CRG Mini Team set for Italian Karting Championship
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The ROK Cup Italia begins the 2026 season at Cremona Karting in San Martino del Lago (Cremona), over a weekend blessed with sunny weather and spring-like temperatures. At the end of Sunday’s...
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The 2026 24 Hours Karting of Italy is scheduled for this weekend (Saturday, March 14th, and Sunday, March 15th) at the 7 Laghi circuit in Castelletto di Branduzzo. The event organized by CRG, with the...
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The 24 Hours Karting of Italy 2026 will...

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Rotax British Kart classes ready for 2021 season Read more

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EMR Rotax and Karting South Africa - note on joining WOMZA

EMR Rotax and Karting South Africa - note on joining WOMZA Read more

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ROK Cup 2021 calendar updates

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BRP Rotax not only successful in karting, also in Dakar

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Alpha Karting keeps developing and strengthens its goals for 2021

Alpha Karting keeps developing and strengthens its goals for 2021 Read more

Strengthened by its experience and partnerships established in 2020 with successful and renowned teams, the Alpha Karting brand keeps growing through the integration of new partners including KPR in Ile de France. 2021 will be a turning point for the Alpha Karting brand which also centralizes its logistics services in Nantes. This move goes with ensuring continuity in the services and support provided to its customers.

Rotax South Africa: A new dawn for Karting

Rotax South Africa: A new dawn for Karting Read more

It is with great excitement that we announce a new dawn for karting - Karting SA  (sanctioned by World of Motorsport South Africa - WOMZA). For far too long, the Rotax Max Challenge Series has been subjected to unpopular regulations and changes by MSA and its appointees which often are not even involved in karting at all. We are therefore creating a dedicated karting regulating body that listens to karters, clubs, promoters, circuits, etc. when making decisions.

CRG extends the agreement with Rasmus Joutsimies for 2021

CRG extends the agreement with Rasmus Joutsimies for 2021 Read more

CRG is pleased to announce the renewal of the contract for the 2021 season with the OK driver Rasmus Joutsimies. The Finnish driver did an excellent job in 2020 with the official team, culminating with the 8th place at the FIA ​​World Championship and CRG management decided to extend the collaboration also for the 2021 season to give continuity to a work that is going on in the right direction.

Botho G. Wagner has passed away at the age of 85

Botho G. Wagner has passed away at the age of 85 Read more

Botho G. Wagner, the man on the left in the photo above, has passed away on 3rd January 2021 at the age of 85. He had been a karting enthusiast from the very beginning and a true “primary rock” of the discipline in his country. Notably, he had participated as a driver in the first race organised in Germany, on 24 April 1960 in Wiesbaden.

NGM Motorsport moves to CRG

NGM Motorsport moves to CRG Read more

CRG is pleased to announce a new important technical collaboration agreement with the NGM Motorsport team, which from the 2021 season will use CRG technical material in all categories and championships in which the team will take part. In particular, the collaboration with CRG will be very close for the KZ2 category, in which the Venetian team will line up three drivers of undisputed value: Giacomo Pollini, Natalia Balbo and Leonardo Bizzotto. NGM Motorsport is a very important reality in the field of national and international karting and boasts in its palmares various Italian titles and two prestigious placings in FIA events: 3rd place in the KZ2 World Cup last year and 2nd place in the European Championship 2018.

WKA Celebrates its 50th Anniversary in 2021

WKA Celebrates its 50th Anniversary in 2021 Read more

As the sport of karting ages, more milestones come up on the calendar each year.  One prominent achievement is the Golden Anniversary of the World Karting Association.  Established in 1971, the WKA will celebrate its 50th Anniversary in 2021.  To celebrate and bring recognition to the plateau, WKA has officially launched the 50th Anniversary Logo, which will brand the organization throughout its Golden Anniversary year.

Where is Rok Cup running in 2021?

Where is Rok Cup running in 2021? Read more

The calendar is ready now and we are glad to announce where and when the Rok Cup will be run in 2021. The calendar includes 7 Rok Cup Italia races, in which all categories will be present, and three races of the Campionato Italiano ACI-Rok for Rok Senior and Rok Junior alongside the Mini Rok class with a dedicated trophy.

CRG confirms the 24 Hours Karting of Italy in Adria

CRG confirms the 24 Hours Karting of Italy in Adria Read more

CRG and Adria Raceway have extended their partnership for the organization of one of the most successful Kart Endurance events: the 24 Hours Karting of Italy. After three editions held on the Adria track, which had a great success in terms of organization and participation of teams, also in 2021, the event will be held on the Venetian track on the weekend of 13th and 14th of March.

