At La Conca, when it rains, it truly pours. The 183 drivers competing in this weekend’s opening round of the Champions of the Future season experienced exactly that today, as heavy rain created extremely challenging conditions throughout.
In OK Junior, with drivers aged between 12 and 15, a field of 93 competitors took to a soaked circuit for qualifying. The conditions demanded exceptional kart control, often resembling the precision required in sailing or rowing. Antonio Ianni, representing Tony Kart, set the benchmark in the first qualifying group, and his time of 1:03.873 secured him the fastest overall position. He was two tenths clear of Priam Bruno, while Vsevolod Osadchyi Suslovskyi completed the top three as the third fastest driver across the groups in Junior.
Despite the strong pace shown by the leading trio in qualifying, the heat races told a different story. Changing conditions and difficult starting positions reshaped the order. Roland Nagy, Maxim Bobreshov, and Julian Frasnelli each secured victories in the opening heats. Both Priam Bruno and Antonio Ianni faced challenging starts, which pushed them down the order and allowed the wet conditions to further complicate their recovery.
Bobreshov’s victory came unexpectedly. Alex Molota initially crossed the line in first position, however a five second post race penalty for failing to respect race flags demoted him to second place, handing the win to Bobreshov.
Pre race running in the OK category was also heavily limited due to the persistent rain at La Conca, also known within the paddock as Muro Leccese. As a result, many drivers entered qualifying with minimal track familiarity in such conditions. One driver who appeared unaffected by this was Jindrich Pesl. He delivered a dominant performance by qualifying more than four tenths faster than any other driver, and eight tenths quicker than anyone else in his group, with a time of 1:02.939. The next fastest drivers across the groups included Francois Kerdal and Andrea Manni.
The early heat races in OK were won by Ilie Crisan, Andrea Manni, and Jindrich Pesl. Pesl converted his pole position into victory in commanding fashion, finishing with a ten second advantage over Francois Kerdal. Andrea Manni’s win came under notable circumstances. He had originally crossed the line in second place behind Zac Drummond of Scotland, but a five second penalty for Drummond due to causing an incident promoted Manni to the win.
With the first six races of the season now complete, the remainder of the weekend remains wide open. There is significant potential for changes in the order, particularly from drivers starting further back. In the senior category, well known competitors such as Noah Baglin and Filippo Sala are expected to push forward strongly, especially with drier conditions anticipated.
The opening day of racing in 2026 has concluded, and the pursuit of this year’s Champions of the Future is now fully underway.
