Parolin Motorsport completed the FIA Karting European Championship season at Kristianstad with a commanding OK victory for William Calleja and a podium for Dean Hoogendoorn. Calleja won every race he contested before dominating the Final, while Hoogendoorn finished 3rd to secure the same position in the Championship. Gioele Girardello ended the OK-Junior campaign 4th in the standings after showing front-running pace, and Troy Ferguson produced an exceptional 21-place recovery in the Final.

With 88 drivers competing in OK, Calleja immediately established himself among the favourites by qualifying 2nd overall and fastest in his group. He then won all five Qualifying Heats, leading every lap but one, before controlling his Super Heat from lights to flag to preserve his unbeaten record and secure pole position for the Final.

Calleja completed his perfect race weekend with another assured performance. He led all 25 laps, set the fastest lap and won by 3.520s to conclude the European Championship in 4th place.

Hoogendoorn gave Parolin Motorsport a second podium after an impressive recovery from 25th in Qualifying. A heat victory and consistently strong results moved him up the order, before 2nd place in his Super Heat secured 5th on the Final grid. He advanced to 3rd in the decisive race, finishing less than half a second behind the runner-up and confirming 3rd place in the European Championship.

Nicolò Cuman also demonstrated leading pace throughout the OK weekend, qualifying 4th and winning two heats before lining up 6th for the Final. His challenge ended four laps from the finish. Giacomo Giusto impressed in one of his first appearances in the senior category, progressing to 7th after the heats and starting the Final from 8th, but he was eliminated in a first-lap incident.

Ward Racing’s Benjamin Manach added another strong result on Parolin equipment. After qualifying 5th overall, he recovered from 21st on the grid to finish 8th in the OK Final.

The 79-driver OK-Junior contest was marked by numerous incidents, but Parolin Motorsport repeatedly demonstrated its speed. Girardello qualified 3rd overall, won his opening three heats and later recorded the fastest lap of the Final. A five-second penalty left him 19th in the classification, while his results across the season secured 4th in the European Championship.

Ferguson delivered the factory team’s strongest OK-Junior Final result with an outstanding charge from 34th to 13th. Oskari Walle, Alexander Lazarus, Xavier Lazaro and Albert Tamm all reached the Final after competitive performances during the weekend, but each was caught in a first-lap incident. Elton Hedfors showed excellent pace, but a technical problem in the Prefinal denied him a place in the OK-Junior Final, the only thing preventing a 100% success rate.

Marco Parolin said:

“This was an excellent way to finish the European Championship. William was faultless throughout the weekend and converted his speed into a very convincing victory, while Dean’s recovery and podium also secured 3rd in the Championship. We showed strong performance in OK-Junior as well, even though the incidents and penalties prevented the final classification from reflecting our potential. The whole team can be proud of the work it has done, and we will carry this momentum into the next races.”

Parolin Motorsport’s next event will be the opening round of the WSK Final Cup at Franciacorta from 26th to 30th August. The OK and OK-Junior programme will then turn to the FIA Karting World Championship at La Conca in November.