Preston and Burke win at Australian Kart Championship round two
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Preston and Burke win at Australian Kart...

Preston and Burke win at Australian Kart Championship round two

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With a very busy Road Racing Calendar and events so close to each other throughout the year, racers have expressed their concerns that some events are simply not feasible to attend.  Responding...
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2025 Superkarts! USA Pro Tour on the horizon
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Back in 1978, The Blues Brothers took the world by storm with a skit on Saturday Night Live. A movie followed in 1980, then a sequel and some albums as Dan Aykroyd (Elwood) and John Belushi (Joliet...
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Rok Cup Festival – Race Reports

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The ROK Cup Festival closes the 2022 single-brand season by Vortex with a more than positive drivers’ response: a total of 137 at the Franciacorta Karting Track in Castrezzato (Italy), in a two-day competition, featured by the rainy weather, which further raised the bar of the challenge. The finals crowned: Pietro Bagutti (Mini ROK), Tiziano Kuzhnini (Junior ROK), Riccardo Cirelli (Senior ROK), Davide Gherardi (Expert ROK), Sergio Koch (Super ROK) and Marco Vannini (Shifter ROK).

2023 Wera Tools British Kart Championships Rotax Calendar is revealed

2023 Wera Tools British Kart Championships Rotax Calendar is revealed Read more

The Motorsport UK Wera Tools British Kart Championships are thrilled to announce the first category dates of the season ahead as the series reveals the 2023 calendar for the Rotax classes.

WKA Announces 2023 Vega Tires National Road Race Series Schedule

WKA Announces 2023 Vega Tires National Road Race Series Schedule Read more

The much-anticipated World Karting Association (WKA) Vega Tires National Road Race Series schedule is here. After weeks of waiting, series officials are pleased to confirm a solid six-weekend race schedule that will kick off next month at the famed Daytona International Speedway during WKA KartWeek.

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Very well established thanks to the efforts of importer Nash Motorsportz, Energy Corse enjoys an excellent reputation on the American continent. Success is never far away for the Italian brand, which has just achieved magnificent performances at the famous Supernationals in Las Vegas, including a victory in the KA100 Senior and a 2nd place in X30 Senior.

WKA Gold Cup Series visited Jacksonville

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Karting Australia - Ultimate Club Racers crowned in Murray Bridge

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Karting Australia’s Ultimate Club Racer II has been completed in perfect weather conditions at Murray Bridge’s Monarto Karting complex in South Australia. Plenty of high drama surrounded the final day of competition as the Ultimate Club Racers were crowned. South Australian local, Leigh Harrison was the taste of the town, becoming the Ultimate Club Racer Champion in two categories.

All the winners of the ROK Cup Superfinal

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An incredible 2022 ROK Cup Superfinal: 373 drivers (representing 49 different countries) in 7 categories here in South Garda Karting in Lonato (Italy).

Saturday live stream: Rok Cup Superfinal 2022 at South Garda Karting - Lonato

Saturday live stream: Rok Cup Superfinal 2022 at South Garda Karting - Lonato Read more

This weekend the 20th edition of Rok Cup Superfinal taking place in Lonato. The race will start Thursday with the qualifying practices and the heats. The drivers will challenge each other heat after heat until Saturday morning, climax of the race, when the event will culminate with the Finals and Trophies in the afternoon.

Results: Rok Cup Superfinal 2022 at South Garda Karting - Lonato

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This weekend the 20th edition of Rok Cup Superfinal taking place in Lonato. The race will start Thursday with the qualifying practices and the heats. The drivers will challenge each other heat after heat until Saturday morning, climax of the race, when the event will culminate with the Finals and Trophies in the afternoon.

Live timing: Rok Cup Superfinal 2022 at South Garda Karting - Lonato

Live timing: Rok Cup Superfinal 2022 at South Garda Karting - Lonato Read more

This weekend the 20th edition of Rok Cup Superfinal taking place in Lonato. The race will start Thursday with the qualifying practices and the heats. The drivers will challenge each other heat after heat until Saturday morning, climax of the race, when the event will culminate with the Finals and Trophies in the afternoon.

