By successfully navigating his way through the many pitfalls of the second round of the FIA Karting European Junior Championship without crashing, Christian Costoya demonstrated Parolin Motorsport’s current level of performance right up to the foot of the podium. The solidity of his performance despite the unpredictable weather conditions of the first two days of competition kept the team’s confidence high, and we can celebrate with him as he leaves Val d’Argenton in 2nd place in the provisional standings. 

However, it was a weekend full of confusion in France. Extremely changeable track conditions on Friday and Saturday meant that Parolin Motorsport’s objectives at Val d’Argenton were thwarted by circumstance. The potential of the official Parolin / TM Karts had improved further since the previous race, the Champions of the Future Euro Series. Qualifying Practice set the trend with the arrival of rain during the session. This repeated itself several times during the Qualifying Heats, complicating the progress of the competition. 

In OK, Vivek Kanthan was the fastest at 13th in Qualifying Practice. The young American confirmed his position in the heats, finishing in the top 10 each time and taking two 3rd places. 16th at the start of the Final, he lost places towards the end of the race and finished 21st. Zac Drummond also completed several heats in the top five and confirmed his 5th place in Super Heat B with the fastest lap of the race. Unfortunately, he was forced to retire at the start of the Final. Miguel Costa, Jenson Graham and Alp Aksoy also posted encouraging results, although they failed to qualify for the Final. 

Christian Costoya put in the team’s best performance in OK-Junior thanks to his superb consistency. 3rd in Qualifying, he took two wins in the heats and secured 2nd place with the fastest race lap in the Super Heat. He put up a strong fight for the Final podium before finishing 4th. As a result, he moved up to 2nd in the Championship. William Calleja was undeniably gaining in competitiveness. After some solid heats, he just missed out on the top 10 in his Super Heat, but had to retire after a few laps in the Final. Efim Derunov made up 13 places in the heats before retiring, but was still too far away from a possible Final. 

“We’ve come back from Val d’Argenton with a bitter taste in our mouths,” said Marco Parolin. “The European Championship weekend was one of the most difficult of the season because of the difficult weather conditions. The team worked very hard to be competitive in all circumstances and we deserved much better results. Unfortunately, the Final results weren’t quite up to scratch, although in the OK-Junior class Costoya was rewarded for its consistency and finished 2nd in the Championship standings. It’s a pity that Calleja was hit at the start of the race; it would have been interesting to see his performance through to the end. In OK, Drummond was involved in contact at the first corner, after a fine Prefinal. The fastest lap was set by Marti, a privateer on a Parolin chassis, demonstrating the competitiveness of the equipment.”

Zac Drummond was very strong throughout the weekend at Val d’Argenton, taking top spot in the OK standings after Round 2 of the Champions of the Future Euro Series. Among other interesting performances, Parolin Motorsport can also be proud of Miguel Costa’s 12-place improvement in the Final, and Christian Costoya’s 22-place climb in the Junior Final. 

Adapting to the Val d’Argenton circuit was not easy for anyone. The beautiful French track offered relatively limited grip on its smooth, new surface, while deviations from the racing line were not without consequences, particularly when overtaking. As usual, Parolin Motorsport delivered an excellent level of performance, but the constraints of the event did not suit every driver. 

“We faced new challenges at Val d’Argenton and we can be delighted with Zac Drummond’s flattering results in OK,” said Marco Parolin. “We have an excellent base from which to prepare for the rest of the FIA European Karting Championship in less than two weeks’ time. With this in mind, the data from the Champions of the Future Euro Series will help us to work with the technical team and the drivers to take better account of all the unique features of the French circuit.” 

OK

Zac Drummond: 
3rd in Qualifying, three times winner in the heats, 2nd in the intermediate standings, 1st in the Super Heat, 4th in the Final and leader of the standings.

Miguel Costa: 
49th in Qualifying, four recoveries and one retirement in the heats, seven places gained in the intermediate ranking, 9th in the Super Heat (up 12 places) and 20th in the Final (up 12 places). 

