The 2026 Mondokart.com FIA Karting European Championship officially hit the halfway point today as Noah Baglin displayed racing brilliance at the Kartodromo Internacional Lucas Guerrero, bouncing back from his setback yesterday to secure back-to-back victories in the European Championship.
In Junior, Daniel Miron Lorente expertly navigated his way through the pack during a thrilling final to win his home race after starting in fifth position. The close race saw multiple changes of race leaders and entertaining track battles from the young racers.
The first round of the 2026 FIA Karting Academy Trophy (Senior) belonged to Swiss driver Alexis Genolet. The young driver went from pole position on Friday to win two of his three heats and converted his healthy lead to a storming race win today. Genolet has surely confirmed his position as an emerging driver to watch, having looked so at ease around the Valencian circuit.
OK
A charge from Noah Baglin during the super heats to seize a prime spot on the final grid resulted in a last-lap lurch on Niklas Schaufler, who skilfully protected his position and confirmed his place leading the grid. British drivers Drummond, Domain and Minns all gained positions in their super heats, with four Brits in the top ten for the start of the final.
The second super heat saw Dan Allemann make up 2 spots to claim the heat victory, with Joe Turney and Davide Bottaro losing out. Hoogendoorn continued to make up positions, but only enough to place him in 20th position for the final.
Schaufler opted to switch sides on the grid with Joe Turney alongside him with the inside line into turn one. Behind them, Dan Allemann and Noah Baglin started on the second row, looking to make an early pounce as the race got underway.
Baglin was quick out of the blocks to move into second position by the second corner, his flying start continued, and by halfway around the opening lap, the reigning World Champion overtook Schaufler for the race lead. Baglin pulled away to build a comfortable gap of around a second, never looking in any great danger over the race.
Behind him, wildcard entry Aaron Garcia Lopez quickly made it into the podium positions and led a pack of 5 hunting down Baglin and Schaufler, who had both pulled away. Turney and Allemann found themselves in the chasing group, with Drummond later entering the mix.
It wasn’t until lap 13 that Drummond and Turney made their eventual move on Garcia Lopez, overtaking him to claim third and fourth position and challenge the leading duo. Garcia Lopez’s performance seemed to drop in the closing stages of the race after an initial burst of speed.
As the race neared its final laps, Turney was hot on the tail of Schaufler and used his experience to outmanoeuvre the Austrian driver in a tense and close but fair on-track battle. Turney’s late move left little time to hunt down his teammate, Noah Baglin, who crossed the line to extend his healthy championship lead.
Further back, Tomasz Cichoracki put in a blinding performance to gain ten places in the final, Hoogendoorn made up some ground to cross the line ninth, as did Bosco Arias, who recovered from his poor run of heats to make up 11 positions and finish in 12th.
Noah Baglin, KR Motorsport, said: “It was a good job. All-round it was basically a perfect week… I’m really happy, I’m happy with the team who helped so much this week. I want to carry on the momentum, but we’ll see”
Baglin heads to round three in Mülsen with a healthy championship lead and the clear favourite as the Mondokart.com FIA Karting European Championship hits the halfway point.
Result of the OK final
1. Noah Baglin (GBR, KR)
2. Joe Turney (GBR, KR)
3. Niklas Schaufler (AUT, DPK)
Provisional driver standings of the 2026 Mondokart.com FIA Karting European Championship (OK) after Round 2
1. Noah Baglin (GBR, KR) - 190 points
2. Zac Drummond (GBR, Fusion) - 111 points
3. Dean Hoogendroorn (NED, Parolin) – 95 points
Provisional team standings of the 2026 Mondokart.com FIA Karting European Championship (OK) after Round 2
1. KR Motorsport - 330 points
2. Parolin Motorsport - 160 points
3. Ricky Flynn Motorsport - 144 points
OK Junior
This morning’s super heats handed out the final points haul of the weekend, with Will Green building a healthy lead to protect his front row advantage and start in position 1. Behind him, Miron Lorente and Pizzonia were the other gainers, with polesitter Venant continuing to lose positions.
Nuvolini’s overtake over Walle in the super heat wasn’t enough for the French driver to start alongside Green this afternoon, with Walle lining up in second position. Frasnelli’s drop of five positions left him starting the final in sixth with Girardello and Miron Lorente completing the front of the grid.
As the final got underway, a close field of drivers set the scene for a thrilling race that didn’t disappoint. Green initially got away well, as did Daniel Miron Lorente, who went from fifth to third in the opening lap. Giradello made a turn one move that didn’t pay off for the Italian, who dropped three positions, leaving Green, Nuvolini and Miron Lorente to form a front three grouping.
On the second lap, Nuvolini made an opportunistic move on Green, which ultimately cost the Brit both first and second position as Miron Lorente seized the opportunity and swept past with the top three shifting positions.
