Rotax Championship Sunday Delivers Drama in Hamilton

Four Rotax Max Challenge categories took centre stage during the afternoon portion of the 2026 Canadian Karting Championships this past weekend at the Hamilton Karting Complex, with National titles, championship glory and coveted Team Canada invitations all on the line.

Micro-Mini Max featured an impressive 27 drivers, while 25 Junior Max racers and 28 Senior Max competitors battled for their respective National Championships. The Rotax DD2 field was smaller, with six drivers taking to the grid, but the stakes remained high with two Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals tickets available.

The Canadian Karting Championships also served as the final round of the 2026 RMC Quebec championship. With Team Canada selections on the line, the Hamilton weekend represented the final opportunity for Rotax racers to earn their place at the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals this November at Kartódromo Internacional do Algarve in Portimão, Portugal.

With picture-perfect weather throughout the Thursday-to-Sunday event, the Hamilton Karting Complex and Ron Fellows Karting delivered a fantastic championship weekend under the guidance of ASN Canada, the national governing body for motorsports in Canada.

Bulpitt Doubles Up in Micro-Mini Max

The youngest Rotax racers delivered one of the most dramatic stories of the weekend.

Yousef Adi (Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed) appeared to be the driver to beat throughout the event, dominating the early sessions before a technical violation following the PreFinal completely changed the complexion of the National Championship.

Disqualified from the PreFinal, Adi was forced to start Sunday’s 25-lap Final from the very back of the 27-kart field.

The penalty opened the door for several drivers, including Luke Bulpitt (Bulpitt Racing/Parolin), who inherited pole position for the Final and was already a National Champion after winning the Mini ROK title earlier in the day.

When the green flag flew, Bulpitt immediately established himself at the front, with Liam and Tristan Francisco settling in behind him. Angelo Launi (Innisfil/GP Kart) and Max Koutsoukis (CD3-HMP/Kart Republic) completed the early lead group.

While Bulpitt began building a comfortable advantage, Adi wasted no time charging through the field. He climbed to 14th by the end of lap one, reached 10th by lap four and continued his relentless march forward.

At the front, however, the race was relatively calm. Bulpitt controlled the pace while Liam Francisco (Francisco Racing/Ultra Kart) held second. Launi moved past Tristan Francisco (Francisco Racing/Nitro Kart) for third on lap six, but the order at the front remained stable.

Adi continued his comeback, passing Tristan Francisco on lap 12, Launi on lap 18 and Liam Francisco on lap 19.

That was as far as he could go.

Bulpitt cruised across the finish line to secure his second Canadian National Championship of the day, completing a remarkable double. Adi finished two seconds behind in second, while Liam Francisco added another podium result to his day in third.

Launi and Tristan Francisco completed the top five.

One notable absence from Sunday’s Final was Jackson Colligan, who was involved in a serious crash during Saturday afternoon’s activities and required a trip to the hospital. CKN wishes Jackson a speedy recovery and hopes to see him back at the track soon.

The RMC Quebec championship standings also concluded in Hamilton, with Francesco Cosco earning the Mini Max ticket and Zackary Losier securing the Micro Max ticket. Both will represent Team Canada at the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals later this year.