Alp Aksoy: 
30th in Qualifying, a 3rd place, a fastest lap in the race and two retirements in the heats, 6th in the intermediate ranking, 15th in the Super Heat (up five places) and 31st in the Final (up five places). 

OK-Junior

Christian Costoya: 
21st in Qualifying, 2nd position, a retirement and a crash in the heats, 13th in the Final (+22 places). 

Qarrar Firhand: 
12th in Qualifying, 3rd place in a heat, 15th in the intermediate ranking, 24th in the Final with a 5″ penalty.

The European OK and OK-Junior Championships have just got underway in Valencia, Spain, and Parolin Motorsport has already achieved convincing results in both categories. Costoya is still at the front of the field in OK-Junior, taking 3rd place in the Championship. In OK, Kanthan and Costa were excellent in the heats, but it was Khavalkin who achieved the best Final result, with an interesting 6th place ahead of Drummond. The European campaign got off to a very good start for the Italian team, following on from a very promising start to the season.

“The Valencia race certainly wasn’t one of the easiest, so we’re pleased with the points we’re taking home in the championship,” said Marco Parolin. “In OKJ, it was Costoya in particular who stood out, who came close to the podium in the Final, but who remains 3rd in the Championship thanks to some excellent performances in the heats. In OK, it was the team’s performance that made the difference. Many of our senior drivers were competitive right from the Qualifying Practice, with Drummond taking pole position in the first session, followed by Khavalkin. Costa and Kanthan also stood out, the latter winning a heat. We’re currently 2nd in the OK team rankings and we’re aiming to stay up there. We’re now concentrating on the French stage at Val d’Argenton, where we’ll start testing next week.”

OK

Anatoly Khavalkin:
5th in Qualifying, one win and two 2nd places in the heats, 4th (+3 places) in the Super Heat, 6th in the Final (+3 places) and 6th in the Championship standings.

Zac Drummond:
2nd in Qualifying, two top three finishes in the heats, 8th in the Super Heat, 7th (+4 places) in the Final and 8th in the Championship standings.

Vivek Kanthan:
6th in Qualifying, one win, one 3rd place and two 4th places in the heats, 6th in the intermediate classification, DNF in the Super Heat, 29th in the Final with a 5″ penalty.

Miguel Costa:
15th in Qualifying, four top four finishes in the heats, 7th in the intermediate ranking (+8 places), double DNF in the Super Heat and Final.

OK-Junior

Christian Costoya:
2nd in Qualifying, three heat wins and two 2nd places, 3rd in the heats, fastest race lap in the Super Heat, 4th in the final and 3rd in the Championship standings.

Efim Derunov:
56th in Qualifying, 40th after the heats (up 16 places), 20th in the Final (up 15 places).

The European OK and OK-Junior Championships are drawing nearer and the first round of the Champions of the Future – Euro Series which has just taken place in Spain at Valencia was a good preparation, with the discovery of the new Maxxis tyres selected by FIA Karting. Parolin Motorsport continued to perform well in OK and OK-Junior. Anatoly Khavalkin and Zac Drummond led the way before finishing 4th and 6th. Christian Costoya was at the top of his game in OK-Junior until he re-tired in the Final.

“We’re very satisfied with the work done in the first round of the Champions of the Future – Euro Se-ries at València,” said Marco Parolin. “The task was to find the right feeling with the new Maxxis tyres, and I think that we succeeded as a team in finding the right combination with the Option and Prime compounds. As well as Drummond’s pole position in OK, we managed to get group poles with Costoya in OKJ and Khavalkin in OK, and to win several heats in both categories, as well as a wet Prefinal in OKJ. Fortunately, we were also able to test the rain tyres and gather important infor-mation for future occasions.”

OK

Anatoly Khavalkin:
3rd in Qualifying, one heat win, two top threes, 2nd in Super Heat, 4th in Final +2 places.

Zac Drummond:
Pole position, four heat wins, 2nd in the heats, 4th on the Final grid, 6th at the finish.

