One rising Filipino karter. Three international titles in a year. Unlimited potential on the race track.
Multi-title William John Riley Tiu Go cemented his status as Philippine karting’s newest darling as he claimed a historic third international title—the Mini ROK division of the Asian Karting Open Championship following another dominant showing in the Macau leg at the Kartodomo de Coloane last Dec. 8 and 9.
Away from the hoopla of the 30th Southeast Asian Games back home, Go did his own thing on foreign soil as he earned 24 points in the Macau round to finish the season with 199, 58 points ahead of second placer Enzo Yeh (144) of China and third-ranked Yan Yu (66 points), also of China.
Go’s fellow Filipino Melwin William Tan finished fourth with 51 points, while Quinten Lu of China placed fifth with a similar 51 points.
The 11-year-old Cebuano karter was so dominant in the four-leg kartfest that the final round was Go’s formal coronation leg, after virtually securing the title in the third stop in the Philippines last September with an unreachable total of 175 points. He had 55 points in the first leg in Beijing on April 27 and 28 and a perfect 60 each in the second round in Macau on June 29 and 30.
Already one of the top racers in Southeast Asia last year, Go may have earned the reputation as the region’s best now with his triple-kill for the year, counting his title runs in the IAME Series Asia at the Sepang International Kart Circuit in Sepang, Malaysia and the Rok Singapore Cup—a feat never been done by any Filipino karter in the past.
It could have been four overall international titles, but the Grade 6 student of the St. Benedict Childhood Education Centre in Cebu City only placed 1st runner-up in the ROK CUP Asia Zone in Sentul, Indonesia, where he skipped two races due to conflict with his schooling.
“This one is for all the people who supported me in this journey, my team, my parents. I couldn’t have done it without them,” said Go. “Everyone was focused on the task at hand and that proved to be the difference. Everyone contributed, it’s really a team effort from my coaches to my mechanics.”
Go’s amazing streak of titles began in September when he captured the overall cadet championship of the IAME Series Asia at the Sepang International Kart Circuit in Sepang, Malaysia, where he bested 27 seasoned drivers from all over the world. Go, who bagged the overall crown with 143 points in five races and shoved eventual second placer Timofey Timofey Mikhaylov (134 points) behind, closed out the series in a blazing note with a total time of 13:42.118 in 12 laps, highlighted by the best lap time of 1:07.812.
What followed was another scintillating showing in the Rok Singapore Cup, where he bludgeoned the competition with his 1,390 points, 629 ahead of runner-up Dillan Tan of the hosts.
Go, it turns out, is just warming up.
After competing in the Mini ROK division, the Cebuano prodigy plans to level up and compete in the Junior division next year.
“It was been a wonderful ride. It’s now time to search for bigger challenges” said Go.