The 2026 Italian Prestige Championship came to a close on Sunday at the historic Castiglione del Lago circuit, where Jan Pancar captured the MX1 title and Valerio Lata secured his third consecutive MX2 crown.
Pancar gets his redemption in MX1
One year after suffering one of the most heartbreaking title defeats of his career, Jan Pancar finally got his reward.
The Slovenian entered the final stages of the 2025 season leading the championship before two mechanical failures in the penultimate round destroyed his title hopes and opened the door for Isak Gifting to claim the crown. One year later, the story ended very differently.
Pancar’s 2026 campaign did not start smoothly either. Extreme weather conditions at the opening round in Ottobiano limited the event to a single moto, where the KTM rider could only manage 17th place. From that point forward, however, he mounted an impressive comeback.
A victory at Round 2 followed by a string of consistent performances kept him firmly in championship contention heading into the closing rounds. When the title battle reached its decisive stage, Pancar delivered exactly when it mattered most, sweeping both motos at each of the final two events to secure the MX1 championship in dominant fashion.
The title marks the second Italian Prestige crown of his career after previously winning the MX2 championship in 2022.
At the final round, Gifting finished second overall with a consistent 2-2 scorecard, while Alessandro Lupino completed the podium for Ducati after posting a pair of third-place finishes.
Lata makes it three in a row
The MX2 championship proved far less dramatic, as Valerio Lata once again underlined why he remains the benchmark rider in the category.
The Honda rider wrapped up the season in style by winning both motos at Castiglione del Lago, securing his fourth overall victory of the year and clinching a third consecutive MX2 title.
Throughout the season, only Maxime Grau managed to consistently challenge Lata’s dominance. The Maddii Honda rider finished second overall in the finale with a pair of runner-up results, while Nicolo Alvisi completed the podium through a steady 4-4 score.
