A success on all fronts for the "race of races" of the Vortex series, with a total of 412 verified drivers, coming from 48 countries, in the 7 categories on track at South Garda Karting, in Italy.

As always, we lived an experience full of emotions during the four days of the ROK Cup Superfinal. Starting on Wednesday 11^th October with the first free practice sessions and continuing until Saturday 14^th, the decisive day for the finals which awarded the titles up for grabs.

On the prestigious stage of the South Garda Karting, a training circuit for many champions of F1 and of the most prestigious international car competitions, the following drivers dominated the scene: Bogdan Cosma Cristofor (Mini ROK), Iskender Zulfikari (Junior ROK), David Stefan Dragan (Senior ROK), Andre Nicastro (Expert ROK), Ariel Castro (Expert ROK Plus), Cristian Comanducci (Super ROK) e Marco Tormen (Shifter ROK).

The top 5 drivers in each category have been also celebrated with a package of prizes consisting of engines, technical material and, obviously, trophies.

To follow, the detail of the different phases of the ROK Cup Superfinal 2023, for each category.

 

MINI ROK

Qualifying

For the first time in the history of the ROK Cup Superfinal, the Mini ROK is limited to 72 participants and with engines allocated by drawing lots by the promoter, after the big success that this format received during the last three years in ROK Cup Italia. Angelo Pecoraro (Italy) is absolutely the fastest in qualifying, thanks to a time of 53.918 seconds in group 1. Bogdan Cosma Cristofor (Romania) is the first in group 2 with 54.672 seconds lap time and so he is second in the combined ranking.

Heats

With a series of three victories on three races, Pecoraro keeps the leadership even in the intermediate ranking, with Julian Frasnelli (Italy) in the role of first chaser with two victories and a fourth place. Cosma Cristofor falls to third position despite the three places in Top 3, while Kacper Rajpold (Poland) and Marcell Zsebo (Hungary) are fourth and fifth respectively.

Final

As expected, the final of the Mini ROK is a challenge until the last lap. At the start, Pecoraro keeps the leadership from the pole position, followed by Cosma Cristofor, Zsebo and Shen Zeyu (China). After a few turns, Cosma Cristofor attacks Pecoraro and overtakes him, forcing the Italian to lose many positions. Cosma Cristofor starts a lone getaway, while Pecoraro takes the second place during the sixth lap, with Frasnelli and Zeyu behind him. Pecoraro reduces the gap from Cosma Cristofor and during the last lap he tries a difficult overtake: the Romanian closes the space and the Italian touches the kart of the rival, so Frasnelli gains the second place. Cosma Cristofor wins, ahead of Frasnelli and Pecoraro. Zeyu and Alessandro Nanni (Italy) are in the Top 5.

MINI ROK Vortex Trophy

In the other final of the Mini ROK, Jay Kostecki (Australia) starts from the pole position and guides the first phases of the race, but at the third lap he gets overtaken by Antton Bouchard (Francia), Kwanwoo Lee (Singapore) and Joshua Moore (Sudafrica). Taking advantage of the battle between the Lee-Moore-Kostecki trio, Bouchard gains a good margin over his chasers and crosses the finish line with an advantage of over 4 seconds. Lee and Moore are second and third respectively, while Panu Stienmonkong (Thailand) and Blazej Kostrzewa (Poland) are ahead of Kostecki.

 

JUNIOR ROK

Qualifying

Extraordinary numbers in the Junior ROK, with 105 registered drivers. From the three qualifying groups Nicolas Marchesi (Italy) arises with 48.354 seconds lap time, 50 thousandths of seconds faster than David Cosma Cristofor (Romania), leader of the first group. Third Maksymilian Rafalik (Poland), first classified in group 2.

Heats

Four victories and a third place in the qualifying heats ensure Marchesi the pole position for the final. Lev Krutoholov (Ukraine) jumps from the 21^st place to the second thanks to a victory, two second places and two third places. Rafalik keeps the third position (two successes for the Pole), ahead of Antoni Kosiba (Poland) and Iskender Zulfikari (Turkey), both with a victory each one. Despite three victories, Cosma Cristofor goes back to seventh. A first place in the heats even for Augustus Toniolo (Brazil), eight, Marcel Kasprzycki (Poland), tenth, and Steven Miller (USA), 27^th.

