CHALLENGE CLAIR GROUP · Course Race⏱ 1h22

On 26 September 2026, the Karting Circuit Paul Ricard (964 m) hosted an 82-minute endurance race that brought together 19 teams. At the chequered flag, it was BERLIN (kart #14) who claimed victory with 68 laps completed, crossing the line a full lap clear of the field and setting the fastest lap of the entire race — a 1:02.302.

TOKYO (kart #6) secured second place with 67 laps, finishing 1 lap behind the winner. Despite posting only the 3rd-best median pace (1:04.673), the team delivered a remarkable final stint, clocking a median of 1:03.052 in relay 6 — their fastest of the race — and gaining ground in the closing stages. LOS ANGELES (kart #2) rounded out the podium in third, also on 67 laps, 28.401 seconds behind Tokyo, with the 5th-best pace on pure rhythm (median 1:05.050) and consistent regularity (σ = 1.41 s). PORTO (kart #11) finished fourth on the same lap count, 42.082 seconds back, and was the most consistent team of the entire race with a standard deviation of just 1.20 s across all stints.

The performance of the day, beyond the result, was that of BERLIN: the team topped both the final standings and the pure pace rankings with a median lap time of 1:03.708 — a rare double that left no room for debate. Their relays alternated between fast, stable stints (relay 1: σ = 0.54 s; relay 3: σ = 0.63 s) and slightly slower but controlled phases. Relays 5 and 6 both showed a positive trend, gaining 0.19 s/lap and 0.26 s/lap respectively, illustrating a team that finished the race stronger than it started.

The strategic highlight of the race came from ST TROPEZ (kart #17), who finished 5th overall despite ranking only 12th on pure pace (median 1:06.813, σ = 2.43 s). Conversely, NEW YORK (kart #4) presented the starkest gap between speed and result: ranked 2nd on pure rhythm but finishing only 13th, the team's median pace was clearly not converted into track position over the full 82 minutes.

SINGAPOUR (kart #5) also caught the eye analytically: 6th on pure pace, but 11th in the final standings. With the highest irregularity of the analysed field (σ = 3.56 s), their race featured strong stints at around 1:04 followed by sharply slower phases, including a relay 5 where pace declined by 0.39 s/lap. SHANGHAI (kart #13), on the other hand, built throughout the race — from a 1:09.328 median in relay 1 down to 1:05.082 in the final stint — finishing 7th from 9th on pace.

At the back of the field, ROME (kart #24) recorded the steepest pace degradation of any team across a single relay: slowing by 1.37 s/lap during their opening stint, the team completed only 26 laps and finished 18th. BRUXELLES (kart #10) made 6 pit stops — one more than the majority of the field — and crossed the line 19th on laps (data not captured), while LONDRES (kart #16) also made 6 stops and ended the race 15 tours down.

Key takeaways for teams: BERLIN demonstrated that dominating both raw pace and race management is the surest path to victory. PORTO's regularity (σ = 1.20 s) shows the value of consistency across long stints. ST TROPEZ's top-5 finish from 12th on pace underlines the decisive impact of strategic execution. For teams like NEW YORK and SINGAPOUR, converting strong raw speed into race results will be the challenge to address at the next outing on the Paul Ricard karting circuit.