Karting: A veteran at age 10

He is only 10 years old, but Ethan Brown has already participated in about 20 go-kart races the past two years, and will be entering his next one today - the first leg of the inaugural X30 Challenge Singapore.

The X30 Challenge, at the KF1 Karting Circuit in Kranji, is the second of two international go-kart series making their debut in Singapore. The first round of the prestigious Rok Cup series was held last Saturday.

Ethan (above), who sat out last weekend's Rok Cup to take a break, is coming off what he says is his "fastest" performance at the Rotex Max Challenge (RMC) Asia in Malaysia two weeks ago.

FUN

The Energy Corse Singapore driver clocked 55.8 seconds to finish 12th out of 25 racers, but insists his main goal today is to have fun racing with his friends - AutoInc Racing's Kai Askey and last weekend's Rok Cup runner-up Kalen Chin.

Ethan has competed only three times in Singapore, and the St Andrew's Junior School student is looking forward to racing on home ground again.

"It's been a long time - almost a year - since I raced in Singapore," said Ethan, who has taken part in five races in Malaysia and Indonesia this year.

"Maybe I'll try to get a podium finish."

The X30 Challenge Singapore will feature five categories, from the cadet category for racers aged between eight and 13, to the veterans' category for those aged 45 and above.

The overall first to third-placed juniors and Class A seniors will earn a spot in next year's International Finals in France.

According to Chris Lin, one of the organising staff, the series has received more than 65 entries from countries that include Australia, Japan and the UK.

Said Lin: "This gives our local karters an opportunity to compete with international drivers.

"It is a great way to elevate our karting race level."

Expressing his hopes of Singapore producing a "homegrown Formula One driver in the future", Lin added: "We can proudly say that Singapore is ready to step onto the global stage of karting."

cnicole@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on May 02, 2015.
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