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Teen go-kart racer to compete in world championship
Nick Neri has been racing go-karts since he was 5 years old.
MANATEE COUNTY (Bay News 9) -- A Palmetto teenager is getting ready to compete in what some are calling the Olympics of go-kart racing.
Nick Neri, 13, has been racing go-karts since he was 5.
"When I was young it was fun," he said. "Then when I got older it was, 'I gotta pass them and them,'" he said
Neri has become so competitive that he's taken part in the national championships every year since 2002. In the eight years since he's been racing, he's won so many trophies there isn't enough room for them in the house, so his mother, Joann Neri, started storing them in the garage.
"I thought it was a hobby," she said. "Never expected anything more."
The Neri family is particularly proud of the teenager this season, as he has won every national championship race, something no racer has ever done before. Now Neri will be representing the United States as part of Team America at the World Go-Kart Championships in Egypt.
The worldwide competition started 10 years ago. In that time, no American has won the trophy.
"It's just like the Olympics, with suits and flags," Neri said. "It is very exciting."
Neri's plans for a career are not particularly surprising considering his accomplishments.
"Get into car racing and play it by ear from there," he said.
But for now, he has set his sights on bringing the world championship trophy home to the United States.
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