Photo: Electroheads
Getting into professional racing is seriously expensive right off the bat. Karting has its fair share of costs too, starting with the oily bits. But what if those karts were completely electric?
Electroheads Motorsport has thought about that as well, coming up with an e-kart that was engineered by the one and only Rob Smedley. He's been with Williams, Jordan, and Ferrari since the latter part of the 1990s, and before his entry into Formula 1, the Briton worked with Pilbeam Racing Designs on the suspension of a touring car.
“Racing has become too expensive and is not diverse enough,” said Smedley, quoting what Lewis Hamilton said in November 2019 about motorized sports. Ham's father spent approximately £20,000 and remortgaged the house several times when LH44 was still an up-and-coming racing driver, so yeah, motorsport is really expensive.
“Through electrification we can change that. We will be the driving force to inspire, energize, and thrill racers as they climb the ladder,” concluded the Formula 1 engineer. Reducing the costs of entry-level racing is one thing, but more importantly, the Electroheads e-kart ensures that the playing field is leveled for every rookie.
The e-kart will be introduced on the racetrack through a series that will take place in Bambino and Cadet categories across the United Kingdom. It’s a modest start, but it’s something!
Another thing about the Electroheads e-kart series has to be mentioned. In addition to similar powertrains, the teams will be transparent about sharing their data. This rule ensures performance parity, leaving driver talent as the only differentiator on the racetrack.
Electroheads is the brainchild of Smedley alongside a few other notable people with connections to the world of motorized sports. Matthew Franey, James Moore, Dan Gregson, and Nav Sidhu are just a few of them. To sum up the group’s mission in three words, those would be democratic, meritocratic, and electric.
Considering that Formula 1 favors resourceful manufacturers and some drivers can pay their way into the series despite an obvious lack of talent, we’re much inclined to believe that Electoheads has a better understanding of sportsmanship.
“Racing has become too expensive and is not diverse enough,” said Smedley, quoting what Lewis Hamilton said in November 2019 about motorized sports. Ham's father spent approximately £20,000 and remortgaged the house several times when LH44 was still an up-and-coming racing driver, so yeah, motorsport is really expensive.
“Through electrification we can change that. We will be the driving force to inspire, energize, and thrill racers as they climb the ladder,” concluded the Formula 1 engineer. Reducing the costs of entry-level racing is one thing, but more importantly, the Electroheads e-kart ensures that the playing field is leveled for every rookie.
The e-kart will be introduced on the racetrack through a series that will take place in Bambino and Cadet categories across the United Kingdom. It’s a modest start, but it’s something!
Another thing about the Electroheads e-kart series has to be mentioned. In addition to similar powertrains, the teams will be transparent about sharing their data. This rule ensures performance parity, leaving driver talent as the only differentiator on the racetrack.
Electroheads is the brainchild of Smedley alongside a few other notable people with connections to the world of motorized sports. Matthew Franey, James Moore, Dan Gregson, and Nav Sidhu are just a few of them. To sum up the group’s mission in three words, those would be democratic, meritocratic, and electric.
Considering that Formula 1 favors resourceful manufacturers and some drivers can pay their way into the series despite an obvious lack of talent, we’re much inclined to believe that Electoheads has a better understanding of sportsmanship.
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