A new exciting motor sport challenge will crown the firmament of the Principality starting from next year but the engines are already heating up quietly and emission-free. The Monaco E-Kart Championship 2022 (MEKC) will be the first challenge to involve 100% energy vehicles and the selection of emerging talents has just began. On the 13th and 14th November 2021 the first meeting was held at Kart Indoor Monaco addressed to the category EK3 Mini, for boys and girls aged 7-11 years old.
The two-day challenge started with the right gear with the participation of thirty-five motivated candidates, the best twelve of whom performed on Sunday to reach the podium on board zero-impact true racing cars. And the next couple of weekends will be devoted to EK2 Junior (from 11 to 14 years old) and to EK1 Senior (older than 14 years old). The new driving test starts from the idea of Clivio Piccione whose knowledge as a motorsport champion driver allowed him to reach important goals in F3, GP2 and A1 Grand Prix, bringing up Monaco’s flag.
The Monaco E-Kart Championship will develop in six circuits of different locations, like every Grand Prix, that is the Principality of Monaco, Nice, Menton, and one Italian spot.
Thus, the three winners of each weekly stage (named: Volant MEKC), selected by a Technical Jury, will access to the 2022 E-Kart Season without extra charges, receiving a monetary reward necessary for covering the entire training and enrolment, according to the total budget of 147,000 EUR. A precious investment in the talents of the future as well as an excellent way to bring new generations to this discipline, increasingly unaffordable due to the high costs. Karting, on the contrary, can represent the springboard to a career as sports driver or simply a hobby to share with friends.
The first recruitment was launched in the spirit of fun, adrenaline and a sustainable glimpse to best welcome the young drivers and their families coming even from the furthest parts of France and vicinity.
A format that is designed to be winning as Clivio Piccione (C.P.) highlighted exclusively to HelloMonaco.
“The prior mission is to offer something new within the E-Karting I have been supporting for more than ten years in the Principality and out of its territory; so, I am fully committed in it to kick off this new challenge”.
HelloMonaco: Where does the choice of electric vehicles come from?
C.P.: Making an important contribution to environmental problems is crucial in the present times and we want to give a strong message in this regard. And this does not diminish the sporting side of the race, giving an added value to the whole test. Including the E-Karting in a real motor sport championship is very innovative, following the same three-category schedule used for thermal-motor racing cars, according to age groups and electric power. My team and I are then working to guarantee all drivers, whether they are boys or girls, the same race conditions. That means everyone uses the same chassis, the same engine, the same equipment… so that only he or she makes a difference on the track.
HelloMonaco: What goal have you set in terms of participants?
C.P.: Of course, we look forward to finding some characters who can access to the highest steps of motorsport, whatever the category is. In the meantime, we want all young participants to develop their skills under the best possible conditions, getting them used to a professional sport. We really want to educate them for a better future, being more and more aware of a responsible consumption of resources. And practicing Sport helps a lot!
HelloMonaco: What values can we derive from E-Karting?
C.P.: The Karting category represents the first stage for those who wants to invest their lives in motorsport. Gender equity and the ecologist side is what really identifies this new challenge open to a larger audience than usual by inviting them to the discovery of electric-vehicle technology applied to Karting. The weight of the rechargeable batteries, on board any race car, makes the driving even more challenging through an expanded mechanical grip.
Mateo Rivals, a gifted boy aged 10 from Carcassonne, was the best for performance and regularity, followed by Vadim Renault (Nice, France), Andrea Manni (Monaco) and Walter Schulz (Verdun, France).
“I really enjoy playing Karting and do love the mechanics of this sport I have been practicing for three years”, pointed out the winner. “I have dreamed of winning since the very beginning of the race and I succeeded, I am really excited”, he concluded.
“We are very happy to be in Monaco accompanying our son to whom I transmitted my passion for motorsport, a true tradition in our family”, stated Julien Rivals, Mateo’s father.
“My passion for Karting was born a few years ago and the faster I go, the more fun I get, being so happy to be in Monaco”, underlined Maerle Taylor from Belgium. “Electric driving is more intriguing for me since you really have a sense of what you are doing to help driving stability and protecting the environment”, she added.
Monaco E-Kart Championship started off on the right foot and we are waiting for many exciting moments ahead. Keep the E engine warm!
To know more about the Monaco E-Kart Championship please visit: www.MEKC.org
