The results of Thursday's qualifying and the qualifying heats concluded on Friday promised even more excitement in Sarno for the final phase of the fourth and last round of the WSK Super Master Series on Saturday, March 2nd. Among the drivers participating in this event, hailing from 40 nations, there is also uncertainty about the possibility that the championship standings could be overturned by the conclusive results of the Prefinals and Finals in Sarno.
On the eve of Saturday's Finals, with still 140 points at stake in the final phase, no one can feel secure among all the leaders who have taken to the track in the MINI Gr.3, MINI U10, OKJ, OK, OKNJ and KZ2 categories. The event is broadcast live on TV and streaming, with the Prefinals starting at 9:50 and the Finals at 12:15.
The winners of the heats.
In the meantime, a preliminary score has also been assigned in the heats to the top drivers in each category. The ones who earned the most points available were: Schaufler in OK-Junior; Molota in OK-N Junior; Palacio in MINI Gr.3 Under 10; Calleja in MINI Gr.3; Orlov in KZ2 and Bondarev in OK.
OKJ - Schaufler confirms to be the leader
After the pole position by the Turkish driver Iskender Zulfikari (#307 KR Motorsport/KR-Iame-Vega), the victory in the first heat on Thursday went to the Spanish driver Christian Costoya (#337 Parolin Motorsport/Parolin-TM Kart), while in the two heats on Friday, the leader of the standings, the Austrian Niklas Schaufler (#301 DPK Racing/KR-Iame), emerged victorious in the first, and then the Turkish driver Zulfikari won after a good duel with Schaufler. Schaufler secured the highest score of 13 points available in the heats though, extending his lead in the standings to 50 points.
OKNJ - Cosma Cristofor is the first in the heat and in the championship.
In the first two heats, the victories went to the Slovakian driver Alex Molota (#717 Firefly/Gillard-TM Kart-Vega) and Italian Giacomo Giusto (#729 Modena Kart/Parolin-TM Kart), both completing remarkable comebacks. In the third heat, the championship leader, the Romanian Bogdan Cosma Cristofor (#711 Forza Racing/Exprit-TM Kart), managed to secure the win, earning 13 points for the top position in the heats, extending his lead to 100 points. Molota received a penalty in the third heat, and the pole position holder, the Italian Gioele Carrer (#723 Scarpi Racing/Parolin-Iame), finished behind.
MINI Gr.3 Under 10 – Full haul for Palacio but Perico keeps the lead.
The situation is very uncertain in the MINI Gr.3 Under 10, where the American driver Lucas Palacio (#575 KR Motorsport/KR-Iame-Vega) attempted a significant comeback in the championship with a clean sweep of three victories after securing pole position in Session-1. The championship leader from Italy Niccolò Perico (#526 Energy Corse/Energy-TM Kart), fell behind due to a retirement in one heat but remains one of the main contenders in Sarno. Among the top performers are the Italian Achille Rea (#515 Tony Kart Racing Team/Tony Kart-Vortex) and the Swedish driver Carl Nellegard (#553 Ward Racing/Tony Kart-TM Kart), who is now very close to Perico's lead.
MINI GR.3 – A great duel between Calleja and Miron.
After winning the first heat, the championship leader from Australia William Calleja (#516 BabyRace/Parolin-Iame-Vega), lost positions in the second heat but redeemed himself in the third heat with a second victory that keeps him at the top of the championship standings. The Australian driver still holds only an 11-point lead over his main rival, the Spanish driver Daniel Miron Lorente (#501 Team Driver/KR-Iame), who finished second in the heats. Among the title contenders is the Italian driver Cristian Blandino (#550 Kalì-Kart Racing/TGroup-TM Kart), ranking fourth after the heats and trailing the leader by 32 points. The Italian Julian Frasnelli (#591 BabyRace/Parolin-Iame) finished third in the heats instead.
KZ2 - Orlov prevailed in the heats, but the lead is still in Bertuca’s hands.
Even in KZ2, the situation in Sarno has proven to be quite uncertain, with many contenders alternating victories in the heats. The favorite, however, remains the Italian driver Cristian Bertuca (#1 BirelART Racing/BirelART-TM Kart-Vega), who holds a significant advantage in the championship thanks to his victory in Lonato and podium finishes in Cremona and Franciacorta. In the Sarno heats, Bertuca has collected several placements and currently holds the seventh position after the heats. The Poleman Maksim Orlov (#44 Modena Kart/Parolin-TM Kart) has secured two victories and is leading the heats standings. Another victory was achieved by the French driver Tom Leuillet (#33 Tony Kart Racing Team/OTK-Vortex), the Estonian Markus Kajak (#14 Maranello SRP/Maranello-TM Kart) secured one victory, Artem Severiukhin (#5 BirelART Racing/BirelART-TM Kart) secured another, and a closely contested victory was also claimed by Francesco Celenta (#34 Tony Kart Racing Team/OTK-Vortex) by 0.011s over Severiukhin.
OK – Bondarev bounces back, but Eyckmans has a good lead.
The Ukrainian Oleksandr Bondarev (#201 Prema Racing/KR-Iame-LeCont), after securing the pole position in qualifying, also prevailed in the heats with two victories and a second-place finish behind the Danish driver David Walther (#257 Tony Kart Racing Team/OTK-Vortex). The Ukrainian driver, who previously won in Lonato, redeemed himself after the races in Cremona and Franciacorta. However, the championship leader from Belgium Ean Eyckmans (#209 BirelART Racing/TM Kart), finishing fourth after the heats, remains in contention for the title with an advantage of approximately 80 points following the victory in Cremona and podium finishes in Lonato and Franciacorta. The third position after the heats went to another major contender for the title, the Italian Sebastiano Pavan (#218 Tony Kart Racing Team/OTK-Vortex). The Danish driver David Walther (#257 Tony Kart Racing Team/OTK-Vortex) secured the second position in the heats standings.
The program of the WSK Super Master Series, Rd4 Sarno:
Saturday, March 2nd: warm-up from 8:30; Live TV and Live Streaming from 9:50 for Prefinals and from 12:15 for the Finals (12:15 OKJ; 12:45 OK; 13:15 OKNJ, 13:45 MINI U10, 14:15 MINI Gr.3, 14:45 KZ2).