Andrea Margutti Trophy
The Andrea Margutti Trophy, also known as the Trofeo Margutti or simply the Margutti, is a kart racing competition organised by Parma Motorsport and sanctioned by ACI Sport. Hosted annually since 1990, it is one of 11 competitions on the international kart racing calendar in classes.
The event was founded in memory of 14-year-old Italian kart racer Andrea Margutti, who died in the 1989 edition of the Torneo delle Industrie. Initially hosted at the Pista d'Oro until 1991, the Margutti soon moved to Parma, where it established itself as a world-leading competition during the "Golden Era" of the 1990s. Following the collapse of Parma in 2008, it moved to Castelletto for three editions before settling at Lonato in 2012. As of 2025, it is contested by over 300 drivers across six classes:, KZ2,,, Mini, and Mini U10. The event was previously also contested in Italian American Motor Engineering classes—X30 Senior and X30 Junior—as well as the primary CIK-FIA direct-drive class.
The palmarès of the Andrea Margutti Trophy includes Formula One drivers Giancarlo Fisichella, André Lotterer, Robert Kubica, Charles Pic, Daniil Kvyat, and Logan Sargeant ; the former won a record four titles between 1990 and 1994 in FA and ICA. As of, seven World Drivers' Champions have contested the event, but none have finished on the podium. Lotterer is the only victor to progress to win an FIA World Championship in auto racing and Sophie Kumpen is the only female driver to win a title.
History
Background (1961–1989)
The Parma Kartdrome, also known as the Pista San Pancrazio or Mondialpista di Fraore, was built in 1961 and inaugurated by the actors Fernandel and Gino Cervi, who were filming Don Camillo: Monsignor locally. The venue soon declared bankruptcy but, in 1967, the local Pellegrini family took management of the site and invested ITL 3 million in upgrading the venue. The owner and former bartender, Umberto Pellegrini, created the Torneo delle Industrie in 1971, which became one of the premier kart racing competitions in the world.In 1988, Andrea Margutti of Rome finished fifth in the Cadetti class of the competition; he progressed to the Nazionale class the following year, during which his kart rolled in free practice and he sustained fatal internal haemorrhaging after his aorta ruptured, aged 14. Margutti had established himself as one of the leading talents in Italian motorsport and finished twenty-first in the CIK-FIA Junior World Cup at Zaragoza that year. His death was one of the most notable moments in kart racing history and marked a turning point in driver safety, as chest and rib protectors were popularised and became mandatory in FIA competition.
Early years at the ''Pista d'Oro'' (1990–1991)
The Andrea Margutti Trophy was founded in 1990, held as a national competition at the Pista d'Oro in Rome—the venue of the inaugural CIK-FIA World Championship—in memory of Margutti, who was local to the venue. The day following his death, a race scheduled there was annulled when every competitor abandoned the event as a sign of mourning. The event was organised within two months of his death by his family and several high-profile figures in the industry.Andrea Belicchi of Parma won the premier Nazionale class in its inaugural year, while local driver Giancarlo Fisichella—who was a close friend of Margutti and kept a photograph of him in his helmet—was victorious in the secondary Intercontinental A division. Fischella progressed to the Formula A class the following year, which replaced Nazionale, winning the competition for the second successive year as Calabria's Pietro Saitta claimed the ICA title. With over 160 entries in each of its inaugural editions and growing international attention, the characteristics of the Pista d'Oro were eventually deemed to ill-match the ambition of the organisers.
Parma (1992–2008)
1992–1993: Move to Parma under the Pellegrini family
After two editions, the event moved to Parma on request from Pellegrini and his family; Margutti's mother, Patrizia, had approached Pellegrini—who pleaded for "a chance to make up" for the 1989 accident—as Parma was one of Margutti's favourite circuits. By 1992, Parma had hosted four World Championships and established itself as the leading venue in international karting, which TKART described as a "temple" and contrasted its importance to the Circuit de Monaco in Formula One, Madison Square Garden in boxing, and Wimbledon in tennis.The Junior Intercontinental A category debuted that year for drivers under the age of 15, won by Bruno Balocco of Cuneo in 1992 and Ennio Gandolfi of Cremona in 1993, who both won the World Cup in those years. Fisichella proceeded to win a record four titles across its first five editions, missing out on the 1993 title in FA to Belicchi; he became the first champion to progress to Formula One in. ICA, which was absent from the event on its Parmense debut, was won by Ascoli Piceno's Sauro Cesetti in 1993. Throughout the early years in Parma, the event grew substantially, with Vroomkart claiming its prestige had come to rival that of the World Championship.