Pos	Driver	Team/Chassis	Diff	Laps	Best Lap
1	Luke Bulpitt	Bulpitt Racing/Parolin	0.000	20	47.228
2	Yousef Adi	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	2.309	20	46.800
3	Liam Francisco	Francisco Racing/Nitro Kart	4.484	20	47.391
4	Angelo Launi	Innisfil Indy/GP Kart	4.716	20	47.208
5	Tristan Francisco	Francisco Racing/ULTRA Kart	6.137	20	47.348
6	Christopher Simon	Premier Karting/TonyKart	8.397	20	47.386
7	Lincoln Lima	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	8.599	20	47.318
8	Max Koutsoukis	CD3-HMP/Kart Republic	9.899	20	47.408
9	Ricky Ramdin	CD3-HMP/Kart Republic	9.988	20	47.417
10	Francesco Cosco	Premier Karting/TonyKart	12.597	20	47.459
11	Nathan Stockwell	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	13.199	20	47.365
12	Aylee Létourneau	PSL Karting/BirelART	15.228	20	47.626
13	Aiden Mainville	SH Karting/SodiKart	15.478	20	47.623
14	Zackary Losier	Premier Karting/Parolin	15.545	20	47.437
15	George Ho	Ultra Kart/Parolin	16.221	20	47.564
16	Tom Gagnon	BCR/BirelART	16.734	20	47.499
17	Emrick Larue	SH Karting/SodiKart	16.957	20	47.741
18	Madox Pelletier	SH Karting/SodiKart	19.202	20	47.380
19	Noah Kishun	Ultra Kart/Praga	21.189	20	47.707
20	Matteo Romeo	Romeo Motorsports/LGK	21.840	20	47.484
21	Cailin Chatterson	JCM/Kosmic	23.012	20	47.808
22	Mateo Ono	Innisfil Indy/GP Kart	27.436	20	48.389
23	Davide Stanghieri	Goodwood/Exprit	44.512	20	49.069
24	Roy (Lu-Chen) Yeh	Pfaff KartSport/Gillard	46.210	20	48.743
25	Tyler Del Bel Belluz	JCM/Kosmic	6 laps	14	47.550
26	Mason Koury	Pfaff KartSport/BirelART	20 laps	–	0.000
DNS	Jackson Colligan	PSL Karting/BirelART	0.000	–	0.000

Rotax Mini Max podium including the two Rotax Grand Finals ticket winners. From Left, Zachary Losier, Yousef Adi, Luke Bulpitt, Liam Francisco and Francesco Cosco (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

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Chasse Claims Back-to-Back Major Wins

For the second consecutive weekend, Olivier Chasse (Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed) found himself standing on top of the Rotax Junior podium.

Fresh off a major victory at the Rotax Canada West Final in Alberta, where he secured his Team Canada invitation, Chasse arrived in Hamilton with one goal: become Canadian National Champion.

Standing in his way was another driver riding a wave of momentum.

Edward Kennedy (Firano Motorsport/TonyKart) had won the KartStars Nationals the previous weekend at the same Hamilton facility and lined up alongside Chasse on the front row for the 25-lap Final.

When the green flag flew, Kennedy grabbed the early lead with Chasse tucked closely behind. Marley Chaudhary (Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed), Robert Tronchi Jr. (REM/Kosmic) and Antoine Bazinet (Pfaff KartSport/Gillard) remained within striking distance during the opening laps.

The battle suffered an early blow on lap two when Leo Da Silva (REM/Kosmic) retired from sixth after contact with Nicholas Lorusso (Premier Karting/TonyKart) on lap three.

Two laps later, Chasse made his move for the lead.

As Chasse began to pull away, Bazinet also made his way forward, moving into third and putting pressure on Kennedy. The pair battled for second over the next six laps, allowing Chasse to steadily increase his advantage.

Kennedy eventually reclaimed second on lap 14, but by then Chasse had disappeared into the distance.

There was no catching the Prime Powerteam driver.

Chasse rounded the final corner, threw his arms into the air and crossed the finish line to secure his first Canadian Karting Championship title and his second major victory in as many weeks.

Kennedy finished runner-up, while Bazinet continued his impressive season by securing the final step on the National podium.

Marco Fazari (REM/Kosmic) and Chaudhary completed the top five.

In the RMC Quebec championship battle, Fazari’s fourth-place result was enough to secure the championship and a Team Canada invitation. He will join Chasse, Bazinet and Da Silva as part of Canada’s Junior Max contingent at the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals.

