Giving all drivers the chance to aim for the podium thanks to the sporting equality offered by this new series, and giving them the same chances of being spotted with identical equipment, are clearly the strong points of the Champions of the Future Academy Program. The first 2024 event at Cremona in Italy confirmed the legitimacy of this new concept by offering races of great intensity. Many of the drivers, both male and female, showed their mettle, promising a thrilling season ahead.

Of the 32 nationalities represented in Italy, 10 were entitled to podium honours and five different national anthems were played on the Cremona circuit. The 'arrive and drive' concept of the Champions of the Future Academy Program played its part perfectly, aided by the professionalism of the partners: Parolin and Kart Republic for the chassis, TM Kart and IAME for the engines, and Vega for the tyres. The gaps between the drivers were very narrow, keeping the competition wide open. The quality of the live streaming, with its interviews and clips, ensured a large audience, putting the spotlight on the competitors involved.

Although rain tyres were fitted to the karts during Qualifying on Sunday morning, the conditions were mild on Saturday and in the Finals on Sunday afternoon. The format of the event was much appreciated. Drivers were able to compete in a full race with Finals and podiums on the Saturday, repeating the experience the following day. The presence of so many female drivers was also a highlight, setting a record for an international karting event. They weren't there just to make up the numbers, and Ella Hakkinen in OK-N Junior and Luna Fluxa Cross in OK-N Senior took the top step of the podium! The F1 Academy's support for the new series launched by RGMMC played an important role in boosting female participation.

Mini: Tamm and Truchot for a photo finish
For two days, the Minis put on an absolutely incredible show. It's impossible to count the number of passes, because there were so many. The gaps between the top two finishers were significant. On Saturday, Albert Tamm (CHE) beat Alessandro Truchot (ITA) by just 58 thousandths. The following day, Truchot got his revenge by beating Priam Bruno (BEL) by 17 thousandths! The rest of the Championship promises to be extremely exciting, with several other drivers coming into their own.

Maxim Bobreshov (ARE) shone in the Qualifying Heats and made it into the top five in Final 2. Two young Minis registered in the U10 category took part in the duels at the front. Lucas Palacio (ITA) rounded off the podium in Final 1 with the fastest lap, ahead of Niccolò Perico. Final 2 proved more difficult for Palacio and it was Perico who came out on top in the U10 category.

In the overall standings, Tamm and Truchot are neck and neck, but Bruno and Perico also scored a lot of points in Italy.

OK-N Junior: Rajpold and Anagnostiadis share the wins
Kacper Rajpold (POL) took the series lead after his excellent weekend. He dominated the Qualifying, heats and Final on Saturday and scored further important points by finishing P4 in Final 2. William Marshall (ZAF) and Tony Gale (THA) completed the first podium. On Sunday, the rankings changed, as James Anagnostiadis (AUS) moved up brilliantly from 6th to 1st place. An incorrect position of his front fairing was noted at the finish and he dropped to 3rd after a five-second penalty.

After setting the fastest lap in Final 2 and winning a number of duels in the field, Ella Hakkinen (MCO) held off Gale right to the end to take a narrow victory in Final 2. Quite a performance for the daughter of two-time F1 World Champion Mika Hakkinen. As for Gale, he has come a long way as he had to start from the back row after experiencing a problem during the qualifying session. Conor Clancy (ARE), Vanesa Sikunaite (LTU), Leonidas Peruzzi (ARE) and Sara Matsui (JPN) also put in fine performances.

OK-N Senior: A double success for Luna Fluxa Cross
There was a lot going on in this category, with the order often changing: two different polesitters, Pip Casabene (AUS) and Hugo Herrouin (FRA), but also three winners in the heats, Luna Fluxa Cross (ESP), Ghazi Motlekar (MOZ) and Philippe Karras (FRA). In the end, Luna Fluxa Cross made the difference in both Finals. On Saturday, the Spaniard completed the first lap in the lead, before extending her lead over the rest of the field. The duel for 2nd place narrowly went in Casabene's favour at the expense of Herrouin. Karras and Motlekar came within a few lengths of each other. Markas Silkunas (LTU), who started 2nd, was the main loser in this first final.

The following day, Luna Fluxa Cross only started 9th, but she managed to overtake all her rivals to cross the finish line first, still with a large lead. Behind her, there was much more action between Karras, Silkunas (who started 28th!), Herrouin and Charles Lambert (FRA). As the Final 2 wore on, Casabene made a magnificent comeback from 15th place and pipped all rivals. Karras snuck up in his wake. A collision led to the retirement of Lambert and Romeo Nasr (AUS), who had gained seven places since the start. Silkunas lost a few places in the incident, leaving Motlekar in 5th place ahead of Franciszek Cegielski (POL) and Jean Karras (FRA).

If you want to join, wild card entries will open next week.

 Press Release © RGMMC