With all podium positions up for grabs, Miron Lorente went on to successfully challenge Nuvolini for the race lead, leaving Green with significant work to keep in contention. Green’s lunge on Nuvolini succeeded but set Miron Lorente free to start building a gap at the front.
As the race entered its mid-point, Gioele Giradello and Lorenzo Di Pietrantonio joined the leading group of drivers with a tussle for third position, creating an excellent racing spectacle for the assembled crowd. Giradello and Green continued to joust over the final podium position with the karts of Di Pietrantonio, Sayer, and Palacio close behind to increase the pressure.
Green wisely held position during the closing stages, waiting to make his move, which he ultimately did on the inside of turn nine, but with over two seconds to the leading duo, Green had little time left to chase them down.
In the closing stages, Nuvolini had brought the gap to Miron Lorente down to less than three-tenths of a second to bring some added drama to the final, which displayed great racing potential from the juniors. Miron Lorente defended well against the late challenge to take victory on home soil as Nuvolini crossed the line second, and Green had to settle for third.
Behind them, Giradello held onto fourth with Polesitter Venant only able to clinch eight with a best lap time as the only consolation. Pizzonia had a healthier race to make up ground, whilst Oskari Walle, who started in second, tumbled down the order during a first lap incident and recovered to tenth, which he’ll surely be disappointed about.
Daniel Miron Lorente, Fusion Motorsport, said: “I was trying to keep calm because it’s important to do tyre management and build a gap. This is a very good result for the team, and I’d like to say thank you to Fusion. We’ll keep working for the championship”
Heading into round 3, the field remains open in the Junior category. Will Green’s first-round win keeps him in a prime position but with a surging Miron Lorente and a solid performance by Nuvolni, every heat and race will likely prove pivotal in deciding the 2026 championship.
Result of the Junior final
1. Daniel Miron Lorente (ESP, Fusion)
2. Many Nuvolini (FRA, KR)
3. Will Green (GBR, KR)
Provisional driver standings of the 2026 Mondokart.com FIA Karting European Championship (Junior) after Round 2
1. Will Green (GBR, KR) 182 points
2. Daniel Miron Lorente (ESP, Fusion) 167 points
3. Gioele Girardello (ITA, Parolin) 149 points
Provisional team standings of the 2026 Mondokart.com FIA Karting European Championship (OK) after Round 2
1. KR Motorsport (314 points)
2. Parolin Motorsport (245 points)
3. Fusion Motorsport (167 points)
Academy Senior
The final heats of the weekend secured position 1 for polesitter Genolet, who took the chequered flag to start at the front of the final grid this afternoon. Alex Desario from Italy went on to win the second heat, climbing the standings to start in fifth this afternoon, with Albie Lapper crossing the line in second position to join Genolet on the front row of the grid.
Motoda steadily gained a few positions in his final heat to start the race this afternoon in 3rd position, a mighty effort from the Japanese driver who qualified in 15th position on Friday.
As the final race got underway, Genolet got a clean start and began to build an early lead out front. Kurg overtook Lapper during the first lap and looked to mount a charge on Genolet, but the Swiss driver’s speed and talent was clear from the start, quickly building a two-second gap.
In the opening stages, Konopka gained quickly, lurching 10 spots by lap five, whilst Simba Motoda, who had made up so much ground during the heats, didn’t get the start he wanted and lost six places by the halfway mark.
As Genolet built his lead to over 2.5 seconds, Konopka had caught up with Motoda and joined a mid-field battle with Jercan and Silkunaite to the enjoyment of the crowd. Silkunaite had already gained 11 places in an excellent final for the Lithuanian, who eventually crossed the line in eighth.
As the race neared its conclusion, Genolet looked unstoppable, finishing over 6.6 seconds clear of his nearest rival, Oliver Kurg.
A last lap showdown saw Albie Lapper, Alex Desario and Liam Carr all cross the line together for a thrilling finish with the Brit only ahead and into the podium spots by two hundredths of a second.
Genolet took the first win of the 2026 Academy Senior season, a proud moment not only for Alexis but also for his father, who is his mechanic for the competition.
In a reflection of the reliability and consistency of the equipment used in the FIA Karting Academy Trophy, Genolet’s engine was swapped four times over the weekend with those of other competitors without impacting his remarkable pace and performance.
As the chequered flag fell, 34 out of 36 Academy senior drivers crossed the finish line in the final, an extraordinarily positive and promising sign for the remainder of the season.
Driver standings after Round 1 of the 2026 FIA Karting Academy Trophy Senior:
1. Alexis Genolet (SUI) – 76 points
2. Oliver Kurg (EST) – 63 points
3. Albert Lapper (GBR) 60 points
The Mondokart.com FIA Karting European Championship (OK, Junior) continues next month in Mülsen, Germany, at the Motorsportarena Mülsen GmbH from 11-14 June 2026.
The Mondokart.com FIA Karting European Championship (KZ, KZ2, Academy Junior) season kicks off later this month in Belgium as we travel to Karting Genk over 21-24 May 2026.