Final

Even the final of the Junior ROK is challenging. Marchesi starts perfectly from the pole position and immediately tries to escape, with Rafalik, Zulfikari and Cosma Cristofor behind him. However, Marchesi's attempt fails because Zulfikari, in second position, remains behind the Italian, while Cosma Cristofor and Krutoholov gain the third and fourth place respectively. At the 9^th lap, Zulfikari takes the lead of the race and Marchesi is forced to defend himself from Cosma Cristofor, until his Romanian teammate overtakes him and takes the second place. Zulfikari finishes first under the checkered flag, with Cosma Cristofor and Marchesi completing the Top 3. Krutoholov fourth, Toniolo fifth.

Junior ROK LeVanto Trophy

In the Junior ROK trophy, Riccardo Repetto (Italy) jumps to the lead thanks to a good start from the third position and closes the first lap with two seconds advantage on the rest of the group. At the lap 8 of 12, the Italian gets reached and overtaken by Emilio Tedesco (Italy), Genaro Trappa (Argentina) and Nicolas Stati (Australia). Tedesco and Trappa compete for the supremacy, with the Argentinian who manages to prevail by just 0.181 seconds. Qarrar Firhand (Indonesia) takes the lowest step of the podium, ahead of Stati, Toby Gale (Thailand) and Repetto.

 

SENIOR ROK

Qualifying

Record of participants for the Senior ROK, with 104 drivers divided into three groups in the qualifying practices. The fastest is David Stefan Dragan (Romania), with 47.408 seconds lap time, ahead of Mattia Jentile (Italy) for just 80 thousandths of second. Third Colin Würthenberger (Germany) at +0.173 seconds from his teammate Dragan.

Heats

Dragan is close to perfection during the qualifying heats with a total of four victories and a second place. The Romanian keeps the lead of the ranking, but this time he has Kacper Turoboyski (Poland) behind him, who climbs the ranking compared to the seventh place obtained in qualifying. With two successes, Nicolas Fuca (Argentina) gains the third position, followed in the ranking by Christian Canonica (Switzerland), fourth, and by Diego Ramos (Brazil), fifth. Victories also for Blake Nash (USA), sixth, Lorenzo Bedetti (Italy), seventh, Michael Müller (Switzerland), ninth, Würthenberger, tenth, and Andrea Giudice (Italy), 13^th. Jentile goes back from second to 21^st due to a withdrawal in the heat B-D.

Final

Dragan is unstoppable and gets even the final of the Senior ROK. The Romanian, from the pole position, goes in first position at the first turn, with Fuca and Turoboyski immediately behind him. The Argentinian and the Pole keep the contact with the leader of the race in the first phases, but Dragan increases his pace and becomes uncatchable. At the end of the 20 laps planned, Dragan triumphs under the checkered flag with 2.826 seconds advantage on Fuca, second, and with 3.239 seconds on Turoboyski, third. Bedetti finishes at the margin of the podium, fourth, ahead of Blake, fifth, and Jakub Rajski (Poland), sixth.

Senior ROK OMP Trophy

In the Senior ROK consolation final, Franciszek Lassota (Poland) dominates the scene leading the race for all the 15 laps scheduled and registering even the fastest lap. Matteo Zaffarano (Italy) tries to take the victory from the Pole, but he closes on the honor place with 3.155 gap. Third place for Christos Chatzis (Greece).

 

EXPERT ROK

Qualifying

Andre Nicastro (Brazil) and Sebastiàn Pernigotte (Argentina) are the fastest in the two qualifying groups of the Expert ROK, but the Brazilian is the leader with 48.418 seconds lap time, against 48.902 seconds lap time for the Argentinian. Third place for Nikolay Varbitzaliev (Bulgaria), fourth for Alessandro Viganò (Italy).

Heats

Nicastro records a hat-trick in the qualifying heats and maintains the first position in the ranking, while Pernigotte gives the second place to Varbitzaliev, despite the two first places for the Argentinian. Viganò remains at the fourth place, with Jorge Matos (Ecuador) fifth and Martin Hudec (Czech Republic) sixth.

Final

Thanks to the pole position, Nicastro immediately takes the lead in the final, with Pernigotte and Varbitzaliev (the latter temporarily behind Matos in the first turns) as the main chasers. Overtaken Pernigotte, Varbitzaliev tries to reduce the gap from Nicastro, but the Brazilian changes the pace after the half of the race and detaches the Bulgarian. Nicastro wins the race with 2.204 seconds advantage on Varbitzaliev, second, while Pernigotte comes third on the finish line. Nice comebacks for Sona Ptackova (Czech Republic) and Takeharu Nakamori (Japan), fourth and fifth respectively.

