The WSK Open Cup in Adria successfully ended season 2020 despite all the difficulties connected with the Covid-19 emergency. The double round of this closing event highlighted once again the quality and competitiveness of a lot of young champions.
The final titles of WSK season 2020 have been awarded at the Open Cup in Adria and have been decided by the points earned in the closing double round (heats, Prefinal and Final) with increased points given in Round 2. Eventually, the titles went to the Dutch Stan Pex (KR Motorsport/KR-TM Racing-Vega) in KZ2 thanks to the victory of the Final of Round 2 and to the Brit Taylor Barnard (Rosberg Racing Academy/KR-Iame-Bridgestone) in OK. The latter claimed the win in the Final of Round 1 and Round 2. The Brit Freddie Slater (Ricky Flynn/Kosmic-Vortex-Vega) earned the OKJ title thanks to the win of the Final of Round-1 and the fourth place in that of Round 2, while the Pole Maciej Gladysz (Parolin Racing/Parolin-TM Racing-Vega) secured the MINI title thanks to the win in the Final of Round 1 and the fifth place in the that of Round 2.
The Finals
The victories of the KZ2 finals go to Albanese and Pex, the title to Pex.
The Italian Danilo Albanese (KR Motorsport/KR-Iame-Vega) won the first of the two finals after a good duel with the teammate from Holland Stan Pex (KR Motorsport/KR-TM Racing), who led his fellow country-man Senna Van Walstijn (CPB/Sodikart/TM Racing), as the latter crossed the finish line in third place after leading the first part of the race. The Swede Viktor Gustafsson (Leclerc by Lennox/BirelART-TM Racing) has been slowed down by an early contact and eventually finished the race only in eighth place. Stan Pex took the lead of the second Final early on and kept it all the way to the flag. He led Senna Van Walstijn and the Finn Juho Valtanen (KR Motorsport/KR-TM Racing) who took P3 from Danilo Albanese. The fifth-place went to the Italian Leonardo Marseglia (BirelART-TM Racing).
KZ2 standings: 1. Pex points 210; 2. Albanese 180; 3. Van Walstijn 160; 4. Leuillet e Gustafsson 111; 6. Valtanen 98; 7. Marseglia 93; 8. Vyacheslav 57; 10. Artamonov 47.
Barnard dominates OK.
Category OK was dominated by the Brit Taylor Barnard (Rosberg Racing Academy/KR-Iame-Bridgestone), who claimed the full haul in the Prefinals and in the Finals of Round 1 and Round 2. Taylor Barnard proceeded the Brit Marcus Amand (VDK/KR-Iame) in the first final, as the latter gained three positions, while the third place went to the Swede Norton Andreasson (Ward Racing/Tony Kart-Vortex), who was followed by the Finn Niklas Pirttilahti (Forza Racing/Exprit-TM Racing). Barnard ran a solitary second final leading it from lights to flag. The second place went to Norton Andreasson, who won the battle with the Finn Tuukka Taponen (Tony Kart Racing Team/Tony Kart-Vortex). The Bulgarian Nikola Tsolov (DPK/KR-Iame) ended within the top positions in P4 and led the Austrian Charlie Wurtz (Exprit Racing Team/Exprit-Vortex) and Cristian Bertuca (BirelART Racing/BirelART-TM Racing). Marcus Amand was seventh due to a 5s time penalty.
OK standings: 1. Barnard points 263; 2. Andreasson 132; 3. Amand 130; 4. Taponen 116; 5. Tsolov e Pirttilahhti 84; 7. Travisanutto 62; 8. Zhivnov 59; 9. Wurz 57; 10. Revesz 54.
Slater wins the final Round 1 and the title, Stenshorne the second final.
The Brit Freddie Slater (Ricky Flynn/Kosmic-Vortex-Vega) had the upper hand in OKJ in the closing meters when, together with the two Poles Tymoteus Kucharczyk (BirelART Racing/RK-TM Racing) and Karol Pasiewicz (BirelART Racing/BirelART-TM Racing), he managed to find his way past the British driver Arvid Lindblad (KR Motorsport/KR-Iame), who took the lead in the initial laps. The fight for the victory of the second final was won by the Norwegian Martinius Stenshorne (Leclerc by Lennox/BirelART-TM Racing-Vega). He proceeded the Brit Maxwell Oliver Doddos (Energy Corse/Energy-TM Racing), who led the race early on. The third step of the podium went to Arvid Lindblad, while the Pole Karol Pasiewicz (BirelART Racing-BirelART-TM Racing) was fourth and Freddie Slater fifth but with the Open Cup title already in his bag.
OKJ standings: 1. Slater points 195; 2. Lindblad 164; 3. Pasiewicz 150; 4. Stenshorne 149; 5. Kucharczyk 144; 6. Dodds 129; 7. Weywadt 88; 8. Powell 83; 9. Scognamiglio 51; 10. Matveev 47.
Gladysz and Monza get one victory each in MINI, as the title goes to Gladysz.
Incredible fights have taken place in MINI and the title fight was only decided in at the end of the second final. The victory of the first final was claimed by the Pole Maciej Gladysz (Parolin Racing/Parolin-TM Racing-Vega) a result that offered him a good option to the title, thanks also to a penalty handed to the Russian Gerasim Skulanov (Formula K Serafini/IPK-TM Racing), who had crossed the finish line on top. The Dutch René Lammers (Baby Race/Parolin-Iame) inherited the second position in Round 1 after leading the second part of the race. The third place went to the Asian Tiziano Monza (Sauber Karting/KR-Iame), while Emanuele Olivieri (Formula K Serafini/IPK-TM Racing) was fourth and Davide Bottaro (AV Racing/Parolin-TM Racing) fifth. In the second final Lammers initially got the lead, but then he had to concede it to the Pole Jan Przyrowsky (AV Racing/Parolin-TM Racing) and then to Tiziano Monza, who eventually claimed the win ahead of Przyrowsky and the Slovenian Aleksandar Bogunovin (Gamoto/Tony Kart-TM Racing), while Lammers was fourth and Gladysz fifth but he took the title nevertheless.
MINI standings: 1. Gladysz points 202; 2. Monza 183; 3. Lammers 173; 4. Skulanov e Przrowsky 120; 6. Bogunovic 106; 7. Olivieri 101; 8. Hanna 66; 9. Kastelic 65; 10. Cardenas 61.
Complete results are available at www.wskarting.it.