By: Rotax Can-AM ProKart Challenge
The second season of the Rotax Can-Am ProKart Challenge gets underway this weekend (April 25-27) with the first two rounds scheduled for the Horn Rapids Kart Track in Richland, Washington. Rotax Max Challenge racers from all across the western half of North America will converge on the home of the Tri-City Kart Club for the opening two rounds of the sophomore season of the Can-Am program. With the Superkarts! USA portion of the series sitting idle for the first event, the focus on the weekend will be on the seven Rotax categories offered on the weekend as the chase toward four 2014 Rotax Grand Finals tickets begins.
Last year, the Can-Am Karting Challenge sent four drivers to be part of Team USA at the 2013 Rotax Grand Finals, held at the NOLA Motorsports Park in New Orleans. All four drivers – Joey Wimsett, Derek Wang, Jake Craig and Luke Selliken performed well, with Wimsett becoming the first United States driver to earn a runner-up finish in the competitive DD2 category. This year’s fight will be for a trip to Valencia, Spain as the 2014 Rotax Grand Finals is scheduled for November 25-29 at the new Kartodromo Internacional Lucas Guerrero.
Defending Senior Max champion Jake Craig is slated to attempt a repeat as the Californian travels north in an effort to earn his third Rotax Grand Finals ticket. Many of the same championship contenders will be gunning for Craig, including last year’s Junior Max title winner Luke Selliken. With Selliken moving up to Senior, that opens the door for the Junior Max championship ticket. Among the favorites include last year’s Mini Max champion Sting Ray Robb and runner-up Trenton Sparks. Wang is set to defend his DD2 Masters crown, with the DD2 division wide open with the absence of Joey Wimsett during the opening weekend. Max Wright won the Micro Max title, and is primed to defend the championship beginning this season.
For the other three Rotax categories, drivers will be racing for prizes as well. The Rotax Masters champion will have a paid entry into the Rotax Pan American Challenge event, scheduled for October 15-19 at the GoPro Motorplex in North Carolina. Transportation of the driver’s equipment will also be provided, thanks to Rolison Performance Group. The championship leaders in the Mini Max and Micro Max after the July 4-6 event at the Pat’s Acres Racing Complex in Canby, Oregon will earn a paid entry to their respective country’s Rotax national championship. For Canadian drivers in the two divisions, a paid entry to the Canadian Karting Championships on August 22-24 at the Circuit Karting Mon-Tremblant in Quebec awaits. Should a United States driver be the point leader in either class, they earn a paid entry to the Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah to participate in the 2014 United States Rotax Max Challenge Grand Nationals on July 17-20.
The Superkarts! USA Can-Am ProKart Challenge portion of the series joins the program at the second event, scheduled for May 30-June 1 at the McMinnville Kart Track in McMinnville, Oregon. This weekend’s event will feature a local option Open Shifter category, to welcome those looking to get a head start on the season and to welcome many of the club drivers from the Tri-City Kart Club. New for 2014 are the LO206 categories, providing 4-cycle racers the opportunity to compete at the international level. Three divisions – Senior, Master and Junior are offered with Briggs & Stratton, RLV and Inferno Kart Racing Clutches providing support throughout the season.
Additional industry members showing their support for the Can-Am series include: GoKart Hero, Monster X Tour, Wicked Fabrication, Black Flag Racing, MVP Motorsports, and Rolison Performance Group. CMC and Kart-O-Rama will be trackside to provide support for the LO206 categories, in addition to the other classes in the series.
Visit rotaxcanamprokartchallenge.com and be sure to follow the series on Facebook as the 2014 Rotax Can-Am ProKart Challenge gets underway.
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About: Can-Am Karting Challenge
The Can-Am Karting Challenge is the newest and growing regional racing program, focused around supporting the western coast of North America with drivers and teams coming from Canadian and the United States. The four event program offers categories of the Rotax Max Challenge and Superkarts! USA. This program provides a unique atmosphere, formatted much like a national summer series program. American Rotax racers will receive punches toward the 2014 US Rotax Grand Nationals, with all Rotax drivers racing to earn one of four tickets to the 2014 Rotax Grand Finals in Senior, DD2, DD2 Masters and Junior Max. SKUSA class champions are racing for a guaranteed starting spot at the SKUSA SuperNationals XVIII in Las Vegas.
