(Photo: EKN)

EKN’s Paddock Insider is part of our Trackside coverage, bringing you notes, updates and breaking news as it happens. The article will feature notes from trackside at the 2026 United States Pro Kart Series Indiana Grand Prix at the New Castle Motorsports Park in New Castle, Indiana. This is insider info will not be seen anywhere else. Be sure to follow the EKN Social Media channels – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram for more coverage throughout the weekend.

14th Year at New Castle

The 14th season of the USPKS is visiting the New Castle Motorsports Park for the 14th time. Both NCMP and Trackhouse Motorplex have been on series schedule since it began in 2013. Typically, both have served as the series finale location or series opener. This is the rare season where they are lined up as the first two events of the year. Following the Trackhouse opener in April, USPKS returns to Round Two action at NCMP in June with two events scheduled in Ohio to close out the second half of the season.

Returning to New Castle always brings on the issue surrounding weather. Two years ago, Friday practice was cancelled due to hurricane conditions moving up to the Indiana region. Previous years for USPKS has seen rain be a factor both at the beginning of the weekend and at the end. 2026 is no different with rain forecasted for all day on Friday and updated with little to none the rest of the weekend. Drivers will likely take to the track all day to prepare for qualifying sessions at the end of the day, with a high percentage of it happening in the wet. Storms are forecasted in southern Indiana with the hopes of it staying away from NCMP.

Renaudin Makes Carblos Debut

Renaudin making his Carblos debut on the Sodikart (Photo: EKN)

The news coming into the month of June was the move of Frenchman Adrien Renaudin to Carblos Racing. The Sodikart driver remains on the brand he works for, leaving Velocity Racing after their restructuring of the race team. This is the first weekend for Adrien under the Carblos tent but not the first time utilizing the Carblos powerplant. He won the Stars races in 2025 with Carblos power and the opening round at Trackhouse with a Carblos KZ power. Renaudin will be running the rest of the season with Carblos, including the SummerNationals, the rest of the USPKS schedule and of course SuperNationals 29. Alongside Justin White, Factory Karts ‘Godfather’ Billy Musgrave was called in and arrived last night to compete here this weekend under the Carblos tent. The Factory Karts driver is coming off bad finish at the SpringNationals, and Carlos Lopes wanted him here to continue their development of the TM R3 engine.

Drew to RPG, Joined by Palacio

Jake Drew and Lucas Palacio making their debuts with Rolison Performance Group (Photo: EKN)

The big story coming into the weekend was the move of Jake Drew to Rolison Performance Group. Drew comes into New Castle third in the X30 Pro championship chase, finishing fourth at the recent SpringNationals in his final outing with Formula Works / GFC Karting. Speaking with Mike Rolison of RPG, he’s excited about the new relationship with Drew. He’s already jumped into the driver coaching role with the young drivers under the tent, and happy to be working with Drew on expanding the driver roster with his California roots. Drew told EKN this is not his first time on OTK equipment, having Junior and Senior experience, as recent as 2021. He said this is a great opportunity for him, both behind the wheel as he still feels he is competitive, but also help to expand his coaching connections.

Also joining RPG this weekend is Lucas Palacio. The former USPKS Mini Swift champion is making his 2026 debut in the series, racing both X30 and KA100 Junior. Palacio made the move from Kart Republic to Forza Racing in Europe and stayed with the OTK brand in his return back to the USA. Speaking with Palacio, staying with OTK here in the USA and Rolison Performance Group was the perfect destination for them to run with.

Speed Concepts Racing Expands with Cadet Drivers

Mini Swift championship leader Mason Brody moves to Speed Concepts Racing tent (Photo: EKN)

Driver development has always been at the forefront for Speed Concepts Racing. Since they began as a race team, SCR has worked with multiple drivers from the Cadet to Junior, then into Senior progression. IMSA driver Luca Mars and IndyCar star Kyffin Simpson were among the first drivers under the Speed Concepts Racing tent in the early years. Over the last few seasons, their Junior and Senior drivers have secured victories and championships. One thing that has been missing is bringing in Cadet level drivers. Joining Speed Concepts Racing this weekend are Mini Swift championship leader Mason Brody and Micro Swift driver Dusty Strayer. Both drivers are carrying the SCR colors on Nitro Kart chassis. Speaking with Mike Speed, they want to help develop a stronger Cadet roster under the tent to help build them up and prepare them for the move up the ranks.

KartZone / McCrone Motorsports Welcomes Formula K

Formula K factory driver Markus Kajak racing with McCrone Motorsports this weekend (Photo: EKN)

KartZone, located at the new Lorain Ohio Kartplex just outside Cleveland, Ohio, announced the new United States distribution for Praga Karts and Formula K brands. The race team, McCrone Motorsports, is here at NCMP with a handful of drivers. Speaking with Kristopher McCrone, it was a logistics issue getting the equipment here. Their container was delayed in customs, and the product did not arrive until 12 midnight. They spent three hours putting the product together and were able to get a few hours of sleep before practice began this morning. Formula K factory driver Markus Kajak is under the tent alongside former ROK Vegas winner Mathias Ramirez. Their goal is to work with other SRP drivers over the next two USPKS events to prepare for a big driver roster expected for SuperNationals 29.

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