Maglie, Italy; Monday August 26, 2024: The long-awaited moment for the over 200 entrants in the final round of the Rotax MAX Challenge Euro Trophy has finally arrived: this week, the event that will crown the champions for the 2024 season will take place at the famous South Garda Karting in Lonato.
Lonato, a special race
The spotlight will truly be on at South Garda Karting. From the free practice sessions onwards, several sessions will be held at night, with the track illuminated by the facility’s artificial lights. This will make the title-deciding races even more magical.
Mini MAX - Friend aims for a hat-trick
Having won in Spain at the Winter Cup, triumphed in Germany at the German Cup, and currently leading the championship, Albert Friend (Strawberry Racing) is undoubtedly the favourite for victory in the Mini MAX category. However, it's not a one-man show, as several rivals are challenging the Brit, starting with Zdenek Babicek (TEPZ Racing), who is the Belgian Cup champion and secured 1st place in the final at Franciacorta. The two are separated by just 7 points. Slightly further behind is Mark Loomets (Energy
Corse), who is among the most experienced on the Lonato track. Very close to the Estonian are Oliver Spencer (Dan Holland Racing), in 4th, and AJ Burggraaff (SP Motorsport).
Junior MAX - Nissen, consistency pays off!
Danish driver Casper Nissen (RS Competition) leads the standings in Junior MAX thanks to a very solid performance so far, which has allowed him to build a decent margin over Dutchman Ties van Wijk (Bouvin Power) and Jacob Ashcroft (Dan Holland Racing). Ashcroft, already a champion in the Winter Cup at Campillos, has undoubtedly been the fastest so far; however, an unfortunate ending at Wackersdorf and a weekend of comebacks at Franciacorta have weighed heavily on his progress. The Briton, currently at 426 points, trails the leader by 28 points and is closely followed by Boaz Maximov (Bouvin Power) with 419 points.
Senior MAX - Butcher leads without winning
Among the "veterans" of Senior MAX, the consistent Sean Butcher (KR Sport) tops the standings thanks to a strategic approach, earning many points and staying out of trouble when necessary. Butcher, however, must contend with Matthew Higgins (Dan Holland Racing), who has secured backto-back wins in the last two events. Macauley Bishop (Dan Holland Racing) and Lewis Gilbert (Kraft Motorsport) complete the British quartet in the overall standings.
DD2/Masters - Bol and Picot firmly in the lead
Enzo Bol (SP Motorsport) and Nicolas Picot remain firmly at the top of the standings in DD2 and DD2 Masters. Bol has a 12-point lead over Paul Forquemin (DAEMS Racing), while Picot has a perfect score in Masters.
E20/Masters An electrifying final!
11 points: that's the margin separating leader Spencer Brougham from his two pursuers, Raul Vargas and Will Elswood. Brougham has won every race so far, but Vargas and Elswood don't seem willing to give an inch. The showdown will happen in Lonato. Chilean Hector Ramirez leads in Masters.
Champions and more...
In addition to the 7 titles (one for each category), there will also be 14 invitation tickets for the prestigious Rotax MAX Challenge Grand Finals, scheduled for late October this year in Italy at the Circuito Internazionale Napoli. This event brings together the best Rotax drivers from around the world to compete.
All tickets for the classes competing on the track are still up for grabs:
- Mini MAX (Franciacorta & Lonato): 1st place
- Junior MAX: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place
- Senior MAX: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place
- MAX DD2: 1st and 2nd place
- MAX DD2 Masters: 1st place
- E20 Senior: 1st place - RMCGF Senior MAX ticket (combustion)
- E20 Senior: 2nd place - RMCGF MAX DD2 ticket (combustion)
- E20 Senior: 3rd Place - RMCGF E20 Senior ticket
- E20 Masters: 1st place - RMCGF E20 Masters ticket
BRP-Rotax will be offering two additional prizes, a Rotax MAX engine and a free entry for the RMC Euro Trophy 2025 which will be raffled at the podium at the final round in Lonato, Italy
Rotax MAX Challenge Euro Trophy Live Stream
On Saturday, August 31, the Pre-finals and Finals will be broadcasted live on TV through Live Streaming on Rotax MAX Challenge Euro Trophy's Facebook page, RMCET website, Motorsport.com, and YouTube platforms:
ROTAX MAX Euro Trophy Facebook (click here), RMCET Website (click here),
Motorsport.com (click here), RMCET Youtube channel (click here and subscribe it), WSK Promotion Youtube channel (click here and subscribe it).
The Event Schedule
- Tuesday, August 27: Free practices starting at 12.45 AM
- Wednesday, August 28: Free practices starting at 12:30 AM.
- Thursday, August 29: from 12:30 AM Free Practices; from 3:30 PM
Qualifying Practices; from 6:00 PM Heats.
- Friday, August 30: from 12:00 AM Warm-up; from 2:20 PM Heats.
- Saturday, August 31: from 2:00 PM Warm-up; from 4:00 PM Prefinals, from
7:20 PM Finals.
Rotax MAX Challenge Euro Trophy, round 4, 31/8/2024
LONATO/ Mini MAX – Junior MAX – Senior MAX – DD2 – DD2 Masters - E20
Senior - E20 Masters.
Information, Standings, Results at: www.rotaxmaxchallenge-eurotrophy.com
About WSK Karting
WSK Promotion established the international karting series back in 2006. Since then, the WSK karting championships have achieved ever-increasing participation levels, becoming the most prestigious showcase of international karting, which in recent years has exceeded 30,000 overall driver participants.
A goal achieved through the intense work of the whole WSK team, carried out with commitment, dedication and passion over these past 16 years.
And above all through the trust placed in them by the staff, federations, manufacturers, teams and the many drivers who choose the WSK races and championships to begin their career in karting and international motorsport.
Today the karting carried out in the WSK series proudly represents the starting point of current motorsport champions; in recent years almost the entire Formula 1 starting grid has been made up of drivers that grew up in WSK events.
Karting promoted by WSK goes beyond the track and behind the scenes. Through its videos, WSK Promotion takes fans backstage at each race and lets them in on the activity in the paddock, to fully relive all the excitement of every racing weekend.
Since its inception WSK Promotion has been committed to giving maximum visibility to its series for the fans and enthusiasts who, especially in this period, follow the races from home. Precisely for this reason it has all the technical infrastructure needed to be able to autonomously and remotely manage every live event.
