IRK RONE · Endurance Race Race⏱ 4h51

The 7 Laghi Kart circuit in Castelletto di Branduzzo hosted a demanding 291-minute endurance race on 1 August 2026, with 46 karts on the 1,256-metre track. At the chequered flag, Maximilian Schieder (kart #6) claimed the overall victory with 381 laps, holding off Matteo Grappolini by four laps and Dennis Holler by six.

Schieder's triumph was built on remarkable consistency rather than outright pace. His median race pace of 1:03.008 placed him only 4th in pure rhythm across the field, but six well-timed pit stops and an overall standard deviation of just 0.35 s kept his lap times locked in throughout the 291 minutes. Across seven stints, he never showed a degradation trend — every single stint was rated stable — which proved decisive over such a long distance.

Runner-up Matteo Grappolini (kart #27) is the standout strategic story of the race. His median pace of 1:03.662 placed him only 33rd in pure rhythm, yet he finished second overall. Six pit stops and a consistent approach across seven stints allowed him to convert raw pace deficit into a podium result, making his the most striking strategy-driven performance of the day. His consistency, however, was more variable (σ = 0.72 s), with stint 6 reaching a standard deviation of 1.02 s — something to watch in future events.

Third-placed Dennis Holler (kart #1) was the most regular driver in the top 10. With a standard deviation of 0.33 s — the best of any analysed runner — and the 2nd fastest median pace at 1:02.948 across eight stints, Holler had the tools to challenge for the win. Seven pit stops, however, cost him time compared to Schieder's six, leaving him 6 laps down at the flag.

The fastest kart on pure pace was Lorenzo Manfredotti (kart #58), who posted the best median race rhythm in the field at 1:02.749 across eight stints — all rated stable. Despite that speed, Manfredotti finished only 7th, 31.5 seconds behind the 6th-place finisher on the road, a gap that reflects the cost of his 8 pit stop strategy. Alessandro Grilli (kart #10, 4th) set the fastest lap of the race — 1:02.226 — but his median pace of 1:03.208 (15th overall) and nine pit stops limited him to fourth place.

Nicolas Serafini (kart #30) took 9th overall with the fewest pit stops among the top runners — only 5 stops — achieving the 5th best median pace (1:03.055) in 6 stints, showing that an undercut strategy can work over a long race. At the other extreme, Rufus Sessions (kart #28) made 15 pit stops and finished 42nd (344 laps), while Ilan Lage (kart #14) completed only 317 laps, also recording the strongest lap-time degradation in the race, losing 0.81 s per lap across his 13th stint.

Key takeaways for teams: At 7 Laghi Kart over 291 minutes, the winning formula combined minimal pit stops (6), stable stints, and high consistency — not peak speed. The gap between pure pace rank and final position (Grappolini: 33rd pace, 2nd finish; Manfredotti: 1st pace, 7th finish) confirms that pit stop strategy and regularity outweigh raw lap time. Teams should also monitor late-stint degradation closely: a drift of even 0.8 s per lap over 13 stints can cost dozens of positions in the final classification.