KZ is a

kart racing Kart racing or karting is a motorsport discipline using open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on kart circuit, scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on fu ...

class for drivers aged 15 and over, sanctioned by the CIK-FIA. KZ is the primary

gearbox A transmission (also called a gearbox) is a mechanical device invented by Louis Renault (who founded Renault) which uses a gear set—two or more gears working together—to change the speed, direction of rotation, or torque multiplication/r ...

class in FIA championships. The class was originally called Formula C (FC), first introduced in 1974 at the

European Championship A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs. In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...

as the first gearbox class in international kart racing. FC was contested at the

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

from 1983 until 2000. In 2002—after 28 seasons of racing—FC was replaced by Super-ICC (S-ICC) and downgraded to

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

status. In 2007, Super-ICC was replaced by KZ1 and renamed to KZ in 2013, when it returned to the World Championship. KZ is contested as the primary gearbox class at the

Karting World Championship The FIA Karting World Championship, officially known as the Mondokart.com FIA Karting World Championship for sponsorship reasons, is a kart racing competition organised by the CIK-FIA. Hosted annually since 1964, it is widely regarded as the ...

and the Karting European Championship.

History

Formula C (1974–2001)

In 1974, Formula C (FC) was introduced as a 125 cc

class for the

, the first of its kind. FC was first held at the

in 1983, remaining there until 2000.

Super-ICC (2002–2006)

In 2002, Super-ICC (S-ICC) regulations replaced FC, being downgraded to

status.

KZ1/KZ (2007–present)

KZ1 replaced S-ICC in 2007. In 2013, KZ1 was renamed to KZ, returning to the World Championship.

Specification

KZ

There are eight main technical features of the KZ regulations, sharing the same specification as

KZ2 KZ2 is a kart racing class using 125 cc water-cooled two-stroke engines yielding about . The engines are equipped with a 6-speed gearbox. Z2 is the second fastest of the KZ karting racing categories, and technical regulations are similar to faster ...

except for chassis and brakes, which are open in KZ, as well as minimum weight: * 125 cc direct-coupled, water-cooled

two-stroke A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a power cycle with two strokes of the piston, one up and one down, in one revolution of the crankshaft in contrast to a four-stroke engine which re ...

, mixed-lubrication engine. * Valve inlet in the piston skirt. *

Carburettor A carburetor (also spelled carburettor or carburetter) is a device used by a gasoline internal combustion engine to control and mix air and fuel entering the engine. The primary method of adding fuel to the intake air is through the Vent ...

with a maximum diameter of 30 mm. * Manual

clutch A clutch is a mechanical device that allows an output shaft to be disconnected from a rotating input shaft. The clutch's input shaft is typically attached to a motor, while the clutch's output shaft is connected to the mechanism that does th ...

. * Six-speed

sequential gearbox A sequential manual transmission, also known as a sequential gearbox or sequential transmission, is a type of non-synchronous manual transmission used mostly in motorcycles and racing cars. It produces faster shift times than traditional sync ...

. * Front and rear brakes with hydraulic foot control. * Premium tyres, medium gum compound. * Minimum weight 170 kg, driver included. Engines, chassis, bodywork, brakes and tyres are subject to the homologation system put in place by the CIK-FIA. Each year, the tyres and the fuel for each category, as well as the KZ and KZ2 carburettor, are chosen after a call for tenders.

Reception

In 2024, the CIK-FIA mandated the use of Dunlop tyres in international KZ competition. Several drivers and teams criticised the move ahead of the following Karting European Championship, addressing concerns with their competitive performance.https://www.vroomkart.com/news/45130/does-this-fia-kz-still-make-sense

Champions

KZ has been contested at the

since 1974 and the World Championship/World Cup since 1983. Gianluca Beggio holds the record for most KZ World Championships, with five. Notable KZ World Champions include four-time Formula One World Drivers' Champion

Max Verstappen Max Emilian Verstappen (; born 30 September 1997) is a Dutch and Belgian racing driver who competes under the Dutch flag in Formula One for Red Bull Racing. Verstappen has won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he w ...

and two-time World Touring Car Champion

Gabriele Tarquini Gabriele Tarquini (born 2 March 1962) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One between and , and World Touring Car from to 2021. In touring car racing, Tarquini won the World Touring Car Championship in with SEAT; ...

. Verstappen is the only driver to win a CIK-FIA gearbox championship and the Formula One World Drivers' Championship. Gianfranco Baroni and Francesco Laudato hold the joint-record for most KZ European Championships, each with four.

By year

By driver

table

Notes

References

External links

FIA Karting
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kf2 European auto racing series Kart racing series Recurring sporting events established in 1981