Glenn Keyaert leaves CRG

Glenn Keyaert leaves CRG Read more

At the end of the year, the team manager of the CRG Racing Team, Glenn Keyaert, will leave the Italian company. This is a professional choice of the Belgian technician who, after 9 years in CRG, decided to undertake a new work experience in a different company of the karting sector.

Robert de Haan and Maurice Henry win 2021 Ginetta Junior Scholarship

Robert de Haan and Maurice Henry win 2021 Ginetta Junior Scholarship Read more

Robert de Haan and Maurice Henry have been crowned joint-winners of the 2021 Ginetta Junior Scholarship, the first time in the event’s history that two drivers have emerged with the prize of a fully-funded season in the championship.

Alex Irlando signs with CRG

Alex Irlando signs with CRG Read more

CRG has made official the first piece of its drivers’ line-up for 2021 by announcing Alex Irlando for the KZ category. The agreement with the Apulian driver is part of a large project to strengthen its Racing Team, which CRG is undertaking especially for the KZ categories.

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Champions of the Future: James Wharton among the best at Portimao
Mitchell Koolen
/ Categories: News, International

Champions of the Future: James Wharton among the best at Portimao

Between the two events of the 2020 Champions of the Future series held three months apart, James Wharton's progress has been spectacular. In the south of Portugal, the Australian hopeful showed he was capable of competing with the best in the difficult OK category. Despite an obvious lack of success in the final phase, the driver from the Parolin Racing Kart team was reassured about his level of performance a few days before the World Championship.

James Wharton, who is competing in the OK class this season, is getting ready to take part in the most important competition of the season: the World Championship. Once again, the World Championship promises to be very difficult and challenging, with a large number of competitors. 77 drivers are expected to take part at the Portimao circuit from the 5th to the 8th November."It is important to prepare as well as possible for this event," says the young Rookie, just out of the Junior class. "The second and final round of the Champions of the Future series was an ideal opportunity to check the competitiveness of the equipment and to test myself against the competition, as it took place on the same track in the south of Portugal."

MAGNIFICENT PERFORMANCES IN THE HEATS

In Timed Practice, James Wharton confirmed his speed by setting the 3rd fastest time of his group, which put him in 8th position overall. After that, his progress in the Qualifying Heats proved to be remarkable, with a clear round during these four races. "The Parolin chassis, our technical team, the TM Racing factory as well as our engine tuner did a very good job and it was great to fight at the front in all of the heats. I even won one of them with an excellent start, but unfortunately I fell back three places due to a penalty for a bad position of the front fairing." James Wharton found himself in an excellent 4th place after the heats.

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP IN THE LINE OF FIRE

At the beginning of the Prefinal, James quickly managed to get ahead of his team-mate Lorenzo Travisanutto, a reference in the OK category with his two World Championships and a European Championship. Unfortunately, a few laps later, he retired, the consequence of a crash in the middle of the leading group. He had started the Final with the firm intention to move back up, but this time, he had a mechanical problem, forcing him to retire with many regrets.

"In this race, the possibility of getting on the podium really existed. This incident in the Prefinal really frustrated me, because I had saved my second set of new tyres for the Final. But we have to stay positive. Both Lorenzo and myself proved that the Parolin team was working in the right direction in Portimao. The equipment we have developed together in the last few weeks is performing well and this makes me optimistic for the World Championship. We will have to be determined and ambitious, but without making mistakes."
    
ABOUT JAMES WHARTON

James Wharton is a 14-year-old Australian kart driver currently competing internationally in his first season in the premier class, OK, with the official Parolin Racing Kart factory team.

James started racing karting in Australia at the age of seven. He then shone in the most important single-brand world challenges before making his debut in FIA Karting competition. 13th in the World Junior Championship in his first season in 2018, he also won the KA 100 Junior class in Las Vegas at the SKUSA SuperNationals.

In 2019, in his first full season in OK-Junior, he achieved top results: 9th in the European Championship, 4th in the Italian Championship and 2nd in the legendary Winter Cup in Lonato. Despite an injury, he was fighting for victory in 2nd place in the World Championship when he was stopped by a mechanical problem. He was again victorious at the SKUSA SuperNationals in Las Vegas in the X30-Junior category.

An official Parolin Racing Kart driver, James is involved in the development and tuning of the equipment thanks to a very good rapport with Albino and Marco Parolin. His discovery of OK, the top category in karting, was interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. He restarted competition in July 2020 with the aim of making it into the international top five.

James Wharton plans to continue his career as a single-seater driver with a first step into F4 as soon as he reaches the required age.

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