SEVEN of Guyana’s best young racers have been named as representatives for the Inaugural CIK-FIA Caribbean Junior Karting Academy Trophy set for early 2019.
The seven are Jeremy Ten Pow, Paige Mendonca, Nathan Rahaman, Elan Rahaman, Rayden Persaud, Zachary Persaud and Faraud Mohamed.

Ten-Pow, Mendonca and Nathan Rahaman are known contenders in the ongoing GT Motorsports Championship where they compete in the Sunburst 60cc Kids Cup.
Jeremy currently leads the 2018 GT Motorsports championship for that class after three rounds with a total of 196 points, with Nathan second on 173 points and Paige on 123 points.

Elan, Rayden and Faraud compete the 125cc (X30) Junior class, with Rayden atop the standings with 167 points; a slim lead to John Phang who is ineligible for the Trophy.
Elan Rahman is third with 118 points with Faraud fourth (105) points after three rounds of action.

Zachary Persaud entered through the Easy Cup Rookie but joined the 125cc (X30) Senior class for the third round of the GT Motorsports Calendar.
According to a release from the hosts of the championship, the Barbados Motoring Federation (BMF), the event was open to racers aged 11 to 15 selected by their home country’s motorsport governing bodies and will be sponsored by Bushy Park Circuit Inc. (BPCI), Chefette, Sol and Terra Caribbean.

The Trophy will take the format off the CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy, the first step in the process to single-seater racing where Guyanese Calvin Ming competes.
BMF president Andrew Mallalieu, who has been the driving force behind this new regional initiative, said: “When FIA president Todt visited Barbados last year, we included our ideas for a Caribbean Junior Karting series in the presentation to update him on the progress of motorsport in the region.

He was enthusiastic about our plans and urged us to prepare a formal cluster application for FIA Grant funding to support the launch of the series. The original plan has been modified during that process, but we are truly grateful for the support we have received to finally make this a reality.”
Drivers will use Vortex-engined Exprit OK-Junior karts, as used in the CIK-FIA Academy Trophy in Europe this year, but now running on control Sol fuel and mandated allocations of MG tyres.

The championship will be run over three weekends in January, February and March at Bushy Park, Barbados, using four different circuit configurations and will include drivers from several other Caribbean territories.
Each race weekend will follow the same format, including two rounds of the series, the second run in the reverse direction to the first.

For each round, there will be two 30-minute Free Practice sessions followed by a 15-minute Qualifying Practice, then three Qualifying Heats: the grid for Race 1 will be based on the order after Qualifying, Race 2 on the reverse of Qualifying, Race 3 on the fastest lap recorded by each driver in the earlier two races.

The grid for the Final, which will be of at least 15 kilometres, will be based on points scored in the Qualifying Heats. Of eight points-scoring opportunities each weekend – six Qualifying Heats and two Finals – drivers will count their best seven scores toward their year-end totals.

Ahead of the opening round, all registered competitors will also benefit from a two-day Driver Education Programme, which is being led by FIA-accredited Regional Training Providers from the United Arab Emirates.
There will be a significant emphasis on driving standards and techniques, with a number of classroom and on-track coaching sessions scheduled.