Karting speedway moves to Game City
Go- Karting enthusiasts are expected to throng the Maverick Kart race facility located in Gaborone this weekend, formerly located at Fairgrounds.
The facility offers Karting for both amusement rides and budding racing car drivers. In a brief interview this week, Joseph Khengere of Maverick Karting said they had to move from their previous facility at Fairgrounds as the space had to be used by government to park cross border trucks as per the COVID -19 restrictions. “The new venue is just perfect for us as it is accessible for young children who cannot be transported by their parents to the location.
“The new racing track will be shorter and more technical than the old one which will make it more challenging and improve driving skills,” Khengere said.
Meanwhile ,Khengere, an advocate of motorsport growth in Botswana said they have since improved the race and competitive experience by adding a timing system that will register the speed of the driver around the racing track. The timing system will help in unearthing raw talent as the fastest young driver will be identified and given more opportunities. Prior to shutting down operations due to COVID- 19 restrictions, Khengere said they were operating a racing driver academy at their venue and they have since retained 80 percent of the drivers they were training before the COVID-19 pandemic struck. “We have one talented racing driver who has been racing in South Africa and he even has his own racing Kart.”
According to Khengere, the racing talent they are grooming will have a lot of opportunities to further their careers in South Africa once the borders are open. “We have sponsors that have come on board to assist in grooming local talent to further their racing careers.” Meanwhile, Khengere said they are on course to officially join the Federation Internationale del’Automobile (FIA) which governs motorsport activities across the world, including elite motor racing leagues like Formula One. “We have expressed our interest on paper and we expect a reply from the FIA in at least six months.”