In the splendid setting of the Siena International Circuit, the 10th Pacini Trophy was held, a race that opened the competitive season of the Sienese facility and preceded the first round of the ACI Sport Italian Championship (April 26-29).
The exciting day of races was run in uncertain weather conditions, with rain making a brief and fleeting appearance at the start of the finals. Despite the weather uncertainty, all finals were contested with slick tires.
In addition to the drivers of the gearbox classes, who were always numerous, the young competitors of the 60 Mini and the protagonists of the Rok Cup Centro, with the Mini Rok and Senior Rok, also challenged each other.
ROK SENIOR. The final holds some surprises, thanks to the rain that slightly wets the asphalt before the start. Despite the treacherous surface, the drivers all choose to start with slick tires, and surprises come immediately, thanks to Laurito (Tony Kart) who starts very strongly and leaves the group behind.
Behind Laurito, the early stages of the race see a great battle between Benvenuti (Tony Kart), Consalvi (Croc), Colombo (Tony Kart) and Zuccante (Tony Kart). As the laps go by, the positions become clear and on the podium, behind the winner, are Benvenuti and Consalvi.
*All with Rok GP engines and Bridgestone tires
KZ3 UNDER. Cavina (Parolin-Tm) is the dominator of the day thanks to securing pole position, winning the pre-final and the final. Giving the winner a run for his money were Ferretti (Tony Kart-DEA), Simonetti (Tony Kart-Tm) and Costantini (Intrepid-Tm), who finished close behind the leader under the checkered flag.
The leading quartet remained close to each other throughout the race, although there were never any decisive attack attempts.
60 MINI ROK. Chiurato (Energy) stands out in qualifying with a splendid pole position, but in the final, it’s Taddei (Parolin) and Scagnetti (Intrepid) who steal the show, leading the race one right behind the other. The leading pair never alternate in the lead, and under the checkered flag, Taddei wins by just three tenths over Scagnetti.
The battle for third place is also uncertain until the last lap and sees Mazzola (Italcorse), Quattrocchi (Crg), Olivieri (Italcorse), Ferrari (Italcorse) and Chiurato competing, who finish the race in this order.
*All with Mini Rok engines and Bridgestone tires
KZ3 JUNIOR. Del Brutto (Crg-Tm) runs a relatively calm race, detaching from the rest of the group with apparent ease and going on to win. The battle for the podium is resolved in the early stages of the race with Temperini (Tony Kart-Tm) overtaking Beghè (Crg-Tm) and Bellandi (Maranello-Tm) taking third place after a few laps.
KZ3 OVER. The evergreen Tempesti (Crg-Tm) is the dominator of the race. After winning the pre-final starting from pole, Tempesti led the entire final without hesitation. Ruschini (Croc-Tm) took second place after initially battling with Collamati (Crg-Tm). The last spot on the podium is claimed, after an excellent comeback, by Vanelli (Maranello-Tm)
KZ4. Sgheri (Crg-Tm) secures pole position but in the pre-final it’s Strovegli (Crg-Tm) who prevails at the end of a particularly intense race. Strovegli again has no rivals in the final and clearly precedes Cusumano (Crg-Tm) and Martini (Intrepid-Tm).
KZ2. Albanese (Tony Kart-Vortex), Pastacaldi (Maranello-Tm) and Del Vecchio (Maranello-Tm) are the three undisputed protagonists of the final. Albanese starts strong from the third row and takes the lead, leading most of the final with the two rivals not letting up. With five laps to go, Pastacaldi, at that moment in second place, surprises Albanese with a perfect maneuver and goes on to win, relegating his rival to second.
60 MINI. Garozzo (Energy-Tm) wins the final even though in the first laps of the race it’s Ianiello (FA Kart-Tm) who takes the lead. After leaving some space to his rival, Garozza moves to the front of the race and goes on to win, preceding Ianiello by a few meters and Panaev (Croc-Tm). Larini (Maranello-Tm), son of the former F1 driver, finishes fourth.
The next event at the Siena International Circuit is set for the weekend of April 26-29, with the first round of the Italian Championship. The races will continue throughout the season, until November, with a series of unmissable and high-profile events.
The must-attend events at the Siena Circuit
- April 26-29 ACI CSAI Italian Karting Championship
- June 3 2nd Cetilar Trophy
- August 5 Mojo Trophy
- September 30 Easy Kart Trophy and National Categories
- October 3-10 Easy Kart World Final
- November 16-18 Rok Final Cup