RacersPH
- May 14
- 3 min read

Alaska-backed Mercedes Young Driver Development Team holds Media Press Conference in Palawan.

Choosing between a courtesy call among Palawan LGU Officials or holding a Mini-Press Conference for local Palawan Radio-TV, Print and Online Media , the multi-titled MiniRok Karter of the Year, team leader Axel Nocom opted for the Press Briefing due to his team tight busy schedule of the race events. The hastily organized press conference held in the evening of April 28, 2023 was attended by most of the established media outfits of Puerto Princesa including Palawan Daily News, DYPR Radio, The Palawan Times, Radyo Bandera, DZIP Radyo Palaweño, RMN Palawan, and DWMR RP Palawan.

The essence of holding the team presscon is due to the advocacy being promoted by racer Axel Nocom regarding Nutritional Support to athletes including kart racers which is being spearheaded by his team Mercedes Development Young Driver with the support of Alaska Milk Corporation. Considered as the first kart racing team to host a big dinner gathering involving numerous local and regional media outfits, the reporters and correspondents of each entity widely received with great appreciation the briefing the team conducted for the recent Rotax Max Philippine Challenge Series held in Palawan International Circuit (PIC), a racetrack located in Sta Monica, Puerto Princesa.

The members of the media were briefed by the Team Principals, the parents, and the racers whose ages are as young as 5 years up to 12 years old representing the race class categories from Cadet, MiniRok, Intermediate and up to Juniors including their respective sub-classes. When queried by the media, the parents of the kid racers were united in admitting that the go-kart racing in the Philippines is an expensive sport but they all justified that the cost is not an issue since the experience and the life-teaching lessons such as observing healthy lifestyle , discipline, patience and other character-building attributes learned from the sport is much more important and is considered priceless.

With regards to opening the expensive and exclusive sport to grassroots development giving chances to ordinary youth of various communities to be future participants of the racing events, the Team Principal Mike Nocom explained very well that the Team is actually in that direction and is dead serious in levelling the playing field by discovering talents nationwide thru a nationwide and local media campaign that will promote the sport and achieve followers where big supporters like Alaska Milk and even small sponsors can support the grassroots development.

The team performance in the actual weekend races held at PIC on the 29th and the 30th of April, the Mercedes Young Drivers team performed well in almost all categories garnering several championship trophies, and runner-up finishes. Unexpected victories from comebacking veteran Senior Driver Oliver Aquino as 1st-Runner Up and Fil-Japan young lady racer 12yo Seira Kojima as the new Juniors Champion spiced up the string of victories garnered by the team which was led by the de facto Alaska Karting Ambassador 3-Time MiniROK Karter of the Year Axel Nocom (Champion - MiniRok Expert, Overall) whose teammates Michael Andaya (Intermediate Class - Champion), Rich Mark Young (4th Runner-Up - Juniors), Lucas Aldave (Champion - MiniRok Beginner, 2nd Runner Up MiniRok Novice), Marcus Young (Champion - Cadet Clubrace, 1st Rubber Up - Cadet Novice), Iker Macasiano (1st Runner Up - Cadet Expert), Franco Patawran (1st Runner Up- Cadet Clubrace, 2nd Runner Up - Cadet Novice, Reign Alojado (2nd Runner Up - MiniROK Novice), Kraige Berdos (3rd Runner Up - MiniROK Expert), Reese Almazora (P6 Finisher - Cadet Clubman), Matthew Prince Garvilles (4th Runner Up - Cadet Clubrace) and Karis Santos of DRQ/Mercedes (3rd Runer Up - Seniors Clubman Novice)