Pos	Driver	Team/Chassis	Diff	Laps	Best Lap
1	Olivier Chasse	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	0.000	25	44.675
2	Edward Kennedy	Firano Motorsports/TonyKart	2.243	25	44.726
3	Antoine Bazinet	Pfaff KartSport/Gillard	4.553	25	44.766
4	Marco Fazari	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	4.748	25	44.481
5	Marley Chaudhary	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	6.487	25	44.626
6	Robert Tronchi Jr	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	6.549	25	44.648
7	Stefano Lanzillotta	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	12.938	25	44.719
8	William Rossetti	BCR/BirelART	17.396	25	44.875
9	Joshua Wheeler	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	17.879	25	44.727
10	Roy Chang	Goodwood Kartways/Exprit	18.695	25	44.707
11	Mateo Pai	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	19.879	25	44.931
12	Cross Lombardi	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	24.747	25	45.181
13	Niko Werner	Firano Motorsports/TonyKart	25.504	25	45.287
14	Carlo Lot	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	25.887	25	44.837
15	Christian Damianidis	CD3-HMP/Kart Republic	30.770	25	45.247
16	Nicholas Lorusso	Premier Karting/TonyKart	30.931	25	44.777
17	Lorenzo Pigliarolo	Pfaff KartSport/Gillard	31.156	25	45.127
18	Enzo (Chen-Shuo) Yeh	Pfaff KartSport/Gillard	34.748	25	45.296
19	Maddox Gauthier	PSL Karting/BirelART	36.520	25	45.505
20	Kaeleb Pinho	Firano Motorsports/TonyKart	39.025	25	45.954
21	Samuel Werier	Pfaff KartSport/Gillard	43.672	25	46.038
22	Rory Baziuk	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	2 laps	23	45.050
23	Asher Pavan	AMP’D Racing/LN Kart	23 laps	2	46.612
24	Leo Da Silva	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	24 laps	1	48.618
DNS	Jayden Colligan	PSL Karting/BirelART	0.000	–	0.000

Rotax Junior Podium. Marco Fazari, Edward Kennedy, Olivier Chasse and Antoine Bazinet (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

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Lemieux Takes Senior Title After Penalty Drama

The Rotax Senior Max Final was expected to be one of the biggest showdowns of the entire Canadian Karting Championship.

Ayden Ingratta (Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic) had dominated the early portion of the season. Antoine Lemieux (Firano Motorsports/TonyKart) returned to Canada midway through the year and immediately established himself as a championship contender, while Ryan Maxwell (Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed) appeared to be peaking at exactly the right time.

Three elite drivers. Three different teams. One National Championship.

But the highly anticipated showdown took an unexpected turn before the race had even properly begun.

Maxwell had led the way through the heat races and started the Final from pole. However, Ingratta jumped the start before the start lights had gone out.

William Bouthillier (Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic), starting fourth, followed Ingratta forward, while Jeremy St-Cyr (PSL Karting/BirelART) also moved ahead of Maxwell before the field even reached the start line.

Rather than calling for a restart or false-start procedure, officials allowed the race to continue and issued penalties.

The decision dramatically altered the race.

Ingratta, Bouthillier and St-Cyr arrived at corner one with a significant advantage over Maxwell. Before the opening lap was complete, Lemieux had also passed Maxwell for fourth.

The lead group remained together briefly, but Lemieux and Maxwell moved past St-Cyr on lap two.

At the front, Ingratta and Bouthillier began to pull away. With a penalty already displayed for Ingratta, Bouthillier knew that maintaining second place could be enough for the championship.

He applied pressure but never committed to a pass.

Lemieux and Maxwell attempted to close the gap, but with the pace extremely close, neither could get close enough to mount a serious attack.

For 25 laps, the running order remained remarkably stable.

Ingratta crossed the finish line first, with Bouthillier behind him, while Lemieux held off Maxwell for third and St-Cyr completed the top five.

Then came the championship-deciding moment.

Officials stopped the top three after the race to confirm the results, where both Ingratta and Bouthillier were informed they had received penalties for jumping the start.

The penalties completely reshuffled the National Championship podium.

Lemieux was elevated to first and crowned 2026 Canadian Rotax Senior Max National Champion.

Ingratta’s three-second penalty dropped him to second, but only by the slimmest of margins. He finished just 0.06 seconds ahead of Maxwell, who was promoted to third.

Bouthillier fell to fifth, behind St-Cyr.

The RMC Quebec championship also found its final piece of the puzzle in Hamilton. Noah Landry (Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed) finished fourth in the championship standings, but with Ingratta, Bouthillier and Maxwell already holding Team Canada tickets, Landry moved into the next available position and earned his first invitation to the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals.

