A record entry list of 266 drivers across the OK-N and OK-N Junior categories will take to the Leopard Circuit in Viterbo, Italy this week for the 2026 FIA Karting World Cup.  

The continued growth of the OK-N concept is reflected in a remarkable 50% increase in entries compared to 2025, demonstrating both the accessibility of the category and the strength of the qualification pathway from national and regional competitions to FIA Karting's international stage.  

A total of 149 OK-N and 117 OK-N Junior drivers will compete for the illustrious World Cup honours this weekend including returning winners and those taking their first laps in FIA Karting. 

The third and final round of the 2026 FIA Karting Academy Trophy Junior will also be held in Viterbo to decide the second-ever FIA Karting Academy Trophy winner. John Han of Hong Kong holds a healthy 38-point advantage in the standings ahead of home hope Domenico Coco. First round winner Zoltan Coigny also remains mathematically in contention. 

The 16-corners of the Leopard Circuit will welcome the FIA Karting paddock again this year after staging the third round of the European Championship for OK and Junior drivers last year and is set to put on an unmissable show to set the scene for a bumper weekend of racing action. 

All of the racing is available to watch LIVE and FREE on the FIA Karting YouTube Channel. 

OK-N

Leading the field in a defence of his 2025 title is reigning FIA Karting World Cup winner Manuel Scognamiglio who races with Pantano by Dam this year. The Italian driver memorably clinched the title in Cremona last year with a commanding eight second lead ahead of his compatriot Danny Carenini who’ll be hoping to mount a stronger challenge to Scognamiglio this weekend following his victory in the final race of the 2026 ACI Karting Italian Championship last month. 

In total 34 returning drivers from the 2025 FIA Karting World Cup will line up on the 2026 grid including Frederico Nardozi who crossed the line in fourth, Cristian Tonalini in sixth and Frederico Rossi in eighth. Rossi is retuning for his third year in the OK-N category and after finishing in the top 10 in both 2024 and 2025, he’s likely to mount a strong campaign again in 2026. 

The identical engines used in the OK-N and Academy Senior competitions have enticed several drivers to make the move from the 2026 FIA Karting Academy Trophy competition to the OK-N category, including 2026 Academy Senior winner Albie Lapper. Lapper, who secured the title in Kristianstad earlier this year, won as part of his prize free entry to the World Cup as part of an OTK Team and races with Tony Kart as the only British driver competing for the 2026 OK-N title.  

Other Academy Trophy drivers making the step into OK-N this week include Alexis Genolet, who finished second behind Lapper in this year’s standings, as well as Ioan Tudor Jercan and Oliver Kurg who both finished the season in the top 10. The highly competitive nature of this year’s Academy Senior category will undoubtedly add great racing and an added layer of competitiveness to this year’s field of drivers. 

Elsewhere on the grid, a total of 62 of the 149 drivers race under the Italian flag this year reflecting the strength of the OK-N concept adopted by national championships. Nicholas Tomasella will return to compete in his third World Cup in a row, Luisa Maria Della Pietra, who finished in 16th last year, will compete as a teammate of Scognamiglio this year and Mike Parhiala, who completed just one lap during the final in Cremona, is back with the Tony Kart Racing Team and looks to put last year’s result behind him. 

OK-N Junior

After debuting at the World Cup in 2025, the OK-N Junior category, which features an identical engine, carburettor, and exhaust, but adds a 26mm flange in the exhaust to marginally reduce engine performance, returns in 2026 with a successor to 2025 World Cup Winner Gioele Girardello to be crowned. 

Girardello went on to participate in the FIA Karting Shootout last year as a result of his World Cup victory where he went up against fellow 2025 FIA Karting champions and winners to compete for a top prize of free tyres, fuel and entries for up to 5 FIA Karting events in 2026 plus a financial contribution to an FIA Karting team of 6,000 euros per event. This season Girardello joined the Junior grid with Parolin in the European Championship where he finished in a very impressive fourth position and an example to inspire this year’s competitors. 

