LC CUP Manche 2 · Pré Finale Race⏱ 2h31

Pré Finale – Pole Mecanique Karting Ales, 12 September 2026. On the 1,200-metre circuit at Ales, 29 teams took the start of this 150-minute endurance pre-final, delivering a dense and tightly fought contest from flag to flag.

SCUDERIA VAROISE 1 (kart #8) claimed victory after 120 laps, edging out DR COMPETITION (kart #9) by 8.714 seconds at the chequered flag. 2 GARS 1 FILLE (kart #21) completed the podium, one minute and three seconds adrift of the runner-up. All three front-runners shared the same lap count of 120, underlining how close the fight remained across the full distance.

In the battle for fourth and fifth, KART MAX (kart #29) and SPEEDCAR (kart #15) finished one lap down on 119 tours, separated by 18.9 seconds, with H2 (kart #23) just over a minute behind in sixth. IMAGINE (kart #4) completed seventh, two laps off the leading pace.

The absolute fastest lap of the race was set by CATERHAM (kart #25) in 1:09.647, a benchmark that underlines the raw speed available at the front of the field. CATERHAM ultimately crossed the line in 14th place, a result that contrasts sharply with their pace: their pure-pace ranking placed them 4th — a gap of ten positions to their final classification that reflects how much more than outright speed shapes endurance results.

From the race analysis, DR COMPETITION posted the strongest median race pace of any team at 1:10.661 — the best in the field — yet crossed the line in second place, just 8.7 seconds behind the winner. Their consistency was solid (standard deviation: 0.79 s), but SCUDERIA VAROISE 1 managed to edge them on the overall result despite ranking second in pure pace (median: 1:10.743) with exemplary regularity (σ: 0.62 s). The winners were, lap for lap, the most stable performers across 120 tours.

The standout story in strategic terms was 2 GARS 1 FILLE: ranked only 8th in pure pace (median 1:11.326), they converted that into a 3rd-place finish — five positions gained over raw speed — making them the race's clearest example of endurance management translating into a result. Similarly, IMAGINE showed strong pace (3rd in pure rhythm at 1:11.199) but could not convert it fully, ending 7th.

At the other end of the regularity table, ASAM 1 (kart #13) was the most consistent team of the race with a standard deviation of just 0.61 s, finishing 9th. By contrast, H2 (kart #23) showed the widest variation among the analysed teams (σ: 1.48 s), despite maintaining a respectable 6th-place finish on 119 laps.

Key takeaways for teams: At Ales, raw pace alone does not decide endurance results. SCUDERIA VAROISE 1's victory rests on a combination of near-top pace and the best consistency in the race. 2 GARS 1 FILLE's podium proves that a stable, managed rhythm over 150 minutes can outweigh a speed deficit of several tenths per lap. For faster teams like CATERHAM or IMAGINE, translating pace into positions will require addressing the factors that cost them ground on the overall classification.