Niccolò Perico has won the 2026 FIA Karting World Cup in the OK-N Junior category after a perfect weekend, winning every heat, his Super Heat and the final. The Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team junior driver claims his first FIA Karting title and secures his position as one of the most exciting young drivers to watch.
Super Heats: Perico takes undisputed pole
Niccolò Perico, the only junior driver to score a perfect 150 points through the heats, occupied the Super Heat pole position and led throughout, only facing light pressure from Elton Hedfors, who kept within a second throughout the heat. Perico’s Super Heat win and unrivalled run of form this weekend therefore guaranteed him pole position for the final as the best-placed driver in the OK-N Junior category.
In the battle for the remaining front-row position, Luigi D’Ascoli faced the threat of a surging John Mclellan, who gained seven positions to challenge for the Super Heat win. D’Ascoli ultimately managed to keep the American driver at bay with a half-second gap over the line to confirm an Italian front-row lockout for the final.
Friday’s polesitter, Schelvis Moron, delivered the drive of the morning, making up ground in the Super Heat to finish in third position after starting in tenth place. His disqualification from his first heat had set his weekend back, but his successful day yesterday, with a win and a second place, resulted in a ninth-place start for the final.
The final: Perico puts on a show
When the Italian front-row showdown commenced, both drivers raced fairly and cleanly over the opening laps of the deciding race for the junior World Cup honours. John Mclellan triggered the strongest challenge from behind and began to climb into the top five during the early laps, with the leading positions ahead of him unchanged.
Mclellan was soon joined by Troy Ferguson as they commenced an American push through the field, with both drivers making up a series of places to quickly occupy fourth and fifth by the halfway point. Ferguson, in particular, began to deliver what would become a memorable and skilful performance from his 13th-place start on the grid.
At the sharp end of the race, Perico, D’Ascoli and Hedfors initially broke away, with the American tussle for fourth unfolding behind them and allowing Perico to steadily build a buffer from his nearest challenger. Perico delivered an exemplary performance this weekend which no other driver could come close to. From qualifying in third position to his heat pace and final dominance, he has shown why he is a Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team junior driver.
Perico went on to cross the line with over five seconds to his nearest rival, an incredible display of race pace that will catch the eye of the motorsport world. As the Italian national anthem rang out across the circuit, the assembled crowd were sure to have witnessed a rising star of the sport and one of the most exciting prospects in karting.
Behind Perico, attention had turned to the final spot on the podium, where Troy Ferguson had sliced the gap to Hedfors and made the crucial move into third position, with Mclellan following in his slipstream. The gap to D’Ascoli was seemingly a challenge too far for Ferguson, but in the closing laps he found a burst of pace, similar to the final-lap push he unleashed in Malaysia last year to win the Arrive and Drive World Cup, and successfully gained second position on track.
However, a post-race front fairing penalty meant Ferguson’s second step on the podium was sadly short-lived: D’Ascoli regained second and Mclellan was promoted to the final step of the podium.
Elsewhere in the final, Friday’s polesitter Schelvis Moron made contact with Titz to prematurely end his race, whilst Sulpizio and Moehring were the other big beneficiaries of the final race to end within the top ten. The biggest gain of the day, however, went to Italian driver Raffaele Mini, who climbed a total of 15 places.
Perico: “Super happy”
Niccolò Perico, FIA Karting World Cup winner (OK-N Junior), said: “Super happy about it, I don’t even have words about it. It was amazing, I just really want to thank everyone that has supported me this weekend. All the team, KR, IAME, my mechanics, my family, Mercedes. We’ll see what we can do at the next one, but for now we’ll be about this one.”
Top 3 in the FIA Karting World Cup (OK-N Junior)
- Niccolò Perico (ITA, KR)
- Luigi D’Ascoli (ITA, Modena)
- John Mclellan (USA, Ward)
FIA Karting next returns for the 2026 Mondokart.com FIA Karting World Championship (OK, Junior) in La Conca, Italy, over 5-8 November 2026.
Source: FIA Karting.