Pos	Driver	Team/Chassis	Diff	Laps	Best Lap
1	Antoine Lemieux	Firano Motorsports/TonyKart	0.000	25	44.452
2	Ayden Ingratta	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	0.434	25	44.348
3	Ryan Maxwell	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	0.492	25	44.506
4	Jeremy St-Cyr	PSL Karting/BirelART	0.798	25	44.478
5	William Bouthillier	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	0.820	25	44.337
6	Arnaud Sabourin	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	2.448	25	44.539
7	Erik Doan	PSL Karting/BirelART	7.052	25	44.471
8	Aristeides Theodoropoulos	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	9.421	25	44.788
9	Noah Landry	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	11.143	25	44.771
10	Joshua Soumvalis	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	11.838	25	44.734
11	Jackson Lachapelle	HM Propela/Kart Republic	13.046	25	44.752
12	Leopold Schrevel	PSL Karting/BirelART	13.787	25	44.751
13	Ahmed Mostafa	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	13.906	25	44.604
14	Ava Cabral	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	23.091	25	44.874
15	Tiago Serpa	Firano Motorsports/TonyKart	26.755	25	45.007
16	Theo Silveira	Pfaff KartSport/Gillard	27.054	25	45.003
17	Dylan Reny	PSL Karting/BirelART	27.939	25	45.090
18	Kristopher Goulet	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	31.584	25	44.765
19	Jack Stokley	BCR/OTK	40.832	25	45.278
20	Joseph Launi	Innisfil/GP Kart	4 laps	21	0.000
21	Tristan Smith	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	12 laps	13	45.203
22	Jaden Hundal	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	15 laps	10	44.663
23	Yiannis Ilias	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	16 laps	9	45.337
24	Toby Houston	CL Kart	24 laps	1	51.072
25	Roman Doria	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	24 laps	1	48.979
26	Ryker Magro	Firano Motorsports/TonyKart	25 laps	–	0.000
DQ	Maksim Yarich	Racing Edge Motorsports/Kosmic	0.000	25	44.816
DQ	Costa Vervitas	Gillard Kart	0.000	25	45.029

Rotax Senior podium. William Bouthillier, Ayden Ingratta, Antoine Lemieux, Ryan Maxwell and Noah Landry (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

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Baillargeon Dominates Rotax DD2

While the Rotax DD2 field was smaller than the other categories, the two Team Canada invitations available ensured the championship stakes remained high.

Six drivers took part in the Hamilton event, with Alexis Baillargeon (Premier Karting/TonyKart) controlling the weekend from the outset.

The Canadian Karting Championship Final was no different.

Baillargeon was lights out when the green flag flew, leading all 25 laps and steadily building an advantage over the field.

At the finish, he crossed the line 3.5 seconds clear of his closest rival to secure the National Championship.

The battle for second was much closer, with Alberta’s Matthew Taskinen (HM Propela/Kart Republic) working his way through the field to claim the runner-up position.

Joseph Dell’Accio (PSL Karting/BirelART) secured third after successfully fending off Alex Marcil-Perron (HM Propela/Kart Republic).

For Baillargeon, the victory secured another invitation to the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals, although this will be his first appearance as a Rotax DD2 competitor.

Marcil-Perron’s strong season in the RMC Quebec championship also paid dividends. His championship victory earned him the second DD2 ticket and a place on Team Canada.

Pos	Driver	Team/Chassis	Diff	Laps	Best Lap
1	Alexis Baillargeon	Premier Karting/TonyKart	0.000	25	44.377
2	Matthew Taskinen	HM Propela/Kart Republic	3.571	25	44.408
3	Joseph Dell’Accio	PSL Karting/BirelART	8.517	25	44.639
4	Alex Marcil Perron	HM Propela/Kart Republic	9.002	25	44.678
5	Derek Laroche	BCR/BirelART	10.739	25	44.623
6	Owen McCarthy	Prime Powerteam/RedSpeed	20.474	25	44.907

Rotax DD2 podium. Alex Marcil Perron, Alexis Baillargeon and Joseph Dell’Accio (Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN)

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Team Canada Is Complete

With the final Rotax Max Challenge race of the Canadian season now complete, Team Canada is officially set for the 2026 Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals.

A total of 20 Canadian drivers have raced their way into the prestigious international event, which will take place this November at the Kartódromo Internacional do Algarve in Portimão, Portugal.

For the Rotax racers, the Canadian Karting Championships represented much more than a National title. It was the final opportunity to earn a place on Team Canada, and for 20 drivers, the journey now continues on the international stage.

With four more Canadian National Champions crowned in Hamilton, CKN’s coverage of the 2026 Canadian Karting Championships continues with our third and final group report, featuring the remaining five National Championship categories.