Vivek Kanthan:
32nd in Qualifying, 15th after the heats +17 places, 3rd in the Super Heat, 18th in the Final with a spoiler penalty.

Miguel Costa:
44th in Qualifying, 24th after the heat +20, 16th in the Super Heat despite a 5″ penalty, 28th in the Final.

Alp Askoy:
20th in Qualifying, 26th after the heats due to a retirement in the last heat, 29th in the Final +4 plac-es despite a spoiler penalty.

OK-Junior

Christian Costoya:
3rd in Qualifying, five heat wins, one retirement, 5th after the heats, winner in the Super Heat, 3rd on the Final grid, retirement.

Efim Derunov:
30th in Qualifying, 19th after the heats +11 places, 15th at the start of the Final, retirement on lap 6.

At the end of the WSK Super Master Series, Parolin Motorsport can look back on a very positive start to the 2024 season in every category. At Sarno, the Bassano del Grappa team’s level of performance was confirmed by Costoya, who finished 3rd despite retiring in the Prefinal, while Girardello put in a solid performance in the Mini class. Modena Kart Racing put in a very good performance with Orlov on the podium in KZ2 and Carfagna in OK-N Junior.

The rain changed all that on Saturday, changing the grip of the Sarno track during the final stages of the last round of the WSK Super Master Series.

“With the Sarno event, the WSK Super Master Series and the first part of the season, usually characterised by cold races and variable weather conditions, comes to an end. The team and the equipment adapted well to these situations and I’m satisfied with our progress and our overall speed. There were a few episodes that prevented us from achieving better results, but we’re now aware of the quality of our package, from Mini to KZ. I’m delighted with the podium finish achieved by Orlov and our satellite team Modena Kart, which also finished on the podium in OK-N Junior with Carfagna. I would also like to congratulate Babyrace Racing Academy for taking the Parolin chassis to Mini victory in the Super Master Series with Calleja, confirming the strength of our product dedicated to young drivers. Now we’re already focusing on the first European round and we’ll start working to understand and interpret this new Maxxis tyre for the OK and OK-Junior categories in the best possible conditions,” said Marco Parolin.

KZ2 – Modena Kart
Maksim Orlov continued to go from strength to strength with a superb meeting. The young Russian took pole position and won two heats. Less at ease in the Prefinal, he climbed back up to 3rd place in the Final to take 4th place in the championship. Erik Holm’s progress was encouraging.

OK-Junior
Christian Costoya confirmed his place among the Juniors with three heat wins. The start of the Prefinal was disastrous for him, but he set the fastest time in the Final, 3rd on the line, before a penalty for an incorrectly positioned front fairing put him back to 4th. He finished in the top five of the WSK Super Master Series.

Mini
Gioele Girardello continued his ascent in the Mini Gr.3 category, climbing back into the top five in the Prefinal before finishing 7th in the Final and the championship. Juan Diego Garcia Arce also made good progress, finishing 16th in the Final.

OK-N Junior – Modena Kart
Two Parolin / TM drivers shone at Sarno. In his first race, Nico Carfagna made a big impression, climbing back up to 3rd place in the Final to move straight into 8th place in the championship. Giacomo Giusti had come 4th in the Prefinal after retiring in the heat when another DNF ousted him in the Final. He nevertheless finished 9th in the championship.

More incisive than ever, Christian Costoya won his first OK-Junior race at Franciacorta, where he finished 2nd in last year’s World Championship. In the third round of the WSK Super Master Series, the young Spaniard was able to rely on the competitiveness of his Parolin / TM and the efficiency of the Parolin Motorsport team to experience the joy of the top step of an international podium. Sensational comebacks and other remarkable performances, such as Paolo De Conto’s return to racing, added to the overall performance of the Parolin chassis at the start of the season.

