Gore Shows Early Season Speed at La Conca

Swedish-Australian karting driver Axel “Axeman” Gore kicked off his 2026 season at the opening round of the WSK Super Master Series at La Conca from January 21–25, competing in the OK-N Junior category with Team Driver. Despite a challenging race weekend, Gore’s underlying pace and positive mindset set the tone for an exciting season ahead.

Gore kicked off his 2026 season in La Conca

After a two-month break since the end of the 2025 season, Gore wasted no time getting back up to speed. Across all three official test days, he impressed throughout the paddock by consistently running inside the top five, immediately confirming that his form and confidence had carried over into the new year.

Qualifying, however, proved frustrating for the young Swede. Gore was left perplexed by a sudden loss of pace — an issue that would continue into the opening heats before the root cause was eventually identified. In the first heat, a five-second penalty dropped him back to P17, while an incident involving a crash ahead prevented him from finishing the race in the second heat.

The final heat marked a turning point, with Gore beginning to rediscover his speed despite the unresolved issue, crossing the line in P13. In the Pre-Final, Axeman once again showcased his trademark race craft, carving his way through the field to finish P13, all while continuing to push a kart that was still not performing at its full potential.

Following the Pre-Final, the team successfully identified and rectified the mechanical issue that had masked Gore’s true speed throughout the weekend. Starting towards the rear in the Final, Gore immediately felt the difference, charging forward to gain five positions and finish P26 — a result that, while not reflective of his outright pace, underlined the promise shown across the event.

Reflecting on the opener for the 2026 season, Gore said:

“It was a tough weekend, but I’m actually feeling really positive. Testing showed we’re fast, and once the issue was fixed I could feel straight away that the speed was back. I learned a lot, stayed focused, and now I’m really excited for what’s coming next. A big thank you to Team Driver, Road to Success, and all our partners for the support — I’m ready to keep pushing."

With the opening round now behind him, Gore turns his attention to the WSK Euro Series at Viterbo from February 11–14, where he’s confident the pace shown in testing and the latter stages of La Conca will translate into strong results.

ENDS