Polini Italian Cup 2026: duels and excitement in the fourth round at Varano
The Polini Italian Cup 2026 returned to the track at the Autodromo Riccardo Paletti in Varano de’ Melegari for the fourth round of the season. On the technical Parma circuit, the protagonists of the trophy signed Polini delivered another intense day of racing, featuring duels, overtaking moves and hard-fought battles all the way to the chequered flag, as the championship enters its decisive phase.
70 Amatori
Race 1 saw as protaginist D’Agostino leading from pole position, ahead of Ortolani and Dalle Crode. After the first two laps, Ortolani found an opportunity to move into the lead, while behind him D’Agostino, Dalle Crode and Menchini remained locked in a close battle for the top positions. In the second half of the race, D’Agostino launched his attack and regained the lead on lap six, successfully defending it until the chequered flag. Behind him, Dalle Crode completed an impressive comeback, also setting the fastest lap, and finished second less than a second behind the winner, while Menchini secured third place.
In Race 2, D’Agostino once again made a perfect start and immediately took the lead, holding it for all eight laps. Behind him, the battle was much more intense: Ortolani initially held second place ahead of Scaramozzino and Dalle Crode, with the positions changing several times throughout the race. Candelori was particularly impressive, making a superb comeback from 11th on the grid. After quickly climbing to sixth place, he increased his pace further in the closing stages, set the fastest lap of the race and moved into second place on the penultimate lap. D’Agostino therefore crossed the finish line ahead of Candelori, while Scaramozzino completed the podium after a close battle with Ortolani, who finished fourth just 125 thousandths of a second behind.
Overall podium: D’Agostino, Menchini, Pica.
70 Evolution and 70 Supersport
The 70 Evolution and 70 Supersport categories once again shared the track at Varano.
In Race 1, Zani made the most of pole position and led the field ahead of Rea and Martin Mihael. The three remained very close together, with Zani leading for most of the race while Rea and Mihael were ready to take advantage of every opportunity. On lap five, Mihael managed to overtake Rea and move into second place, but on the following lap Zani once again had Rea directly behind him. The race remained wide open until the closing stages, when a crash led to the red flag being shown one lap before the scheduled finish. The classification was therefore determined based on the last completed valid lap, with Martin Mihael taking the victory ahead of Zani and Rea, the three riders separated by less than three tenths of a second.
Race 2 once again saw Zani start from pole and immediately take the lead. Behind him, the order was constantly changing: Rea was second on the opening lap, followed by Cimatti and Mihael, who swapped positions, while Sauro quickly climbed through the field from the middle of the pack to move into second place halfway through the race. Zani, however, remained in control and resisted the pressure from the chasing riders all the way to the chequered flag to claim victory. Mihael recovered second place in the closing stages, with Sauro completing the podium. Rea finished fourth after setting the fastest lap of the race.
In the 70 Supersport class, Race 1 went to Lazzoni, who took the victory ahead of Bobice and Manzo, with just 139 thousandths of a second separating the two. Race 2 produced an even more closely fought finish: Manzo, who started from 15th on the overall grid, progressively climbed through the field to take the win ahead of Lazzoni, while Bobice once again secured a podium finishing in third place.
70 Evolution overall podium: Zani, Mihael, Rea.
70 Supersport overall podium: Lazzoni, Manzo, Bobice.
100 Big Evo Open and 100 Sport
The 100 Big Evo Open and 100 Sport classes also shared the grid, producing two particularly hard-fought races.
In Race 1, Birtele started from pole and immediately took the lead, remaining at the front for the first seven laps. Behind him, Koren overtook Leonardi on the second lap and remained firmly in second place, while Consoli held fourth ahead of Marko Mihael. However, the final lap brought a twist: Birtele failed to complete the eighth lap, allowing Koren to inherit the lead and take victory in the 100 Big Evo Open ahead of Leonardi and Consoli. In the 100 Sport class, Chiollo finished ahead of Tortosa and Fulgeri after the eight laps.
Race 2 gave Birtele the opportunity to bounce back. Starting from pole once again, he led from start to finish and set a very strong pace. Koren tried to stay with him, but the leader gradually built the necessary gap and crossed the finish line almost three seconds ahead, taking victory in the 100 Big Evo Open and setting a new record time of 1:14.930. Behind them, the battle for third place was decided on the final lap, when Mihael overtook Leonardi to complete the podium.
The 100 Sport class also produced an exciting finish. Fulgeri moved steadily up the field and took the class lead on lap seven, ahead of Tortosa and Chiollo. The three riders crossed the finish line separated by just 659 thousandths of a second, with Fulgeri taking the victory ahead of Tortosa and Chiollo.
100 Big Evo Open overall podium: Koren, Leonardi, Marko Mihael.
100 Sport overall podium: Fulgeri, Chiollo, Tortosa.