Kyle Wick continues the 2024 season as #1 in the Shifterkart standings (Photo: EKN)

The second half of the 2024 season is underway, and so is the continuation of the eKartingNews.com Shifterkart Driver Rankings presented by Skip Barber Racing School. The fourth edition of the 2024 season for the standings features position changes throughout the 190 driver rankings with more events added and important results from 2023 removed – including the 2023 SKUSA Pro Tour SpringNationals from Utah. What remains the same is GFC Karting’s Kyle Wick at the top of the standings.

The hold on the #1 spot for Wick has diminished following the loss results from last year, as his lead is now only 28 points over four-time SKUSA SuperNationals winner Danny Formal. The Florida driver who just announced a move from Rolison Performance Group to Sodi Racing USA remains in the second spot despite no races since March. Now up into the third spot is AJ Myers (Magik Kart USA), who is among those in the top-10 to increase his point total, trailing Wick by only 40 points.

Myers takes over the third spot from Marijn Kremers (Rolison Performance Group / Kosmic) – who fell down the standing to 31st with no events added since the SKUSA WinterNationals in March.

Taking advantage of Kremers fall is Billy Musgrave (Factory Karts), jumping up two spots to fourth. The point total could have been higher if not for a spark plug boot popping off with a few laps remaining at the SKUSA SpringNationals with a few laps remaining, fighting Wick for a podium position. Holding onto fifth is Hunter Pickett (GFC Karting). His ninth place finish at the SpringNats did not improve his score.

The current SKUSA Pro Tour championship leader Matheus Morgatto (PSL Karting / Birel ART) has moved two spots up into the sixth position. With no events recorded in 2023, all of the Brazilian’s points come from the 2024 season thus far, including seven wins and two series championships (SKUSA Winter Series and Florida Winter Tour). As more events are removed from the 2023 season, Morgatto will continue moving up. Also up two positions is Tahlon Yockel (Sodi Kart). A P5 at the SpringNationals boosted his points by 51 points to be just outside the top-five in the standings. Their promotion dropped Jacob Gulick (GFC Karting) down to eighth. The loss of his two SKUSA SpringNationals wins equates to a loss of 216 points, coming off a seventh at this year’s event in Ohio.

No points change for Keawn Tandon (GFC Karting) with no new events for the California driver, who remains in the ninth position. Now in the top-10 is Michael Riccio (Magik Kart USA). A slight addition of points puts him now into the coveted top-10 with his last result coming from Stars Championship Series with a P7 finish.

The EKN ‘On the Move’ driver for this month of the EKN Driver Rankings is Charlie Stines (GP Karts USA). The driver from Indiana is coming off two top-12 finishes at Stars and SpringNationals, improving 17 spots to now sit 24th in the standings.

Upcoming Events

Shifterkart #1 – Kyle Wick
Auburn, Washington

(Photo: ChallengeKarting.com)

The reigning ROK Vegas winner and runner-up in the SKUSA Pro Tour standings for 2023 remains the driver to beat in the EKN Driver Rankings. The loss of the SpringNationals and a victory at USPKS in 2023 from his score dropped the total down, bringing the fight for the top spot even closer to those trailing. However, his average result has remained the same, showing that Wick continues to be among the top shifterkart drivers in the country. The GFC Karting driver needs to land another podium result at the SummerNationals in hopes of keeping that top spot when last year’s results fall from the 12-month rankings schedule.

Point Breakdown

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Shifterkart #2 – Daniel Formal
Boca Raton, Florida

(Photo: ROK Cup USA)

Former SKUSA Pro Tour champion and four-time SuperNationals winner made big news with the move to Sodi Racing USA, leaving Rolison Performance Group after spending roughly two years with team. The news coming before the Fourth of July holiday weekend puts Formal into the Sodi colors for the first time in the upcoming SKUSA SummerNationals in Indiana. The gap is closer to Wick in points, and with Formal’s best seven dropping closer as well riding off two wins at the SKUSA Winter Series to begin the 2024 campaign. The only question will be where he stacks up with a limited schedule for this season.

Point Breakdown

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Shifterkart #3 – AJ Myers
Mt Ulla, North Carolina

(Photo: Studio52.us)

The ‘Magik Man’ himself has returned to the top-three of the EKN Driver Rankings. The former SKUSA Pro Tour champion and three-time EKN Driver Rankings #1 Driver of the Year has been elevated to the top-three with the drop of Marijn Kremers, and the recent success of the now North Carolina driver. His runner-up at the SpringNationals boosted his point total as he looks to add more points heading to Ohio this weekend as the Stars Championship Series points leader. One downfall will be the loss of three wins in 2023 coming up as the calendar moves forward, thus putting Myers on the pressure of additional podium and wins in the coming weeks.

Point Breakdown

EKN Driver Rankings Calculation Process
The EKN Driver Rankings are calculated using a driver’s best finishes in major North American races. Assembled using events from the previous 12 months from the current date, we use a driver’s best seven finishes in the TaG and Shifterkart categories to determine their overall current point total. With each new release, results posted from more than one year ago are discarded. To deliver our ranking list, we tabulate the results of all the national programs and selected regional programs. We have also included the results for the major one-off events such as the SKUSA SuperNationals, the Rock Island Grand Prix, and other special races.

Each race is initially weighted based on the prestige and history of the event or series with a score of ten (10) being the highest attainable base ranking. For 2023, the SKUSA SuperNationals will receive a score of 10 in its initial weighting in the TaG and Shifterkart categories. A base ranking of 9.5 is set for the SKUSA Pro Tour, while a base ranking of 9 goes to the SKUSA Winter Series, United States Pro Kart Series, Florida Winter Tour, Challenge of the Americas, ROK Vegas, Rotax Grand Nationals, Rock Island Grand Prix, and California ProKart Challenge. Other national and regional program races were given a base ranking of either 8.5 or 8.0.

The EKN staff reserves the right to adjust the rankings of each event throughout the year. A minimum entry total for any event to be considered for the Driver Rankings program is five (5). If an event does not have at least five (5) drivers starting the race, those results will not be tabulated toward the Driver Rankings.

Added to these initial rankings are two variables that help confirm the true importance of an event to the ranking process – field size and field strength. A percentage of one weighting point is added for the size of the field, while the number of existing top-50 drivers entered offers another full point or fraction of a point. The sum of these numbers becomes the overall ranking for any race.

Following a race, drivers receive points based on their finishing positions with 100 points earned for a win. Each subsequent position drops by one point with 99 points given to the second-place driver and so on throughout the field. These points are then multiplied by the overall ranking to produce a driver’s final point total from each event. Using a driver’s best seven races, we calculate each driver’s overall score and subsequent ranking.

EKN Shifterkart Driver Rankings presented by Skip Barber Racing School – as of July 8, 2024

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