Australian James Anagnostiadis placed fourth as Thibaut Ramaekers and Noah Baglin were crowned the new World Karting Champions in OK and Junior in Sweden on the weekend.
Going into finals day, Australia had two real contenders for the titles. James Anagnostiadis had enjoyed a brilliant race meeting (see previous post) and was top scorer in OK, while William Calleja was ranked P6 in Junior.
A three-second victory over Ramaekers in the Super Heat boded well for Anagnostiadis, but he never quite had the ultimate pace in the main race, at one point dropping to seventh before manoeuvring the traffic in the final laps to take fourth.
A minor, but ultimately disastrous, spin by Calleja in the roll-up lap for his Super Heat effectively killed his challenge for a world title. On wets on a damp track, William lost the back end of the kart while warming the tyres and was not able to re-start the engine, thus missing the Super Heat. This dropped him to a P13 start in the final, but he went out on the opening lap, caught up in the mid-field craziness.
Sebastian Eskandari-Marandi also made the Junior final, finishing P22 after starting 33rd. Eskandari posted on socials he thought he was pretty much on the pace in the leadup, until “we bolted the race tyres on (for qualifying)”.
“The kart just didn’t work” he said. “This was the theme in the paddock with some drivers having issues with different size tyres and different hardness. With no side bite and kart just sitting flat and sliding, it was enough to cost us about 3 tenths.”
Lewis Francis made it through to the Super Heats in OK, but 23rd was not enough to get the KR driver into the final.
Three other Aussies gained valuable international experience in OK Junior, but did not transfer to the Super Heats. Laim Carr ended the heats ranked 89th (Qualified: 67), Mason Lucchitti 93rd (Q: 107) and Braxton Regan 103rd (Q: 94).
- On-demand video of Sunday’s super heats, finals and presentation, below.
- full results are HERE
official FIA wrap
Ramaekers and Baglin crowned FIA Karting World Champions
The Kristianstad circuit crowned two promising young motorsport talents at the Mondokart.com FIA Karting World Championship – OK & Junior. No stranger to the podium at major international events, Belgium’s Thibaut Ramaekers claimed the top spot this afternoon. A year after losing the title on the last lap, Britain’s Noah Baglin bounced back in OK-Junior, dominating his rivals at the decisive moment of the competition.
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On Sunday, the weather preoccupied the drivers and teams. In the morning, the Super Heats saw changing conditions, leading to a few twists and turns with the occasional use of rain tyres, as well as the use of slicks on a tricky track. While some favourites dropped back, other drivers took advantage to gain a few places on the starting grid for the Final. In OK, James Anagnostiadis (AUS) remained in the lead before the big showdown thanks to his victory in Super Heat A, while Super Heat B went to Lev Krutoholov (UKR). In OK-Junior, the top two from the Qualifying Heats confirmed their positions, with Noah Baglin (GBR) winning Super Heat A and Dean Hoogendoorn (NED) winning Super Heat B. Finally, the skies cleared and the two Finals were able to take place with Maxxis slick tyres, in the “option” version in OK-Junior and “prime” in OK, with temperatures of around 18°C.
FIA Karting President Akbar Ebrahim and Vice-President John Ryan were in attendance at the Åsum Ring, where the Kristianstad Karting Klubb provided high-quality organisation. Broadcast via live streaming, the event thrilled a large international audience.
OK: Thibaut Ramaekers crowned champion
Starting from pole position in the Final, James Anagnostiadis (AUS) did not hold onto his lead for long, quickly being overtaken by Zac Drummond (GBR). The leading group remained compact, with Daniel Kelleher (IRL) and Lev Krutoholov (UKR) lying in wait. Close behind, Joe Turney (GBR) and Thibaut Ramaekers (BEL) launched their attack. As Anagnostiadis lost valuable places, Drummond found himself under pressure. At the end of the first third of the race, Turney and Ramaekers found an opening. A magnificent head-to-head battle ensued between the two drivers, demonstrating experience (Turney is 24) versus the next generation (Ramaekers is 15)! Slightly faster, the Belgian got the better of the Briton to clinch the coveted FIA Karting World Championship title, finishing seven tenths ahead of his rival at the chequered flag.
