ENDURANCE MAILLARD · Course Race

On July 17, 2026, the Ouest Circuit International d'Essay in Aunay-les-Bois hosted an endurance race on the 1,220-metre Piste 1 layout, bringing together 14 teams for a hard-fought battle across 8 stints. When the chequered flag fell, TEAM DESCHAMPS (kart #24) took the victory with 102 laps completed, edging out KILLIAN M / OLIVIER (kart #25) by just 3.959 seconds — a razor-thin margin that made the final standings all the more impressive. ANTONY / CYRIL P (kart #35) completed the podium one lap down in third, having made only 6 pit stops against 7 for most of their rivals.

The best lap of the race — 1:06.828 — was set by KILLIAN M / OLIVIER, who also posted the fastest overall pace of the field with a median lap time of 1:08.289 (1st in pure pace). Yet despite that edge, they had to settle for second on the road. TEAM DESCHAMPS, ranked 2nd in pure pace at a median of 1:08.454, made the most of their 8 stints, including a remarkably consistent 4th stint (standard deviation of just 0.30 s) and a solid closing 8th stint over 14 laps at 1:08.742.

A closer look at KILLIAN M / OLIVIER's stints reveals contrasting profiles: their odd-numbered stints showed a tendency to slow — losing up to 0.21 s/lap in stint 5 — while even-numbered stints were consistently stable and fast, including a dominant final 8-stint run at 1:07.129. The balance between peak speed and managed degradation ultimately defined the outcome.

ANTONY / CYRIL P were the most consistent top-three finisher overall (standard deviation: 1.07 s), with a notably long 4th stint of 19 laps at 1:08.286 — their fewest pit stops (6) suggesting a deliberate undercut strategy that kept them in contention throughout.

Fourth place went to LUDWIG / YOHANN (kart #37), who were the most regular team in the entire field (standard deviation: 0.89 s across 8 stints), posting a median of 1:10.011 with virtually no degradation in any stint. Their controlled, steady approach secured 4th, 2 laps off the lead.

Among the midfield, ANTOINE / FREDDY (kart #12) stand out as a team that underachieved relative to their pace: ranked 5th in pure speed (median 1:10.220) but finishing 8th, they suffered the steepest single-stint degradation of any team — losing 0.48 s/lap during stint 6. That consistency dip proved costly in terms of overall lap count.

Conversely, ALEXANDRE / STEPHANE OLIVIER (kart #40) punched above their weight: ranked only 8th in pure pace but crossing the line 5th, they demonstrate how strategic discipline and pit-stop management can compensate for a pace deficit on a track like Essay.

Key takeaways for teams: At the Ouest Circuit International d'Essay, raw speed alone does not guarantee results. The winning margin was less than 4 seconds after 102 laps, showing that pit-stop timing, stint regularity and degradation management are decisive factors. Teams with the best pure pace (KILLIAN M / OLIVIER) must pair it with consistent even-numbered stints throughout the race, while teams with modest pace (ALEXANDRE / STEPHANE OLIVIER) can climb the standings through strategic pit discipline. Keeping standard deviation below 1.0 s per stint, as LUDWIG / YOHANN demonstrated, is a benchmark worth targeting at this circuit.