Superkarts! USA regional program completes CalSpeed Karting chapter with final event outside the Auto Club Speedway

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The California ProKart Challenge completed the 2022 season over the October 1-2 weekend, signifying the end of two things. First, the sixth and final round of the Superkarts! USA regional program was contested at the CalSpeed Karting facility. Secondly, the Fontana, California facility hosted its final regional event prior to its closing later this year. CalSpeed has been the site to many Superkarts! USA events during its history, and the final chapter of that story helped to decide this year’s series champions. The backdrop was perfect with weather sunny and warm for the nearly 100 drivers competing over the two-day event on the ‘Classico’ layout.

WKA 2023 Regulations Update Posted to Daytona Pages of Website

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As it is with many series, the off-season brings a time of change, planning for the future, and a new set of rules. With the downtime so short in the karting community, the World Karting Association (WKA) has completed its first-ever digital tech manual that will soon be posted on the WKA website for members' reference.

Summit Racing Equipment Returns to Support WKA in Prestigious Eagle Program

Summit Racing Equipment Returns to Support WKA in Prestigious Eagle Program Read more

A fixture in motorsports, the automotive, and now the karting industry, Summit Racing Equipment has stepped up to the plate to support the World Karting Association (WKA) program on an even higher level. Officially taking over the sponsorship of the WKA Eagle Program for National Champions effective immediately, the WKA Summit Racing Equipment National Champions' Eagle, will be distributed to all WKA National Championships across all series.

Karting Australia released 2023 National Calendar of events

Karting Australia released 2023 National Calendar of events Read more

Karting Australia has released the National Calendar of Events for 2023 featuring a total of eight events across the SP Tools Australian Kart Championship, a new National Series and the Ultimate Club Racer Event. The calendar is complimented by the third Building Better Kart Club Conference to be held on the first weekend in May.

ROK Cup Superfinal, the great event is coming!

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Just a little bit more than one month to the most awaited event by the Rokkers all over the world, the Rok Cup Superfinal! The event will take place from the 19th to the 22nd of October at South Garda Karting Circuit.

Xtream Rock Island Grand Prix entertains big crowds in 27th year

Xtream Rock Island Grand Prix entertains big crowds in 27th year Read more

The Xtream Rock Island Grand Prix, the karting street race that national driver Race Liberante once called “the baddest-ass go-kart race in the world,” once again put on quite a show. This year, the largest crowd since pre-Covid years lined the course and was treated to some great action by some of the nation’s top drivers. Heavy rain late Saturday forced 3 heat races to be moved to Sunday morning, but the rest of the program was right on schedule.

WKA Announces Tentative 2023 Gold Cup Dates

WKA Announces Tentative 2023 Gold Cup Dates Read more

With the second event of the renewed WKA Gold Cup series set for this weekend, series officials are pleased to announce tentative 2023 Gold Cup dates and a new format that will see North and South regions along with a Grand Nationals North/South Shootout.

Motorsport Games Australian Karting representatives announced

Motorsport Games Australian Karting representatives announced Read more

Karting Australia, in conjunction with Motorsport Australia, is proud to announce Australia’s representatives in the Karting disciplines at the 2022 FIA Motorsport Games to be held in France on October 26-30. With the karting disciplines being split into a Senior (15 to 18 years old) and Junior (12 to 14 years old), 2021 Ladies Trophy Winner Aiva Anagnostiadis and 2022 Australian Kart Championship Round Winner Peter Bouzinelos will fly the Australian flag at the event.

Alice Buckley selected as FIA Girls on Track Rising Stars Finalist

Alice Buckley selected as FIA Girls on Track Rising Stars Finalist Read more

Gold Coast teenager Alice Buckley has been selected as a finalist in the FIA Girls on Track – Rising Stars program in France on Sunday. Buckley travelled to the Paul Ricard circuit as one of the 14 young drivers to participate in the four-day evaluation program aboard karts and a Formula 4 car at the Paul Ricard circuit last week.

Music, vendors and lots of racing fun at 27TH Xtream Rock Island Grand Prix

Music, vendors and lots of racing fun at 27TH Xtream Rock Island Grand Prix Read more

The 27th running of the Xtream Rock Island Grand Prix, the world’s largest karting street race, this year will feature 18 racing classes. Admission is free to this family-oriented event. Racing is schedule for 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day with morning practice and afternoon qualifying heat races on Saturday, followed by practice, opening ceremonies and 18 feature races Sunday.

