Parolin chassis on the podium with Ward Racing

Parolin Motorsport showed strong pace in a challenging third round of the Champions of the Future Euro Series at Mülsen, where the racing was frequently disrupted by incidents. In OK, Dean Hoogendoorn recovered well through the event and finished 13th in the Final after penalties, while William Calleja was 16th and Zarief Rayqal 24th.

Ward Racing delivered the headline Parolin result of the weekend, with Benjamin Manach finishing 2nd in OK after leading much of the Final, while Antonio Pizzonia crossed the line 3rd in OK-Junior before a penalty placed him 12th.

The German round was held in dry conditions, with temperatures between 18 and 20 degrees, but the Mülsen circuit produced a particularly incident-heavy weekend. A total of 83 drivers competed in OK and 93 in OK-Junior, making track position and clean racing especially important across Qualifying, the heats, Super Heats and Finals.

In OK, Hoogendoorn led the Parolin Motorsport challenge. After a difficult Qualifying, he progressed well through the heats with consistent top-four finishes, then started the Final from 13th on the grid. He was running inside the top 10 before penalties dropped him to 13th in the Final classification.

Calleja also showed competitive speed across the weekend, including a heat win and 2nd place in his Super Heat after gaining seven positions. He started 11th for the Final and finished 16th after penalties, while Rayqal reached the Final from 28th on the grid and was classified 24th.

The strongest OK result on the Parolin chassis came from Manach, who was immediately among the leading contenders for Ward Racing. After winning his Super Heat from pole, he started 2nd for the Final, took the lead on lap four and led until the closing stages before finishing 2nd behind Baglin. Gabriel Canal also reached the Final for Ward Racing and finished 15th.

In OK-Junior, the Parolin Motorsport drivers showed promising speed but were caught out in a dramatic Final. Girardello had been competitive throughout the weekend and started 13th after a Super Heat penalty, but his race ended in a first-lap crash. Walle, Giusto and Lazarus also reached the Final after solid progress through the event, but all three were forced to retire from a race heavily affected by incidents and slow procedures.

Pizzonia again demonstrated the pace of the Parolin package in OK-Junior for Ward Racing. After running strongly throughout the weekend, including a heat win, two 2nd places and 2nd in his Super Heat, he started 4th for the Final and crossed the line 3rd before a penalty moved him back to 12th in the official result.

Marco Parolin said:
"It was one of those weekends where the speed was clearly there, but the Final results did not fully reflect our potential. Dean, William, and Zarief all showed good pace in OK, while Gioele, Oskari, Giacomo, and Alexander had the speed to fight higher up in OK-Junior before a very difficult Final. Benjamin’s 2nd place and Antonio’s performance with Ward Racing also confirmed the competitiveness of the Parolin chassis. Unfortunately, I must say that the racing we saw in Mülsen was not a great spectacle. The track layout certainly didn't help, as it made cutting the chicanes far too easy. This not only created chaos on track but also dragged dirt onto the racing line. Given what happened this weekend, I expect there to be close attention and strictness next week in monitoring and penalizing this kind of unfair driving. Nevertheless, we will take the positives and focus on converting our pace into stronger results next weekend."

Parolin Motorsport will remain at Mülsen for Round 3 of the FIA Karting European Championship next weekend, where the team will look to build on its pace from the Champions of the Future event and continue its European Championship challenge. Dean Hoogendoorn and Gioele Girardello both go into the event 3rd in their respective Championships, giving the team a strong platform for the second half of the European season.