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India's karting c'ship overhauled, JK Tyre back as lead sponsor

JK Tyre has returned as the title sponsor of the National Karting Championship in 2019, coinciding with a major overhaul for the entry-level series.

Track action

Track action

JK Tyre Racing

JK Tyre pulled out of the national karting scene after the 2016 season, citing spiralling costs of competition and a lack of graduation of drivers from karts to JK Tyre’s national racing series.

However, just two years after its withdrawal, JK Tyre has announced that it will resume backing the National Karting Championship.

The series itself has undergone a major shake-up, with competition divided into three broad categories - each with a different calendar and a different type of kart.

JK Tyre 4-stroke Sodi Kart Sprint Karting Championship - The Sodi Kart championship will serve as the entry to karting and marks the return of four-stroke karting to India. The series will run on Sodi Karts imported from France and a four-stroke Honda GX 200 engine. Top speed will be limited to 70km/hr. The winner of the 4-stroke championship will get an option to choose between X30 and the Rotax series.

X-30 Karting - The X-30 championship will serve as the middle ground between 4-stroke Sodi series and two-stroke Rotax series. Karters will be split across Cadet, Junior and Senior classes based on their age, with winners from each category getting a chance to compete in the X30 World Finals in Europe. Crucially, all karts will be run by a single team, ensuring equal equipment for all karters.

Two-stroke Rotax - The National Karting Championship will continue to run internationally-acclaimed two-stroke Rotax karts in its flagship category. Unlike X-30 which is run in centralised manner, the Rotax category will see six teams battling it out for the top spot, namely Peregrine Racing, Birel Art Racing, Rayo Racing, Erda Racing, RD Racing and MSport. The winner of the category will get to compete in the Rotax Max Grand Finals along with other finalists from around the world.

The X30 and Rotax champions will also get a sponsored drive in the LGB category of JK Tyre National Racing Championship.

Speaking about JK’s return to karting and the major overhaul of the series itself, Mr. Sanjay Sharma, Head of JK Motorsport, said, “We have repackaged our entire karting programme this season, with the main aim of getting more and more people exposed to the sport and also to make it affordable for them.

“We went back to the drawing board and decided to get back the four-stroke karting event back in the championship.

“The championship which was the most sought-after event in the 2000s not just attracted hundreds of participants but also drew viewers in huge numbers because of the added entertainment quotient.

“Along with giving them exposure to the very first level of motorsport, participants who would want to pursue it seriously will now have an option to choose from X-30 and Rotax, both internationally acclaimed two-stroke karting championships.

“Therefore, a participant can start from four-stroke karting, move on to two-stroke, thereafter to Indian make Formula Car (LGB), to JK Euro to Formula 3 and so on.”

JK Tyre - Sodi Kart Junior, Senior & Ladies Classes:

Round

Date

City

Round 1

Aug 24-25

Bangalore

Round 2

Sept 14-15

Cochin/Baroda

Round 3

Oct 12-13

Bhopal

Round 4

Oct 26-27

Chandigarh

Round 5

Nov 30- Dec 1

Delhi

JK Tyre X-30 Cadet, Junior & Senior Classes:

Round

Date

City

Round 1

May 24-26

Bangalore

Round 2

June 14-16

Bangalore

Round 3& 4

July 12-14

Hyderabad

Round 5

Aug 2-4

Bangalore

JK Tyre Rotax Micro, Junior & Senior Classes:

Round

Date

City

Round 1

June 7-9

Bangalore

Round 2

July 5-7

Bangalore

Round 3& 4

Aug 9-11

Hyderabad

Round 5

Sept 6-8

Bangalore

 

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