Behind them, Krutoholov won the duel for third place on the podium against Anagnostiadis. Ranked 57th in Qualifying and 14th on the grid for the Final, 2024 OK-Junior World Champion Kenzo Craigie (GBR) climbed up to fifth place ahead of Drummond. Aston Sharp (GBR) made the most progress in the Final, gaining 22 places to finish eighth behind Zac Green (GBR). Kelleher had a difficult end to the race, while Thomas Pradier (FRA) and Noah Wolfe (GBR) did not achieve the success they had hoped for. Although he set the fastest lap, 2025 European Champion Christian Costoya (ESP) had too many mishaps during the competition to hope for a podium finish. Oliver Kinnmark was the best Swedish driver in 17th place.
Top 12 in the Mondokart.com FIA Karting World Championship – OK
1- Ramaekers, Thibaut (BEL – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
2- Turney, Joe (GBR – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
3- Krutoholov, Lev (UKR – Energy / IAME / Maxxis)
4- Anagnostiadis, James (AUS – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
5- Craigie, Kenzo (GBR – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
6- Drummond, Zac (GBR – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
7- Green, Zac (GBR – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
8- Sharp, Aston (GBR – Birelart / TM Kart / Maxxis)
9- Burnett, Jensen (CAN – Exprit / TM Kart / Maxxis)
10- Sala, Filippo (ITA – Exprit / TM Kart / Maxxis)
11- Martinese, Iacopo (ITA – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
12- Stiller, Peter (ITA – KR / IAME / Maxxis) …
OK-Junior: Noah Baglin leads from start to finish
With a perfect start and a particularly fast first lap that quickly gave him a lead of more than a second, Noah Baglin left his rivals to battle it out among themselves during the Final. He had a flawless race, triumphing at the end of the 21 laps with a lead of more than four seconds! Evan Purcell (GBR) tried to hold back the chasing pack, but then fell down the rankings. The title of Vice-World Champion was contested between Valerio Viapana (ITA), Dean Hoogendoorn (NED), who took pole position in qualifying, and the revelation Leonardo Gorski (POL). Viapana made the difference at the halfway point, before holding off Hoogendoorn to the finish, while Gorski had fallen behind.
Ilie Crisan (CAN) was hoping to play a more important role, starting from third place, before getting boxed in at the start. He bravely moved up to fifth place ahead of Gianmatteo Rousseau (PAN), who made a brilliant comeback from ninth on the grid. Behind Will Green (GBR), who finished seventh, Manuel Miguez (ESP) also made an impressive comeback, moving up 18 places. Henri-Constant Kumpen (BEL), a well-known name in motorsport, made it into the top 10, as did Luka Scelles (FRA), who finished with a fastest lap faster than all the drivers ahead of him! Only his compatriot Matéo Rivals was faster. Turner Brown (USA) was clearly the unluckiest driver.
Top 12 in the FIA Karting World Championship Mondokart.com – OK-Junior
1- Baglin, Noah (GBR – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
2- Viapiana, Valerio (ITA – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
3- Hoogendoorn, Dean (NED – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
4- Gorski, Leonardo (POL – Henza Kart / IAME / Maxxis)
5- Crisan, Ilie (CAN – Tony Kart / Vortex / Maxxis)
6- Rousseau, Gianmatteo (PAN – Exprit / TM Kart / Maxxis)
7- Green, Will (GBR – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
8- Miguez, Manuel (ESP – CRG / IAME / Maxxis)
9- Kumpen, Henri-Constant (BEL – Tony Kart / Vortex / Maxxis)
10- Scelles, Luka (FRA – KR / IAME / Maxxis)
11- Walle, Oskari (FIN – Parolin / TM Kart / Maxxis)
12- Manach, Benjamin (ESP – Exprit / TM Kart / Maxxis)…
Find the complete results of the Kristianstad event on www.fiakarting.com and follow the evolution of the International Karting Ranking (IKR) after the Swedish event.
The next event will be held in Italy at the Cremona circuit from 25th to 28th September 2025 for the FIA Karting World Cup – OK-N and ON-N Junior, as well as for the third and final competition of the FIA Karting Academy Trophy – Junior.
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