Leading the entry list is fellow 2025 FIA Karting Shootout competitor and 2025 Arrive and Drive World Cup Winner Troy Ferguson. Ferguson placed second in the Shootout last year and has also competed with Parolin in the European Championship this year. Having already displayed the talent and skill to win titles, he’s undoubtedly a favourite to take the title this weekend. 

Eight drivers from the inaugural OK-N Junior World Cup last year return in 2026 led by Antoni Ociepa and Orlando Rovelli who finished in eighth and ninth place respectively in Cremona. 

Luigi D’Ascoli enters the 2026 World Cup fresh from his race victory in the Italian National Championship and looking to emulate his success again this weekend. Kolovos Ioannis from Greece and Gioele Carrer from Italy also race this weekend having secured second and third positions respectively in the Italian Championship, setting themselves up as early favourites for the World Cup title. 

Other names to watch include Victor Gorun and Matteo Turchiato who have enjoyed success at national level competitions and displayed race pace that may give them an edge in Viterbo. 

In total 117 drivers from 33 nationalities form this year’s OK-N Junior World Cup grid with action getting started on Friday with Qualifying Practice. 

Academy Junior

After a clean sweep of every session during the previous round of the competition in Sarno, John Han arrives in Italy with a strong lead and the momentum to match. The Hong Kong driver has already converted that momentum into victory by winning the FIA Karting Arrive and Drive Asia-Pacific Championship last month after securing pole position and winning every heat and race.  

He now travels to the final round of the Academy Trophy Junior season with a 38-point lead over Domenico Coco who he successfully held at bay in Sarno to win by just over a second. "Having such good results at Genk and here [Sarno] will hopefully make things a bit easier for me at Viterbo," said Han after the previous round. 

Italian hopeful Domenico Coco is Han’s nearest challenger and came away from Sarno with a second-place finish after managing minor contact, but will this time have the support of a home crowd as he looks to turn the deficit around. A maximum haul in a single round is worth 75 points, so the gap is far from insurmountable. 

The biggest swing of the season belongs to Zoltan Coigny. The Genk winner led the standings after Round 1 but struggled for pace at Sarno and retired from the final, leaving him with no points. He is third on 75 points and 67 behind Han. That is a steep climb, but Coigny has already shown this season that he can control a weekend from pole to flag, and the mathematics, though daunting, remain on his side. 

Behind the leading trio, the battle is tight. Takeru Shimbashi is fourth on 56 points, with Kevin Pentell on 54, Georgios Psaroudakis on 53 and Sebastián Galeano Grinó on 52. Just four points separate fourth from seventh, so the order behind the title contenders could change several times before the weekend is over. 

Jindrich Svoboda was promoted to the Sarno podium after a last-corner collision between Haroun and Noah Grignet saw the Frenchman disqualified, and he now sits ninth on 46 points. Peerapongpan Sutumno, who finished fifth in the Sarno final, is thirteenth on 32. 

Among the others, Augusto Salamé (37 points) and Joaquin Gorlero Pizarro (41) both gained ground at Sarno, with Gorlero Pizarro having made up 19 places in the Genk final. Leo Da Silva (19) and Roc Piñera Rusiñol (17) will also look to build on strong Sarno finishes. 

All 52 drivers race with identical Exprit karts and Vortex engines, with Vega's Option tyre available to the junior field. With one round left, the pressure falls on Han to finish what he started, while Coco and Coigny need a perfect weekend and some help to get back into the fight. 

Provisional Timings

Friday 9 October
08:50 – 11:35 Free Practice 
11:45 – 14:20 Qualifying Practice 
15:15 – 17:45 Qualifying Heats (OK-N) 

Saturday 10 October
08:00 – 18:20 Qualifying Heats

Sunday 11 October
09:50 – 12:10 Super Heats 
13:20 Drivers’ Presentation 
14:00 Academy Junior Final 
15:00 OK-N Junior Final 
16:00 OK-N Final