Sri Lanka’s first international kart race ‘X30 Asia Cup’ this weekend at SLKC

Sri Lanka’s first ever international kart race X30 Asia Cup will flag off at the Sri Lanka Karting Circuit (SLKC) in Bandaragama on 13 and 14 January, announced David Pieris Racing and Leisure Ltd. (DPRL).

This enthralling start to Asia’s karting season will feature a number of Asia’s best drivers and winners of the RotaxMaX Asian Championship and X30 along with Sri Lanka’s prominent kart racers. The X30 Asia Cup 2018 is going to be the precursor to the six-round championship race series held throughout the year in Singapore and Malaysia. 

The winners of the X30 Asia Cup 2018 will gain entry to the IAME International Final held in Le Mans, an invitation-only event and one of the world’s largest and most prestigious professional karting races.

Spectators can purchase tickets to witness the thrilling feats of 40 kart racers from across Asia including nine Sri Lankans from tickets.lk. Initiated with the endorsement of the Ministry of Tourism Development and the Ministry of Sports, the event will open new avenues to revolutionise karting in Sri Lanka and the region. 

“This is going to be an exciting couple of days not only for kart racers but also all motor sports enthusiasts across the island. This is the first time that a karting event of this magnitude and importance will take place in Sri Lanka and in South Asia. We are doubly thrilled as some of the Sri Lankan racers are expected to pose a fierce challenge to Asia’s best racers. Moreover, this is an opportunity for Sri Lanka as a nation to open our doors to motorsports enthusiasts as a motorsports destination on par with our South East Asian counterparts,” commented David Pieris Racing and Leisure MD/CEO Dinesh Jayasundera. 

Amongst the players to watch out for are Yevan David from Singapore who became the X30 SEA Cadet Champion 2017 and Eshan Pieris from Sri Lanka who hold double honours as the Rotax Asia Max DD2 Vice Champion 2017 and the X30 Macau International Senior Champion 2017. 

Battling it out in the arena with Yevan and Eshan will be Prassetyo Hardja from Indonesia who holds the Rotax Asia Max DD2 Champion 2017 title and the X30 SEA Senior Champion title 2017. Alex Brown from Singapore, who was the X30 SEA Junior Champion 2016 and the Malaysian X30 Junior Champion 2016, has been hailed as a challenge to the senior players in what is likely to be an exciting battle for prominence.

The event has already attracted over 50 mechanics, 100 officials and marshals and approximately 200 volunteers. 

In order to bring the SLKC to international standards to prepare for the event, David Pieris Racing and Leisure extended the track in Bandaragama from 800 metres to 1,212 metres (lengthier than the famous Malaysian track) with a significant investment. 

The company received assistance from Sri Lanka Motor Sports Club President Niroshan Perira in his capacity as the International Race Director during preparations while the specialised Karting Commission of the FIA, the world governing body of motor racing, recognised the tracks as suitable for X30, following the completion of extension work. 

The David Pieris Group set up David Pieris Racing and Leisure Ltd. exclusively to operate as a dedicated sector in leisure and motor racing. Hosting the Sri Lankan leg of X30 Asia Cup 2018 at the company’s kart racing track is going to be the steppingstone for David Pieris Racing and Leisure to explore a unique aspect of the leisure sector. 

In line with this, the company has already scheduled the opening of a theme park along with a resort planned adjoining the SLKC which will commence development in April 2018. The theme park will cater to local leisure seekers as an alternative weekend getaway to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Hong Kong.