OK: Christian Costoya still in control

Dry, completely soaked or just damp, the racing lines of the 1,531-metre Portimão track offered very different conditions to the 85 drivers in the OK category during the 15 Qualifying Heats. These began on Friday afternoon and finished at the end of the day on Saturday. In these conditions, it was easy to make mistakes and the more experienced drivers often managed to make the difference. However, it was young driver Christian Costoya (ESP), just out of the Junior class and aged just 14, who beat all the odds to hold on to the top spot he had secured in Qualifying. European Champion in 2024 at the age of 23, Joe Turney (GBR) is shaping up to be a serious rival for the Spaniard. Another very young driver, Kenzo Craigie (GBR), who finished 3rd in the intermediate classification, reminded anyone who may have forgotten that he became FIA Karting Junior World Champion last year on a wet track.

Extremely consistent, Lev Krutoholov (UKR) continued to make progress in all conditions. He finished ahead of Zac Drummond (GBR), twice a winner, and Jensen Burnett (CAN), with one win. Daniel Kelleher (IRL), who moved up 26 places from the previous day, James Anagnostiadis (AUS) and Jakub Kamenik (CZE) are also in the top 10 thanks to their unquestionable consistency. Noah Wolfe (GBR) and Thibaut Ramaekers (BEL), who both won when the track was dry, will be keeping an eye on the skies and the weather in southern Portugal. Viktor Gustafsson (SWE), ranked 12th, won a heat, as did Filippo Sala (ITA), 13th, and Vegard Klemetsen (DEN), who also had his share of misfortunes.

Qualifying Heats standings - OK

1 Costoya, Christian (ESP) Parolin / TM Kart / Maxxis
2 Turney, Joe (GBR) KR / IAME / Maxxis
3 Craigie, Kenzo (GBR) KR / IAME / Maxxis
4 Krutoholov, Lev (UKR) Energy / IAME / Maxxis
5 Drummond, Zac (GBR) KR / IAME / Maxxis
6 Burnett, Jensen (CAN) Exprit / TM Kart / Maxxis
7 Kelleher, Daniel (IRL) KR / IAME / Maxxis
8 Anagnostiadis, James (AUS) KR / IAME / Maxxis
9 Kamenik, Jakub (CZE) KR / IAME / Maxxis
10 Wolfe, Noah (GBR) Birel Art / TM Kart / Maxxis
...

OK-Junior: Iskender Zulfikari makes a breakthrough

On the Algarve International Circuit, the drivers used their rain tyres more than their slick tyres during the Qualifying Heats. Above all, they had to adapt to the constantly changing grip conditions at Portimão. No fewer than 19 different drivers managed to finish in the top three at least once in a heat. Iskender Zulfikari (TUR) is the new leader of the category after faultless racing with two victories. He has made superb progress since his 16th place in Qualifying. Poleman Dan Allemann (SUI) is just behind with only 1st, 2nd and 3rd places on his record! His team-mate Arata Edo (JPN) was a pleasant surprise in the first part of the competition. With his three wins, Luka Scelles (FRA) impressed in the rain. An incident in one of his heats put him in 6th place in the intermediate rankings behind Will Green (GBR), winner on two occasions, and the very consistent William Calleja (AUS).

A disqualification following a disrupted start procedure pushed Noah Baglin (GBR) down to 8th behind Ilie Crisan (CAN), but his three wins show that the winner of the previous competition in Spain will be a force to be reckoned with. Winner on two occasions and 9th in the intermediate classification, his team-mate Dean Hoogendoorn (NED) has not lost his chances of a podium finish. Michael Mcgaughy (USA) was also among the drivers to win at least one heat.

Qualifying Heats standings - OK-Junior

1 Zulfikari, Iskender (TUR) Exprit / TM Kart / Maxxis
2 Allemann, Dan (SUI) Tony Kart / TM Kart / Maxxis
3 Endo, Arata (JPN) Tony Kart / TM Kart / Maxxis
4 Green, Will (GBR) KR / IAME / Maxxis
5 Calleja, William (AUS) Exprit / TM Kart / Maxxis
6 Scelles, Luka (FRA) KR / IAME / Maxxis
7 Crisan, Ilie (CAN) Tony Kart / Vortex / Maxxis
8 Baglin, Noah (GBR) KR / IAME / Maxxis
9 Hoogendoorn, Dean (NED) KR / IAME / Maxxis
10 Walz, Drew (USA) KR / IAME / Maxxis
...

Senior Academy Trophy: Sato and Woda master the rain

In this category, all 36 drivers took part in two heats, with the last scheduled for Sunday morning. As in Qualifying, the Exprit / Vortex / Maxxis karts were fitted with rain tyres throughout the day's two races. In Heat 1, Yuzuki Sato (JPN) immediately got the better of Mio Olert (SWE) and led the race for a long time. On the final lap, Riccardo Ferrari (ITA) found an opening, but returned to the Parc Fermé with his front fairing in the wrong position. Penalised by five seconds, he fell back to 3rd behind Sato and Niklas Vejen (DEN), who made a magnificent 15-place recovery. Wojciech Woda (POL), who had initially finished 3rd, dropped back to 5th behind Amador Martinez Saenz (COL) for the same reason as his Italian rival.

An incident on the first lap of Heat 2 saw the two front row drivers fall back significantly. Wojciech Woda (POL) took advantage of the confused situation to move up from 6th to 1st place, but escaped easily to take the win. With a gain of eight places, Ates Birinci (TUR) did well to finish in 2nd place ahead of Riccardo Ferrari (ITA), who remains well placed ahead of the final day of competition. Less comfortable than in Heat 1, Yuzuki Sato (JPN) took a precious 4th place ahead of Neil Russell (SUI), who was 3rd under the chequered flag before taking a penalty.

Provisional programme for the Portimão event

Sunday 4th May
08:30 - 09:40: Warm-up
09:50 - 10:05: End of Qualifying Heats - Academy
10:10 - 11:45: Super Heats - Junior & OK
13:00 - 16:10: Finals and podiums

You can follow the Portimão Competition via live streaming and live timing on fiakarting.com.