp for players aged 7 ­ 15 open for reGIsTraTIon dates: camp #1: december 22-23 camp #2: december 29-30 Time: 12:30pm-3:30pm each day location: Hershey centre sportszone inside gymnasiums 6, 7 and 8 cost: 2 days ­ $150 + HsT, 4 days ­ $275 + HsT w only a fe s t o p s g! remainin aPeXFootYLaB.com XFootYLaB.com POWERED BY Learn more anD register at Program Director: Dino LoPez Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Dalton Pompey (right) had his No. 33 jersey retired by the Ontario Royals (formerly Oakville Royals) elite baseball program Monday. Also pictured are Royals co-owner Rob Shaver (left) and former Royal Taylor Bratton, who pitched this past season for the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball's Winnipeg Goldeyes. For more information, visit bit.ly/13g9mNx. | photo by Michael Ivanin -- Special to the Beaver