Parolin Motorsport began the WSK Final Cup at Franciacorta with Leo Simone finishing 2nd in Mini U10 and Lenox Lockhart and Evan Purcell taking 6th in Mini Gr3 and OK respectively.
The opening round of the three-event series was held in hot, dry conditions at Franciacorta from 27th to 30th August, with the final two rounds scheduled for November. At the same time, Parolin’s gearbox drivers contested the Grand Prix Karting World Championship warm-up event at Le Mans.
Parolin chassis also led the way with their satellite teams, with BabyRace Driver Academy’s Sasha Miras Y Munoz winning Mini U10 and team-mate Nahyl El Gahoudi heading the provisional Mini Gr3 classification pending the outcome of an appeal.
Simone was the leading Parolin Motorsport performer in Mini U10. Fastest overall in Qualifying, he won two of his three heats and started the Final from the front row before securing 2nd place. Zayne Burgess won all three heats to earn pole position for the Final and fought back to cross the line 2nd after losing ground at the start, but two penalties dropped him to 19th. His 55.394 lap remained the fastest of the race. Blake Hsueh climbed seven places to finish 7th, while Jack Wolff gained five to take 10th.
BabyRace added victory in the category with Miras Y Munoz. Starting 9th, he took the lead on lap three and pulled clear to win by almost three seconds. Jayden Francisco, Max Zvarich and Johan Berger completed a strong showing for the team in 4th, 5th and 6th.
In Mini Gr3, Lockhart moved from 13th in Qualifying to 3rd after the heats and finished 2nd in his Prefinal, earning a front-row start for the Final before taking 6th. El Gahoudi won two heats and his Prefinal for BabyRace before crossing the line first in the Final; the classification remains provisional while an appeal is considered. Team-mate Fadhl Abbas Widowo qualified fastest and set the fastest lap of the Final.
Purcell completed a consistent recovery in OK after a first-lap incident in the Prefinal. Starting the Final from 9th, he moved forward to finish 6th for Parolin Motorsport. Benjamin Manach was on the podium for Ward Racing with 3rd, while Antonio Pizzonia finished 6th in OK-Junior and Luigi D’Ascoli took 4th in OK-N Junior for Modena Kart.
At Le Mans, changing conditions made the gearbox meeting a demanding preparation race. Lorenzo Travisanutto led Parolin Motorsport in KZ, gaining five places from his starting position to finish 15th. Alessio Piccini recovered to 12th in KZ for Modena Kart Racing Team, while Riccardo Nalon climbed 12 places to 17th in KZ2 Master for Erre Esse Motorsport.
Marco Parolin said:
“It was a very busy weekend for everyone, with important work taking place at two circuits. At Franciacorta, Leo produced an excellent performance from Qualifying through to the Final, and Lenox and Evan both finished strongly in 6th. Our partner teams again showed the competitiveness of the Parolin chassis, with Sasha winning Mini U10, Nahyl first in the provisional Mini Gr3 classification and Benjamin on the OK podium. Le Mans also gave our gearbox drivers valuable preparation before we return there for the World Championship and World Cup.”
Parolin Motorsport’s gearbox programme will return to Le Mans from 17th to 20th September for the FIA Karting World Championship for KZ and the FIA Karting World Cup for KZ2.