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Progress despite adversity for Maxime Furon-Castelain
Heert-Jan van Keulen
/ Categories: CIKFIA

Progress despite adversity for Maxime Furon-Castelain

The young Luxembourg "lion" Maxime Furon-Castelain has confirmed his steady progress at the forefront of the Academy Trophy despite a technical problem. There was a change of scenery for the second round of the FIA ​​Karting Academy Trophy: after the winding circuit and cool weather of Wackersdorf (DEU), the young talents of the karting world found themselves, in a heat wave, at the Sarno (ITA) track near Naples in mid June. On this circuit with a long straight requiring excellent engine power, the young Luxembourger Maxime Furon-Castelain confirmed his rapid progress by facing the vagaries of the engines with great determination.

 

Immediately among the fastest

Although overwhelming, the heat did not affect Maxime's usual fighting spirit during the weekend. Temperatures often exceeded 35° during the day while the track reached 55° at the foot of Vesuvius. On a circuit that he was learning while racing, Maxime was immediately on the pace by posting the fastest time of the first session of Free Practice among the 48 participants from 45 countries. He confirmed his speed and his understanding of the fast pace at Sarno in Qualifying with the 3rd fastest time in his session, only 25 thousandths of a second from the leader of the Trophy, a remarkable performance for this rookie which placed him in 7th place overall, progressing since Round 1 at Wackersdorf.

Always at the forefront despite technical hazards

"Thanks to my good practice results, I was confident of performing well in the Qualifying Heats," said the Luxembourg representative in in this international competition. "I did not suspect then that I was going to have to fight with an engine which lacked punch! The usual change of engine by draw was not favourable to me. During the Warm-up on Saturday morning, I had the unpleasant surprise of finding myself very far from the lap times I had achieved so far. Instead of a few hundredths or thousandths that I was missing in practice, the deficit with the leaders sometimes reached a second a lap in the first heat, which is huge in this competition where everyone has the same equipment. In these conditions, I managed to make no mistakes during the entire race and to finish in 10th position with the 22nd time".

The Academy Trophy race service did not immediately take Maxime's mechanical problem into account and only changed his carburettor to let him start again in the second heat with the same engine block. Always penalised by his engine, Maxime managed to snatch 8th place in the middle of a turbulent group of drivers who were much faster than him, thanks to his commitment on the track.

 

The young rookie surprises his opponents

He started on Sunday morning with another engine, faster this time, and surprised his opponents in a shotgun start in the third heat where he seized 2nd place. During the six laps, he was fighting a breathless battle on the track against much older and more experienced drivers, immediately returning to his 2nd place as soon as one of his rivals managed to overtake him. Unfortunately, he made a bad choice when attempting to protect his position on the last lap and crossed the finish line in 7th place.

"The sanction was immediate, many of my opponents overtook me in one fell swoop, but I will remember the lesson! Despite my technical problems, I managed to qualify for the Final again, in 12th place, better than at Wackersdorf".

Commitment pays off in the Final

At the start of the Final, Maxime lost time, baulked by the poor start of the driver ahead of him and forced to go wide at the first corner to avoid a collision. He was only 16th on the first lap, but Maxime did not give up and started to attack in a tight pack. Highly motivated on the last lap, he managed to recover 12th place in the Final results, still progressing compared to Round 1 at Wackersdorf.

"This competition was more complicated than expected and I am not unhappy with my result in these conditions. I still learned a lot about racing at this level and I got closer to the top 10: a good experience! I want to thank VDK Racing for technical support, my loved ones and the ACL for the support and encouragement. We were all delighted by the presence of Felipe Massa, President of the CIK-FIA. The organisation by the CIK-FIA and RGMMC was perfect and the Circuito Internazionale Napoli personnel showed remarkable efficiency. A special mention for the official announcer, Jake Sanson, for his infectious enthusiasm in the race commentary."

The next big international FIA Karting meeting for Maxime Furon-Castelain will take place in a month on the Le Mans circuit (FRA) at the last round of the OK-Junior European Championship.

 

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