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| November 13, 2008 News |
| King of the Streets Moves to Stock Moto for 2009 |
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Superkarts! USA and the Rock Island Grand Prix have announced that the 2009 King of the Streets race will feature the Formula S3 Stock Moto class.
At its inception, and during the glory days of the SKUSA Pro Moto Tour, the moto class featured the top drivers competing for the King of the Streets crown – the most coveted title in shifter kart racing. More recently it featured top Intercontinental C drivers. Now, beginning with the September 5-6, 2009 event, the King of the Streets race will again showcase top drivers in moto shifter karts.
The winners of the S3 and S4 stock moto classes at the upcoming SKUSA SuperNationals XII, November 20-23 in Las Vegas, Nevada, will win a free entry and reserved pit spaces for the 2009 King of the Streets race at Rock Island. The winner of the 2009 King of the Streets race will receive their “Rock,” check, and a free entry for the 2009 SuperNationals. In addition, the next King will also win a free entry to the first round of the January 2010 Formula Kart Racing Florida Winter Tour (FWT). The 2009 FWT Stock Moto points champion will win a free entry into the 2009 King of the Streets event.
“What is really important here are that three different karting organizations are working together to promote a karting class designed to make the sport both simpler and more economical to participate in. Stock moto is a class that the nation’s top drivers, as well as local and regional competitors can all enjoy. I think this is exciting and I appreciate the support,” said Tom Kutscher, CEO of Superkarts! USA.
King of the Streets was originally created as an event that would circulate among various temporary venues. The 1998 event at the Oklahoma City Grand Prix was won by Joe Janowski. In 1999 Alan Rudolph won at Quincy in the Park. From that point, the race has had a permanent home at the Rock Island Grand Prix and become one of the most coveted titles in kart racing. The reigning King is Alex Speed who won in incredibly fashion, all the way from California. Alan Rudolph has won the crown four times (1999, 2000, 2001 & 2006). It has also been won by Scott Speed (2002), Bobby Wilson (2003) and Kyle Wiegand (2004 & 2005). The King of the Streets race is sponsored by the Bob Bondurant SuperKart School in Phoenix, Arizona.
Roger Ruthhart, president of the Rock Island Grand Prix, said he is happy to see the King of Streets tradition continue. “This event has changed over time, but has always provided a challenge for the top gearbox drivers in the sport. There’s no advance practice. Just show up, learn the course and race. At first look, the course does not appear technically difficult, but the street course challenges drivers in ways they are not used to,” he said.
“This year, when we saw the top nine Stock Moto drivers all qualify within one second of each other, we couldn’t help but take notice. Because of all of the spectators at Rock Island, “The Show” is important. We believe that Stock Moto will provide that and hope the top drivers will continue to compete for the crown. We think this change will not only provide new life for this coveted event, but enhance the efforts of Superkarts! USA and the Florida Winter Tour by promoting the stock moto package at a time when the sport needs it the most. This announcement sets a positive example,” Ruthhart said.
Formula Kart’s Bill Wright said “Street racing is a U.S. tradition I’ve watched by entire karting career. Moto kart racing is a U.S. tradition I’ve had the pleasure to be involved with from the very beginning. I’m excited to be part of an effort to continue these uniquely American traditions, and look forward to helping with the re-birth in this segment of the sport.”
For the King of the Streets race spec tires are MG. Spec fuel is VP and will be on sale direct to competitors on site. Neither are included in the entry fee. SKUSA Formula S3 rules will be used and all King of the Streets competitors must be active SKUSA members. The Rock Island Grand Prix is always the Saturday and Sunday of the U.S. Labor Day Weekend, Sept. 5-6, 2009.
Presenting Sponsors of the Rock Island Grand Prix are AT&T and Mazda Motorsports. The $25,000 RIGP purse is sponsored by Jumer’s Casino & Hotel. Other major sponsors include Kart Expo International presented by Sodi Kart and The Dispatch and Rock Island Argus newspapers. |
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