1994–2000: Prominence in international competition
The Andrea Margutti Trophy welcomed increased international competition from 1994 onwards, with over 100 foreign entrants and British driver Doug Bell winning the title that year ahead of CIK-FIA Five Continents Cup winner Giorgio Pantano, who had been runner-up the year prior. Matteo Boscolo won in ICA, as Fisichella capitalised on a collision between Jarno Trulli and Risto Virtanen from the chequered flag to claim his fourth title in FA. Belgian prodigy Sophie Kumpen became the third woman in history to win a win a major international karting title with her victory in the premier FA class in 1995, beating the favoured two-time World Champion Jarno Trulli, as Massimo Del Col and André Lotterer claimed the secondary and junior titles, respectively; Jenson Button ended fifth in ICA. A record 308 drivers from 20 countries entered the competition that year, including 177 foreigners.File:Kimi Raikkonen at Mengjia Longshan Temple 20020319.jpg|thumb|left|Kimi Räikkönen finished fourth in the FA final in 1998—the highest for a World Drivers' Champion.|alt=Kimi Räikkönen standing outside Mengjia Longshan Temple in McLaren team merchandise in 2002
Up to 1996—the founding year of the South Garda Winter Cup—the Andrea Margutti Trophy had been the opening event of the international karting calendar, where chassis and engine manufacturers would debut their seasonal challengers. Lotterer defended his title that year, later becoming the first victor to win an FIA World Championship in, as Gianmaria Bruni finished seventh for the second successive year; 1994 World Champion Alessandro Manetti and Ioannis Antoniadis won the senior divisions, the latter beating Vitantonio Liuzzi. Antonio García and 1995 World Champion Massimiliano Orsini claimed the FA class in the 1997 and 1998 editions, respectively, alongside Steve Molini and Giorgio Evangelisti—who qualified for the final via the repêchage—in ICA, as well as Ben Benjamin and Stefano Fabi in, the latter overcoming opposition from Marco Ardigò and Alessandro Pier Guidi. Finnish ICA Champion Kimi Räikkönen claimed fourth and Nico Rosberg seventh in the 1998 editions of FA and, respectively.
Sauro Cesetti, Michele Rugolo, and Robert Kubica won the 1999 titles, as reigning European Vice-Champion Fernando Alonso claimed fifth in the former after Cesetti passed both him and four-time World Champion Gianluca Beggio for the lead. Lewis Hamilton made one of his first international karting starts in that year's event, later claiming he was racially abused by some French and Italian competitors. Toni Vilander claimed the FA title in 2000, with eventual World Cup and European Championship winner Hamilton claiming seventh. Stefano Proetto beat both Giacomo Ricci and Pier Guidi in ICA, with Pietro Ricci taking the junior crown, where Sebastian Vettel finished seventh.
2001–2008: Final years at Parma and start of KF era
Retaining the three-class system from 1993 into the 21st century, Cesetti claimed his second title in FA, as Jean-Philippe Guignet and Miguel Gallego claimed their first. Davide Gaggianesi beat Cesetti and Pastor Maldonado to the 2002 FA title, with Jérémy Iglesias victorious in the secondary class and Andrea Todisco in junior, the latter overcoming opposition from Sébastien Buemi. The 2003 edition saw a record 26 nationalities represented and the victories of: Carlo van Dam in a race of attrition; Oliver Oakes ; and Dani Clos, who beat Miguel Molina and Jules Bianchi following an engine-related disqualification for initial last-lap victor Fred Martin-Dye. In 2004, FA was won by Ben Hanley ahead of two-time World Champion Davide Forè, ICA by a dominant Henkie Waldschmidt over Jon Lancaster, and by Stefano Coletti; Bianchi repeated his third-place in the latter.Edoardo Mortara capitalised on a collision between Forè and Cesetti to win in FA the following year, where Andrea Dalè dominated the ICA final and Charles Pic beat Roberto Merhi in, the fourth successive victory in the class for Birel. The 2006 edition marked the final year of "Formula" regulations in international kart racing, when the victors were: reigning European Champion Marco Ardigò, Marco Wittmann, and Nigel Moore. The Commission Internationale de Karting introduced "KF" regulations to international competition in 2007, when the three classes—FA, ICA, and —were replaced by KF1, KF2, and KF3, respectively. British driver Gary Catt proceeded to claim the KF1 title in back-to-back years, with Burkhard Maring and Zdeněk Groman victorious in KF2; the former won the title in a battle with Will Stevens and the latter after an engine failure for reigning European Champion Jack Harvey. The inaugural KF3 event was won by Harvey, followed by Ignazio D'Agosto in his 2008 battle with Aaro Vainio.