“We finally managed to take a well-deserved victory with Christian Costoya, after a weekend at the top,” said Marco Parolin. “I’m also very pleased with the performance of Qarrar Firhand, who made a remarkable comeback – after a difficult Qualifying session, he managed to bounce back and finish in the top 10 in a class that’s really hotly contested this year. Our equipment proved competitive in all categories. In Mini, our standard-bearers Gioele Girardello and Priam Bruno were always very competitive, while in OK, after a difficult start to the weekend, we managed to find a good pace. As for KZ2, I was very impressed by Paolo De Conto, who immediately proved his worth, confirming once again his calibre as a driver after several years away from international competition. Maksim Orlov, another of the weekend’s protagonists, was equally satisfied, as he remains highly competitive and is constantly improving.”

After the rain at Cremona, Parolin Motorsport’s potential was once again confirmed in every category on the dry Franciacorta track. The hazards of the race sometimes delayed the Parolin drivers, but many of them were able to conclude the meeting with strong comebacks.

Multiple World Champion and European KZ Champion until 2017, Paolo De Conto didn’t take long to find his bearings, fighting his way into the top three until he retired in the Final. With the Modena Kart Racing Team, Maksim Orlov was once again among the best in KZ2, finishing in the top 10, while Menyhert Krozser made good progress.

Alp Aksoy achieved his best result in OK with a magnificent Final progression of 15 places into the top 10, while Zac Drummond made up 21 positions. Anatoly Khavalkin had made up nine places and was aiming for the top five when he was forced to retire.

Christian Costoya’s victory in the OK-Junior class opened up new horizons for this promising driver. After finishing 4th in Qualifying and winning three heats, he went on to win the Final and move up to 3rd in the championship. Meanwhile, Qarrar Firhand climbed 16 places to finish in the OK-Junior top 10.

In the Mini Gr.3 category, the Parolin / TM Kart team confirmed its high level of performance with Gioele Girardello finishing 6th and Bruno Priam moving up 14 places to 9th.

Babyrace Driver Academy deserves congratulations for taking the Parolin chassis to the second step of the Mini Gr.3 podium with William Calleja and Mini Gr.3 U10 thanks to Mason Robertson.

Parolin Motorsport is now preparing for the fourth and final round of the WSK Super Master Series with serious ambitions at the Sarno track in less than two weeks’ time.

The weekend in Cremona was marked by very wet weather for the second round of the WSK Super Master Series. Rain was a feature of all phases of the competition before starting to ease on Sunday morning. The Finals provided the opportunity to use slick tyres for the first time, but grip was far from perfect and there were numerous pitfalls awaiting the competitors on the 1,210-metre track.

Most of the participants went off track and had a number of incidents, and the Parolin drivers were no exception to the rollercoaster ride. In these conditions, it was difficult to achieve any significant results. Parolin Motorsport in OK, OK-Junior and Mini, as well as the KZ2s of the Modena Kart Racing Team, nevertheless recorded some important data on rain tyres, which may prove useful later in the season. It was also a very rewarding experience for the drivers as they adapted to the tricky conditions.

Parolin Motorsport’s best result at Cremona was Bruno Priam’s 3rd place on the Mini podium, while Gioele Girardello finished 6th. In OK-Junior, Christian Costoya was once again excellent, starting from 5th place in Qualifying. He scored two wins and two top threes in the Qualifying Heats, but his retirement at the start of the D-E heat weighed heavily in the balance. 3rd in his Prefinal, he made up ground in the Final before being pushed back to 18th after the halfway point. Despite this, he made up six places in the last six laps to finish in 12th position, which enabled him to maintain his lead in the championship.

It wasn’t easy in OK either. Delayed by two retirements, Anatoly Khavalkin made it a point of honour to climb seven places in a lively Final to finish in the top 20. After making progress throughout the Qualifying phases despite penalties, Zac Drummond got off to an excellent start and was 5th at the end of the first lap of the Final. Unfortunately, the track did not favour his set-up and he eventually retired. Jenson Graham and Vivek Kanthan were also forced to retire, but their performances were not in vain.