 

EXPERT ROK PLUS

Qualifying

Contrary to what happened last year, the Expert ROK Plus competes for all the sessions without sharing the track with the Expert ROK. Angelo Ardito (Italy) puts his signature on the pole position in qualifying (49.005 seconds), beating Derek Wang (USA) by 36 thousandths of second. Tino Donadei (Italy) gets the third position.

Heats

Perfect performance for Ariel Castro (USA) in the qualifying heats, with three victories out of three races. The driver of Argentine origin goes from the fourth place to the first, with Wang in second position. Riccardo Pedrola (Italy) gets the third place, ahead of Marco Beretta (Italy) and Tino Donadei (Italy). Ardito withdraws in the first heat and goes back to eighth position in the intermediate ranking.

Final

Castro is immediately the leader at the start, but Pedrola overtakes the polesitter after a few turns; however, the Italian is unable to defend himself from the counterattack of the US-licensed driver who returns at the lead. Castro tries to escape, but Wang - back to second - remains stuck behind the race leader. So, it begins a long duel played on the edge of thousandths of second between the two, but in the end Castro precedes Wang under the checkered flag. Thanks to an excellent comeback, Ardito finishes third after reaching the leading pair, while Pedrola finishes fourth. Fifth place for Beretta.

 

SUPER ROK

Qualifying

Bartosz Grzywacz (Poland) takes the pole position in the Super ROK qualifying, thanks to the best time of 47.058 seconds. Cristian Comanducci (Italy) is second, 78 thousandths of second behind the Pole, while Elliott Shaw (Switzerland) is third, +0.084 from the first place.

Heats

Well done for Grzywacz in the qualifying heats, where the Pole gets three victories out of three. Comanducci takes two second places and confirms himself in second position, while Jaiden Pope (Australia) goes from the 12^th place to third. Fourth position for Yicheng Qu (Poland), in the end Shaw closes the Top 5 of the intermediate ranking.

Final

There are many surprises in the Super ROK final. Thanks to a good start, Pope takes the lead of the operations, with the duo Shaw-Brando Pozzi (Italy) already fighting and Comanducci ahead of Grzywacz, relegated to fifth. At the 3^rd lap, Shaw decides to overtake Pope and tries to escape, but halfway through the race he gets reached again by Comanducci and by Grzywacz and Pozzi. Shaw defend himself from the rivals, but at four laps to go he gets overtaken by Comanducci and Grzywacz, who from that moment, become the main contenders for the victory. At the penultimate lap, Grzywacz overtakes Comanducci and seems set for success, but the Italian, on the last turn of the last lap, makes an incredible overtaking and he becomes the champion! Grzywacz finishes second, but a 5-seconds penalty for the incorrectly positioned front spoiler drops him back to the fifth place. Pozzi gets the honor place, ahead of Shaw and Alessandro De Tullio (USA).

 

SHIFTER ROK

Qualifying

In the Shifter ROK, Samuele Leopardi (Italy) is the leader in the qualifying practices with 46.138 seconds lap time recorded in group 1, while Gabriele Bensi (Italy) finishes at the lead in group 2 and he is second. Marco Chiarello (Italy) and Riccardo Rigodanza (Italy) are third and fourth respectively in the combined ranking.

Heats

Nobody can stop Leopardi, who realizes three victories in the three qualifying heats. The Italian keeps the leadership ahead of Rigodanza, author of two victories and a third place. Three second places for Marco Tormen (Italy), third in the intermediate ranking which sees Chiarello fourth and Sebastian Janczewski (Poland) fifth. Bensi falls to the 11^th place.

Final

When the semaphore turns off, Leopardi goes away from the pole position and takes the lead of the final right from the first meters, while Tormen takes the second place from Rigodanza. During the 4^th lap, Leopardi has a technical problem, he loses several positions and withdraws; so, Tormen takes the lead. After a while there is another surprise: Chiarello is forced to withdraw from the race after receiving a "technical flag" from the sports marshals. But again: Rigodanza raises the white flag with three laps to go, after having been in second position for a long time. Well done for Tormen who triumphs on the finish line, ahead of Karol Pasiewicz (USA), second. However, the American gets a 5-seconds penalty for the front spoiler in the incorrect position and goes back to the seventh place. Luca Ross Nici (Australia) and Jay Coul (Australia) are second and third, while Federico Mascialino (Italy), author of the fastest lap, is fourth. Fifth Manuel Daziano (Italy).