Karting has been an integral part of motor racing from its inception after World War II. There was an explosion of interest as the world discovered the fun of karting and, as the number of weekend participants grew rapidly, a need arose to organize the sport and develop additional classes for competition. Karting today is seen as the first step towards a career in motor sports. Children as young as 8 can start racing and gain experience that will prove invaluable in the higher echelons of the sport. Proof of this can be seen by the large percentage of formula One and champ car stars that develop their skills in the world of kart racing. Nearly every Formula 1 driver currently racing started their career in karts.

Karting in India

India has only recently taken to karting. In the past few years, we have seen an unprecedented growth in the sport and there are now more than 30 karting circuits in the country with plans to build more in the pipeline. Karting in India started of mainly as a business venture of the most circuits owners. While it has helped popularize the sport to a great degree, the downside is that none of the circuits are built according to any safety guidelines, and as a result, there have been several serious injuries at many circuits.

Recognizing this, the MAI, being the FIA appointed ASN of India, has taken steps to train a group of inspectors who will inspect and grade every circuit in India. CIK-FIA Vice President, Mr. Elamar Hoffmann, was invited by the MAI to conduct a 2-day seminar on circuit safety for Mai delegates. On completion of the seminar, all delegates traveled with Mr. Hoffmann to inspect circuits in Mumbai, Goa, Bangalore and Chennai and gain valuable practical experience.

The MAI inspectors are qualified to grade each circit and specify the maximum power of a kart that can be safely run on that circuit. The result of the inspections will be made available on this site and you can also be sent to anyone one on request. As this information will be freely available, YOU can choose whether the circuit you race on is safe or not. Once a circuit has been inspected by the MAI and any changes incorporated, the circuit as well as their customers can be assured that all safety precautions have been taken to ensure that highest level of safety to the drivers and spectators.

The thing that shocks the person driving a kart of first time is the incredible sensation of speed because you are so low to the ground. Combine that with good acceleration and razor sharp steering response, and it all takes a little getting used to.

Karts are known for their fantastic road holding and handling which is a result of a very low centre of gravity and wide sticky tyres. This feature alone makes karting an extremely safe sport, as the chances of overturning are slim none.

The MAI Indian National Karting Championship

The First MAI National Karting Championship, called the MRF-MAI Formula Mondiale Championship, ran in 2002, being the first championship in India to use proper racing karts and not rental karts as used previously. These racing karts will be identically prepared and transported to all rounds of the championship. This ushered in a new age of karting in India, and the successful formula of running with specially built racing karts was adopted by other Championship as well.

The advantage of using specific karts for racing over the rental karts are plain to see. Rental karts, by their very design, are bigger and heavier than racing karts. The handling of a rental kart is set up more to minimize tyre wear than to provide the best handling. The main problem is that rental karts will never provide and even platform for racing, as each kart has its own peculiarities and their engines have taken quite a beating on the rental circuit. What does this mean to you? A lot actually, as you may end up with a cart that simply has less power than the others, and it doesn’t matter how good you may be, the chances of you setting a pole position time are very remote.

The future of Indian karting

The MAI has taken a decision to only adopt the CIK prescribed ladder for karting, with the First Step to racing being the Formula Mondiale or World Formula using identical 4-stroke engines on the World Kart chassis.

The Second Step of the ladder in India is the Rotax Max class. This is one of the most popular classes of karting in the world, and introduces our drivers to the realm of the high speed racing with 28hp 2-stroke engines.

The Third Step The MAI awaits the introduction of the CIK 125cc engine, which, with the use of restrictors will be used by drivers in all classes from the Rotax level up to the World.