For the Modena Racing Team, Maksim Orlov once again proved his worth, making steady progress despite a few setbacks. After finishing 20th under the clock and 4th in the Prefinal, he made further progress to reach the final top 10. Eril Holm made a fine 15-place recovery over the weekend as a whole. Menyhert Krozser and Miguel Costa, who weren’t given much of a chance, showed encouraging signs for the future.

“Cremona was a very difficult weekend for the teams and drivers,” said Marco Parolin. “I’m happy for Bruno, who claimed his first international podium in Mini Gr3, even though I’m sorry we couldn’t do better. Similarly in OK-Junior, it was possible to achieve a much better result, with Costoya leading throughout the weekend, but that’s racing. The situation was more difficult for the OK section of our team. We were never able to find a good rhythm in the wet, despite our excellent speed in the dry during Free Practice. Congratulations to our partners Babyrace Driver Academy who took the Parolin brand to victory in Mini Gr3 with Calleja, who will soon join the official team in OK-Junior, and on the U10 podium with Kosztrewa.”

Christian Costoya claimed his first podium of the 2024 season on the second race weekend, the WSK Super Master Series at Lonato. Temperatures remained cold, but the weather was fine. The number of drivers had increased since the WSK Champions Cup and the competition was really intense on the 1200 m of the famous Italian track. Christian Costoya made a remarkable comeback in 3rd place in the OK-Junior Final after his unfortunate retirement in the Prefinal. Zac Drummond confirmed his current excellent form by again finishing 7th in OK after a formidable 22-place recovery. The Parolin Motorsport Minis were also very competitive, as shown by Gioele Girardello’s 9th place and Bruno Priam’s 11th. Modena Kart also put in a strong performance in KZ2, with Maksim Orlov finishing 4th.

“It was another good weekend for Parolin Motorsport at Lonato,” Marco Parolin. “The good impressions from the WSK Champions Cup were confirmed. The team can be confident in the technical base developed for 2024 and development is continuing on all fronts to remain in a good position for the future. Costoya is already one of the top Junior drivers and we must continue to provide him with equipment that matches his potential. The competition was very strong in OK and Mini. I’d like to congratulate our entire team for tackling this intense weekend with dynamism and efficiency, as well as our friends from Babyrace Driver Academy who used Parolin chassis for their two podium finishes, William Calleja in Mini Gr.3 and Lorenzo Di Pietrantonio in Mini U10. The performance of our KZ2 chassis in the Modena Kart Racing Team bodes well for the future, with Maksim Orlov finishing 4th in the Final with the fastest lap. See you in Cremona in less than two weeks’ time for Round 2 of the WSK Super Master Series”.

Christian Costoya started by setting the fastest time in Timed Practice out of 82 entries. He then put in some superb heats, but was forced to retire in Prefinal A despite being in 2nd place with the fastest time. His determination to make up nine places in the Final gave him the deserved reward of 3rd place at the finish.

Qarrar Firhand, in 20th place, once again put in a very convincing performance, but his run in the heats was delayed by a retirement. Efim Derunov also showed good form, climbing to 21st place, while Alexander Chartier made up a lot of ground to qualify, unfortunately without being able to complete a single lap in the Final.

The potential is there in OK, as demonstrated by Zac Drummond’s unbelievable 22-place climb to 7th place. Ranked 3rd after the heats, Anatoly Khavalkin was weighed down by two retirements in the Prefinal and then the Final. Vivek Kanthan also retired in the Final. Jenson Graham, in 28th place, would have had a very decent weekend had it not been for a difficult Final and a fairing penalty before he came within a whisker of the Final top 10. Juan Diego Garciaarce also finished on a positive note with a surprising 14-place recovery.

Maksim Orlov came agonisingly close to the KZ2 podium with the Modena Kart team after a Final gain of six places in which he set the fastest lap, less than two tenths off the top three, which was made up of seasoned KZ drivers. There were also convincing performances from Menyhert Krozser in 18th place and Miguel Costa, who rounded off a promising first weekend in KZ2.

