The 2026 Rotax MAX Challenge Euro Trophy got underway today at the Cremona Circuit, with the opening qualifying sessions and the first heats delivering closely contested action across all categories.

In Mini MAX, Joshua Cooke (KR Sport) secured the overall pole position. In the second qualifying group, the fastest lap was set by Robin Raikkonen (Kartshop.CH), whose group proved to be less than a tenth slower than Cooke’s, underlining the extremely tight pace throughout the field. The first two heats confirmed the competitiveness of the category, with Cooke taking one victory and Mik Klinkers (Bouvin Power) claiming the other.

In Junior MAX, Majus Mazinas (KR Sport) emerged as the overall pole sitter. The Lithuanian led the way in Group 2, where rookie Emerson Macandrew-Uren (Dan Holland Racing) secured second place. In Group 1, the fastest lap was recorded by Leo Gonzalez (MKC Motorsport). The opening heats saw wins shared between Kai Clarke (Strawberry Racing) and Emerson Macandrew-Uren, both showing strong early form.

The highly competitive Senior MAX category was split into four qualifying groups, reflecting the size of the grid. Macauley Bishop (Dan Holland Racing) secured the overall pole position, while the other groups saw fastest laps from Dragos Avasilcutei (MKC Motorsport), Harry Freeman (KR Sport) and Luca Schlegl (Kraft Motorsport). The first heats produced a variety of winners: Avasilcutei, Jeremy Reuvers (KC Campillos) and Nik Trobec (KSB Racing) got 2 wins, as Tino Sidler (KR Sport) and Scott Marsh (Strawberry Racing) won one heat each.

In DD2 and DD2 Masters Hugo Dupont (Gkart53) claimed pole position in DD2, while Nicolas Picot (Privateer) once again set the benchmark in DD2 Masters. The opening DD2 heat was won by Jakub Bezel (Kraft Motorsport), while Picot secured victory in the DD2 Masters race.

With qualifying completed and the first heats already shaping the standings, the battle for the top positions is now fully underway as the weekend continues at Cremona.