JULIA ANGELARD IS HEADING FROM SPAIN TO ITALY

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  • The first round of the Champions of the Future Academy, held in Valencia, ended last weekend.
  • Despite her excellent form in training, Julia Angelard faced problems with her engine during Saturday’s qualifying and races.
  • The 14-year-old Pole, who is currently in 19th place in the general classification, is heading to Italy, where she will take part in the fourth round of the WSK Super Master Series at the Lonato track this coming weekend.

After three rounds in Italy, last weekend Julia Angelard – representing the ORLEN Motorsport Academy – travelled to Spain to face a completely different competition. There, at the Kartodromo Internacional Lucas Guerrero track, the first round, inaugurating the 2026 Champions of the Future Academy season, took place from February 27 to March 1, 2026. It is in this series that the teenage Polish driver is representing the F1 Academy Discover Your Drive program, as one of only nine competitors in the entire field, including three in her category.

Engine problems
The COTFA series has a unique feature: each day, competitors are randomly assigned a new engine, which, in principle, should even the playing field. Unfortunately, in practice, the situation isn’t always so rosy. The engine drawn on Friday allowed for excellent pace, allowing Julia Angelard to place in the top five in practice sessions. Unfortunately, Saturday’s competition was marked by a battle with completely different engines, which proved faulty and even required replacements with working units by the organizers.

As a result, Julia Angelard first tried to minimize the losses resulting from the problematic engine, and then fought in the middle of the pack, trying to find a good pace. The teenage Polish driver finished Saturday’s final in 14th place, while in Sunday’s race, she placed around the second ten. As a result, the F1 Academy Discover Your Drive, More Than Equal program, and ORLEN Motorsport Academy protégé finished the first weekend of Champions of The Future Academy in 19th place overall.

The Polish teenager’s result is solid considering the competitive COTFA field, but she was hungry for more, aiming to finish higher in the overall standings. Now Julia has another chance for a good result – the fourteen-year-old is heading back to Italy to compete in the fourth round of the WSK Super Master Series at her favorite track, South Garda Karting in Lonato.

Julia Angelard: I like competing in Lonato
“The thing about choosing engines every day is that you never know which one you’ll end up with. The one I used in the practice sessions allowed me to achieve results at the very top. Unfortunately, Saturday and Sunday’s engines proved problematic, forcing me to fight in the middle of the pack and struggling to find a good pace. However, I’m happy with the experience I gained this weekend on a completely new track for me, and I hope that the next rounds of the Champions of the Future Academy – the series in which I compete with the support of F1 Academy Discover Your Drive – will be much better. Now I’m off to Italy for another week of racing! I like competing in Lonato – the South Garda Karting track is one of my favorites, and I have many fond memories there. I hope that the upcoming weekend will bring better results,” admits the driver of Minardi Management powered by Dag Ltd.

Julia Angelard’s race schedule in Lonato
Friday, 06.03.2026
08:50 – Free Practice, series 1
09:00 – Free Practice, series 2
09:10 – Free Practice, series 3
11:10 – Qualifying Practice, series 1
11:20 – Qualifying Practice, series 2
11:30 – Qualifying Practice, series 3
14:40 – Eliminatory Heat C-E
15:00 – Eliminatory Heat B-D
17:40 – Eliminatory Heat A-E
18:00 – Eliminatory Heat C-D

Saturday, 07.03.2026
08:32 – Warm up, odd numbers
08:40 – Warm up, evens numbers
11:00 – Eliminatory Heat A-B
11:20 – Eliminatory Heat D-E
14:40 – Eliminatory Heat A-C
15:00 – Eliminatory Heat B-E
17:40 – Eliminatory Heat A-D
18:00 – Eliminatory Heat B-C

Sunday, 08.03.2026
08:32 – Warm up, odd numbers
08:40 – Warm up, even numbers
11:00 – Prefinal A
11:20 – Prefinal B
14:35 – Final