Defending SuperNationals winner Gus Lawrence leads the standings heading into November (Photo: EKN)

Only two more events remain on the schedule for the 2026 eKartingNews.com TaG Driver Rankings presented by Stilo USA. Following the action at the upcoming ROK Vegas 2026 and the Superkarts! USA SuperNationals 29, the honor of EKN Driver of the Year will be decided. The point totals have shuffled around with the loss of key events from 2025 falling off the 12-month sliding scale, however, many of the positions remain unchanged in the top 10 of the standings. At the top remains Rolison Performance Group driver Gus Lawrence.

The British driver and defending SKUSA SuperNationals winner goes into the final stretch for Driver of the Year with a 77-point advantage over fellow Brit Oliver Hodgson (Factory Karts). The year-end race has been difficult for Hodgson over the last two years, unable to qualify for the SuperSunday action. Third remains Pauly Massimino (Brandon Jarsocrak Racing / LN Kart) – who has the most events recorded at 26. A 13th in 2023 was his best finish at the SuperNationals. Holding onto fourth with no change in score is Brazilian Diego Ramos (PSL Karting / Birelart). Under 200 points back, he is still within reach of the top spot heading into the SuperNationals where Ramos was one lap away from winning the big one.

The fifth position has changed with Alexander Vanchev (Rolison Performance Group / Kosmic) moving up from seventh. His point total remains unchanged and will stay that way with the Florida driver not scheduled to race at the SuperNationals. He jumped ahead of Blake Nash (Nash Motorsportz / EOS) and Caden McQueen (Velocity Racing / Sodikart), who both lost points. The IAME USA Grand National Championship, Stars finale and Rotax US Trophy Final from 2025 dropped from everyone’s score. That moved Nash to sixth and McQueen to seventh. Nash has a best finish of 19th in 2023 at the SuperNationals while McQueen was a few corners short of the victory last year, placing second.

The final three spots in the top 10 remain unchanged. Canadian Ayden Ingratta (Racing Edge Motorsports / Kosmic) kept the same score and could see an update with a performance at ROK Vegas 2026. He will not be at the SuperNationals with him attending the Rotax Grand Finals in Portugal for Team Canada after his RMC America’s Trophy ticket. The big change for the end of the year could be from ninth in the standings Joe Turney (MPG Motorsports / Kart Republic). The British driver crossed the line as the provisional winner, however, was penalized back to 11th. The difference between his score from last year and Gus’ win is 116. A second SuperNats triumph for the reigning SKUSA Pro Tour champion could be a path to Driver of the Year for 2026. Sitting 10th is Jake Drew (Rolison Performance Group / Kosmic) with no change in his score. The California driver was top qualifier at the SuperNationals but was 23rd in the main event with GFC Karting. Drew is still seeking that first win with RPG, heading to both ROK Vegas and SuperNationals.

The driver ‘On The Move’ is John Antonino (MPG Motorsports / Kart Republic) – up 23 spots to 22nd with a seventh result tabulated to his total. He will be making his first Senior start the SuperNationals in Las Vegas after successful results in the Junior ranks.

Upcoming Events

TaG #1 – Gus Lawrence
West Tilbury, England

(Photo: EKN)

The chance to defend the SKUSA SuperNationals Pro X30 victory is around the corner. The Rolison Performance Group / Kosmic driver heads back to the USA after months away following the end of the SKUSA Pro Tour, finishing vice champion in 2026 after the finale in July. The total for Lawrence shrunk heading into November with the loss of his IAME USA Grand National Championship event from 2025. The SuperNats victory from last year is the benchmark score, and his title defense on SuperSunday will have a big impact on him finishing as the EKN Driver of the Year for 2026.

Point Breakdown

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TaG #2 – Oliver Hodgson
Phoenix, Arizona

(Photo: EKN)

Now a full-time resident in the United States and moving over to Factory Karts, Hodgson has become a regular contender at each major event. Wins at the SKUSA Winter Series and SKUSA Pro Tour have solidified the veteran’s status in the States, and now a candidate for EKN Driver of the Year. Despite losing about 60 points from the win at the Rotax US Trophy Final last year getting dropped from his total, Hodgson has a shot at the #1 spot. What he needs to do is break his poor performance record at the SuperNationals over the last three editions.

Point Breakdown

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TaG #3 – Pauly Massimino
Indian Trail, North Carolina

(Photo: EKN)

The 2026 season is by far the best overall for the Brandon Jarsocrak Racing / LN Kart driver. Massimino placed third at the SKUSA Pro Tour standings and secured his first career United States Pro Kart Series championship. Add in all the success at the KA level, Massimino is a constant threat. His drive to be Driver of the Year has him third, trailing Hodgson in second by 54 points after losing two key results from last year – the IAME USA Grand National Championship and runner-up at the Rotax US Trophy Final in 2025. A strong finish, and ahead of Lawrence and Hodgson, could take Massimino to the #1 spot to close out 2026.

Point Breakdown

EKN Driver Rankings Calculation Process
The EKN Driver Rankings are calculated using a driver’s best finishes in major North American races. Assembled using events from the previous 12 months from the current date, we use a driver’s best seven finishes in the TaG and Shifterkart categories to determine their overall current point total. With each new release, results posted from more than one year ago are discarded. To deliver our ranking list, we tabulate the results of all the national programs and selected regional programs. We have also included the results for the major one-off events such as the SKUSA SuperNationals, the Rock Island Grand Prix, and other special races.

Each race is initially weighted based on the prestige and history of the event or series with a score of ten (10) being the highest attainable base ranking. For 2026, the SKUSA SuperNationals will receive a score of 10 in its initial weighting in the TaG and Shifterkart categories. A base ranking of 9.5 is awarded to special events of ROK Vegas, RMC Trophy Final, and IAME Grand National Championship. The SKUSA Pro Tour carries a 9.5 for Shifterkart while a 9 base ranking for TaG. Other programs such as SKUSA Winter Series, United States Pro Kart Series, Florida Winter Tour, and RMC America’s Trophy, RMC Winter Trophy, Stars Karting Championship begin with a base ranking of 9. Other programs are given a base ranking of either 8.5 or 8.0.

The EKN staff reserves the right to adjust the rankings of each event throughout the year. A minimum entry total for any event to be considered for the Driver Rankings program is five (5). If an event does not have at least five (5) drivers starting the race, those results will not be tabulated toward the Driver Rankings.

Added to these initial rankings are two variables that help confirm the true importance of an event to the ranking process – field size and field strength. A percentage of one weighting point is added for the size of the field, while the number of existing top-50 drivers entered offers another full point or fraction of a point. The sum of these numbers becomes the overall ranking for any race.

Following a race, drivers receive points based on their finishing positions with 100 points earned for a win. Each subsequent position drops by one point with 99 points given to the second-place driver and so on throughout the field. These points are then multiplied by the overall ranking to produce a driver’s final point total from each event. Using a driver’s best seven races, we calculate each driver’s overall score and subsequent ranking.

eKartingNews.com TaG Driver Rankings presented by Stilo USA – as of October 19, 2026

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