ENDURANCE 1H30 MEDEF · COURSE ENDURANCE Race

On 17 September 2026, the Ouest Circuit International d'Essay in Aunay-les-Bois hosted an endurance race on the 1,220-metre Piste 1200m Horaire, bringing together 17 teams in a tightly fought competition from start to finish.

NATHAJIEL (kart #20) claimed the top step of the podium, completing 51 laps and crossing the line ahead of LOX U (#21, 51 laps, +38.537 s) and LES DESSINEUX (#26, 51 laps, +51.851 s). CHOUDOU (#17) narrowly missed the podium in 4th, also on 51 laps with a gap of just 52.497 seconds. The top four were separated by fewer than 53 seconds over the full race distance, underlining the competitive nature of the event.

NATHAJIEL also set the fastest lap of the race with a 1:06.371, a benchmark no other team managed to match. Their best pure pace (median lap time of 1:08.437) ranked them 1st across the entire field — a dominant showing on both raw speed and consistency (standard deviation: 2.23 s). Over their four stints, they ramped up sharply in stint 1, posted their quickest running in stint 2, managed a slight pace drop in stint 3, then recovered with a solid and stable final stint to seal the victory.

MAG PRESS ELITE (#8) stands out as the race's most striking case of pace-versus-result disconnect. Ranked 2nd in pure race pace (median 1:08.634 s), they finished only 8th on 49 laps — two full laps down on the leaders. Their standard deviation of 2.82 s was the highest among the top-pace runners, suggesting consistency issues cost them dearly across their three stints.

LES DEV (#29) and JLC (#35) adopted a contrasting strategy, completing the race with only 2 pit stops each — one fewer than most rivals. LES DEV ranked 6th in pure pace (median 1:09.583 s) yet finished 11th, while JLC (9th in pace, median 1:09.963 s) also finished 10th. Both teams completed 50 laps despite the lighter stop count, though the gap to the leading pack suggests the strategy did not yield the expected gain in track position.

MAG PRESS POUSSINS (#16) delivered the race's clearest example of strategic outperformance: ranked only 10th in pure pace, they converted that into a 6th-place finish, demonstrating that execution and consistency can more than compensate for a pace deficit over a long race.

DYÉ (#11), classified 17th and last, recorded the most severe pace degradation in the field during their 4th stint, slowing by 1.60 s/lap. They also made 4 pit stops — more than any other team — and ended the race 6 laps off the lead.

Key takeaways for teams: Pure pace alone does not determine the result at Essay — NATHAJIEL proved that leading in pace, regularity and execution together is the winning formula. Teams chasing race pace at the expense of consistency (MAG PRESS ELITE) or mismanaging stint length (BPGO, TOO FAST) paid the price in the final standings. Pit stop strategy showed a clear impact: fewer stops did not automatically translate into better finishing positions. Managing tyre degradation across long stints remains a decisive factor on the 1,220-metre circuit.