Gioele Girardello finished 9th in a hard-fought Mini Final, while Bruno Priam made up four places in Prefinal A, setting the fastest lap before finishing in sight of the top 10.

Parolin Motorsport returned to action last weekend at the first round of the 2024 international season, the WSK Champions Cup, held in cold weather at the Lonato circuit. Three categories were on the programme for the official Parolin team, with the return of KZ2 scheduled for a later date. Christian Costoya was very competitive in OK-Junior, among the contenders for victory. Anatoly Khavalkin also came close to success in OK. The team’s final score after the various ups and downs of the race was one top five and three top 10s, but more importantly, the technical level of Parolin / TM Racing 2024 is already very interesting.

“We have achieved most of our objectives for our return to competition,” said Marco Parolin. “It’s not easy to draw definitive conclusions after an event held in temperatures close to 0°. However, this phase was necessary for our drivers to get back into shape. In spite of everything, we were able to see that the 2024 equipment was more than equal to our ambitions and we’re looking forward to continuing our development work from next week at the first round of the WSK Super Master Series, again at Lonato. The weather is expected to be less cold and the field will be bigger.”

Zac Drummond had a good result in OK despite some setbacks. Qualifying in 2nd position, he missed his first Qualifying Heats before winning the next one. After finishing 3rd with an excellent time in the Prefinal, he made up further places in the Final to finish 7th. Anatoly Khavalkin could count on some very good heats in the top three to put him among the favourites. Unfortunately, over-enthusiasm in the Prefinal broke his momentum and he had to settle for 11th place in the Final.

Christian Costoya put in a magnificent performance in the OK-Junior class. 3rd in Qualifying, he won three of his four Qualifying Heats. He secured his dominant position by finishing 2nd in his Prefinal. Outpaced at the start of the Final, the young Spaniard fought bravely to finish 5th. Indonesian Qarrar Firhand achieved the best result of his career in his first experience with Parolin, finishing in the top 10. A better result was also achieved by Canadian Alexander Chartier, who finished 15th on the finishing line, having been placed 18th because of an incorrectly positioned front fairing.

In the Mini Gr.3 category, Priam Bruno got the year off to a good start with his 6th place finish, while Gioele Girardello climbed to 14th.

The pressure of competition will ease over the next two months for Parolin Motorsport, which will be able to devote itself entirely to preparing for 2024. The 2023 season ended positively for the Italian brand thanks to strong performances in the main categories at the second round of the WSK Final Cup on the Franciacorta circuit. Parolin / TM won four Prefinals and finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th in the various Championships thanks to Costoya’s Final top 10 in OK-Junior, Khavalkin’s top five in OK and Orlov’s (Team Modena Kart) 2nd place in KZ2.

The WSK Final Cup once again brought together more than 340 participants at Franciacorta last weekend for the final event of the season. Parolin Motorsport has therefore completed its 2023 programme of more than 25 international races with a host of successes.

“The team put in another great effort last weekend,” said Marco Parolin. “We confirmed our excellent potential in all categories, despite Finals that didn’t always go our way. Anatoly Khavalkin made up for his disappointment at Lonato. A regular in the top three of the OK Qualifying Heats, he finished 5th in the Final and made a spectacular leap up to 4th in the Championship. Vivek Kanthan undoubtedly made progress in his new category with several excellent results. Zac Drummond had put in a solid performance right up to the Final, where success deserted him. Forced to retire in his first two heats, Miguel Costa could no longer qualify for the Final.

Christian Costoya confirmed his position as one of the best OK-Junior drivers with a 10-place improvement in the heats and a fine victory in the Prefinal. His 9th place in the Final ensured him 3rd place in the Championship. Jack Illife continued his rise through the heats, finishing 14th in the Final. For his part, Gioele Giradello had climbed to 1st place in the Mini Prefinal, but his Final performance was ruined by an incident a few laps from the finish.

Finally, I’d like to congratulate Team Modena Kart, which enabled Maksim Orlov to finish in 2nd place with the fastest lap in the KZ2 Final and take 2nd place in the Championship.”