The 2026 ProKart Challenge championship took another step toward crowning this year’s title winners, hosting Round Five of the program at the Spring Mountain Karting Complex. The Superkarts! USA regional program visited the Pahrump, Nevada facility over the September 12-13 weekend, contesting the 1.12-mile ‘Full Track’ layout.
KA100 Senior presented by Hayner Racing Team welcomed a new winner in the 2026 season. Texas driver David Ybarra made his debut with a fast time in qualifying, posting a 1:13.653 to clear the 25-driver field by nearly two tenths. Qualifying fourth was Archer Eversman, who was able to beat out Round Two winner Matthew Cagle for the win in the Prefinal as Ybarra slipped to fourth behind Gavin McCune. Eversman and Cagle fought for the lead over the first half of the Final before Sebastian Hauser took over. Making his second start on the season, Hauser was able to grab the lead on lap eight and drove away to a 1.6-second advantage for the victory. Ybarra won the battle for second over Eversman while Kameron Perry and Stephen Eisert completed the top five.
Five different drivers have earned a victory on the season in KA100 Junior presented by Nash Motorsportz. The largest field of the weekend at 27 drivers saw Forrest Blair claim the fast time in qualifying in only his second start in the category, posting a 1:13.438 lap to edge out Round Three winner Daniel Ramirez by only 16 thousandths. Posting the ninth-quickest lap, Diesel Biezonsky found extra pace in the Prefinal. He climbed up the order and grabbed the lead on the final lap from Arran Speirs for the win as Blair fell down the order in the eight-lap race. Finishing third was Braydon Wagner, who jumped up to the lead over the opening lap to begin the Final. Wagner would go on to lead all 15 laps of the main event for his first victory of the season. Speirs ran second, with Luis Martinez beating Ramirez and Blair for the third step on the podium.
Jacob Gulick was able to record his first win of the season in Pro Shifter presented by Axis Kartsport. Gulick was second in qualifying to Round Four winner Jesus Vasquez Jr., recording a lap of 1:08.507. The two were separated by only 83 thousandths. Vasquez led all eight laps of the Prefinal with Gulick and two-time winner Billy Musgrave right there. Gulick got the holeshot and led the opening lap until Musgrave took over the top position. He led until lap 11 before Gulick reclaimed the point. Gulick led the remaining four laps for the victory. Vasquez was three tenths back in second, with Musgrave on the podium in third. Kyle Drysdale recorded the fast lap of the race in his fourth-place performance while Sergei Karamseili finished fifth.
A total of five drivers were able to sweep the weekend at Spring Mountain Karting Complex. Chase Riddering completed the sweep in Mini Swift presented by Formula Works/GFC for his first victory of the season. Riddering cleared the 12-driver field in qualifying with a lap time of 1:18.577. After leading all seven laps in the Prefinal, Riddering led all 10 laps of the Final to secure the victory by over four seconds. Lachlan Postle recorded his first podium finish of the season with the runner-up result as Maddax Carlucci finished third. Matthew Paciulli and August Stringer completed the top five.
For a third time this season, Carson Bishop recorded the victory in Micro Swift presented by Parazinho Chassis Jig. A lap of 1:18.774 put him at the top of the order in qualifying ahead of the 12-driver field. Bishop led every lap of the Prefinal and showed the way in the Final, stretching out to an 11-second advantage for the victory. Round Three winner Benjamin Monroy and Sebastian Matyjaszczyk joined him on the podium, with Vincent Blauvelt recording the fast lap of the race in fourth while Lucas Freitas Melo placed fifth.
FZ125 Senior division presented by P1 Engines Inc. also welcomed a third-time winner of the season. Mason Mitchell earned his first top qualifier award of the season by edging Xander Malatesta by only 64 thousandths. Third in the session was two-time winner Theo Kekati, who took over the Prefinal on lap two and went on to win. Kekati did not relinquish the top spot throughout the 15-lap Final, securing his third victory of the season. Malatesta was a close second, with Joseph Guthrie up to third for his first podium result of the season. That dropped Mitchell to fourth as Truly Adams placed fifth.
Brandon Ng was another driver to sweep the weekend, taking top spot in the FZ85 Junior category presented by West Coast Motorsports. A time of 1:12.352 led the way in qualifying, clearing the six-driver field by over three tenths. Ng then went on to lead every lap of the Prefinal and Final, securing his first victory of the season by a margin of 10 seconds. Three-time winner Jude Sack was second, with Dante Rodrigues recording his fourth third-place finish of the season.
Only two drivers have been able to win this year in the FZ65 Mini Shifter presented by Empire Karts. Kyle Wade, winless this season, earned a second top qualifier award to edge out three-time winner Asher Biezonsky for fast time. The two were separated by only two thousandths of a second at the line to end the Prefinal with Wade taking the win. Biezonsky was able to lead the first five laps of the Final before Round One winner Tyler Wade took over the top position. From there, Tyler Wade led the rest of the distance for a second victory of the year, with Kyle Wade in second and Biezonsky in third.
In his season debut, Chris Giumarra became the third different winner of the year in KA100 Master presented by Precision Karting. Giumarra was able to sweep the action at Spring Mountain, edging out Jeffery Bays by a mere two thousandths in qualifying. He then went on to lead every lap of the Prefinal and the Final, securing the victory by over two seconds. Bays was second, with Joshua Daley placing third. Two-time winner Ryan Casner was fourth, with Andrei Isac ending up fifth.
Master Shifter presented by Leading Edge Motorsports was swept on the weekend by Kevin Woods. After securing the fast time in qualifying, Woods went on to lead every lap of the Prefinal and all 15 laps of the Final for his third straight victory. David Jones had his best finish of the year in second, with Ezekiel Corson joining them on the podium in third. Marcin Kloda and Walker Lytle completed the top five.
James Skyers saw his win streak in FZ125 Master presented by Precision Works Racing come to an end. After securing the fast time in qualifying and winning the Prefinal, Skyers led the first eight laps before Larry Hernandez Jr. took the lead. The following lap, Skyers retired from the race. This allowed Hernandez to claim his first victory of the season with Jeff Krogstad in second.
The season finale for the 2026 ProKart Challenge makes a return to the K1 Circuit in Winchester, California. Registration is currently open for the October 3-4 weekend, hosting Round Six. For more information on anything related to Superkarts! USA, please visit the website – www.superkartsusa.com and be sure to follow the Superkarts! USA Facebook page, Twitter and Instagram accounts.