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 I have been a speed junky from the time I was a kid. I have loved and followed racing all my life ... my idol is Fernando Alonso, a racer who never gives up.

 

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would get to race, and when I did, I didn't know I could win 2 National Championships & be Vice Champion in the third, all in my rookie year.

 

I have been told never to underestimate the importance of hard work and dedication & after 4 seasons/years of racing, this I now know is so true. Nothing ever comes easy in life, and I know that there are so many obstacles to face, and this is what will make goals worth attaining...  

 

I’m 18, a racer, Indian, living in Dubai - UAE, since I was only 6 weeks old. I enjoy sports, but nothing has ever made me feel like I do when racing. I also enjoy art, music, football and gaming with my friends all over the world.

 

My first ever race was at the Dubai Kartdrome, approaching 14, with the help of cool people like David Bright, Amal, Purie & many more, whom I meet every week at the track to date. Emirates School Karting Championship (ESKC) - we were all new racers & we were a bunch of kids who had never met each other before and were lucky to have made the team just in time for the 4-round event. We finished runner-up at the EKSC 2016-17. They are all still my friends, and I race with them.

 

The next was Student Karting Championship (SKC) at Al Ain Raceway. Racing with most of the guys from ESKC, I finished runner-up in this individual event. I enjoyed a new track & great people who helped me along - Guy Sheffield, Graham Snook, Lazar and Mujeeb, to mention a few.

 

Next was a team event - 12 Hour Endurance Race at Al Ain Raceway. I drove for over 4 hours in 2 stints, and we won the race against more experienced and accomplished competitors.

 

In January 2017, I started racing the UAE Sodi World Series (SWS) races at the Dubai Kartdrome. I won the Junior Championship as #1 in the UAE, and #4 in the World and represented UAE in the Sodi World Finals at Lignano Circuit, Venice – Italy, in June 2018.

 

In March 2017, I was invited by Sheikh Walid Al Qassimi to test his own kart at his RAK Track one evening and fell in love with it. My parents gifted me my first SodiKart with an X30 Junior engine #270. As a rookie, I managed to finish mid-pack in the first two races in April 2017 towards the end of the IAME UAE X30 Challenge, having started the races from the back of the grid, as is the case for Novice racers.

 

I signed up to race the 2017-18 season with the newly formed Brand Racing (formerly SodiKart Middle East). Danny Brand, Technical Head, taught me so much about racing, and I am grateful for his support & faith in me. Luigi Gariano, Team Manager, encouraged me to work hard. I was fortunate to have had two great mechanics – Samith Nilanka & Randy Lontoc, who have been beside me through this journey. Hope I will do them all proud.

 

The 2017-18 UAE X30 Challenge was my first full season of racing. My hard work and dedication were instrumental in finishing the season as Vice-Champion – Junior.

 

Soon after the start of 2017-18 season, as per my parents’ advice, I raced in the UAE Rotax Max Challenge as a Senior (Max). I missed Round 1, leaving me with the remaining 12 rounds of the season. I not only prevailed but eventually won the Championship despite not having the option to drop points due to the missed round and also without the bonus points awarded for participating in all rounds. All of this made this win a special one.

 

Come to the 2018 Dubai O-Plate, an event where I was a mute spectator a year earlier; I could have won Junior’s race without a 3-second penalty that put me at P5. In the 2019 Dubai O-Plate, some unfortunate incidents during pre-race, qualifying and heats meant I had to fight my way back up for the prefinals and finals. I finished P5 again, this time as a Senior, in a challenging grid. The 2020 Dubai O-Plate was heartbreaking when a racing incident damaged my kart, and I had to retire while running 2nd in a competitive grid with 2 world champions.

 

In the 2018-19 season, I finished P3, Senior in UAE X30 Challenge and Vice Champion DD2 in the UAE Rotax Max Challenge. These 2 finishes meant I earned tickets to the following races:

·         IAME World Finals 2019 (Le Mans, France) in October 2019, one I had to miss due to a clash of dates with the Rotax Grand Finals.

·         Rotax Grand Finals 2019 (Sarno, Italy) in October 2019.

·         Rotax International Trophy 2019 (Le Mans, France) in August 2019, special invitee.

 

Having moved to Xcel Motorsport Racing Team www.xcelmotorsport.com/ (formerly Energy Dubai), I was at PF International Karting Circuit for my first Kartmasters British Grand Prix http://tvkc.co.uk/beta/kartmasters/ in the X30 Senior category from August 1–4, 2019 gaining valuable experience at UK’s premier karting track, alongside some fantastic European talent.

 

At Le Mans, France, for Rotax International Trophy 2019 www.rmc-internationaltrophy.com/ in the DD2 category from August 20-24, 2019, I qualified P5. After some challenging drives in the Qualifying Heats, I started P 11 in the Pre-Finals, only to be taken out on lap 2, thus started the Finals @ P33 – LAST ON THE GRID. I finished P20 and gained experience in those five days of amazing racing in a historic circuit.

 

At Sarno, Italy, for Rotax Grand Finals 2019, I reached Final A on my first attempt. Starting 16th in the final, a racing incident saw me pushed to the last position, 36th at Turn 1 of the race. Not giving up, I raced my heart out to finish 18th, recording the 6th fastest lap.

 

In the 2019-20 season, I raced in the Senior (IAME X30) and DD2 (RMC) categories. I won the DD2 Championship against all odds, including COVID, winning a ticket to the Rotax Grand Finals 2020 (Portimao, Portugal), eventually held in January 2021. I was forced to miss the Grand Finals, having contracted COVID-19 myself, besides the travel restrictions that came into force.

 

Participating in the 2020 Dubai Kartdrome Endurance Championships, after taking 2nd in Rounds 1 & 2 in October, racing with Team EBC Brakes, I won Round 3, 12 hours race, also taking the Nations Cup and the Fastest Lap of the event in the process. www.dubaiautodrome.ae/tracktalk/maiden-victory-for-ebc-brakes/. I spearheaded the team for a famous win in Round 4 -the 24 hours in December, setting the Pole, Fastest Lap of the Race and overall Win, thus winning the SWS Endurance Championship.

 

I also won the UAE SWS Senior Championship. www.sodiwseries.com/en-gb/drivers/kumaran-kyle-44680.html in 2020 and 2021.

 

Another achievement I’m proud of is winning the SWS RMAX Debut race on November 9, 2020. www.dubaiautodrome.ae/tracktalk/kumaran-wins-sws-rmax-debut/

 

Yet another proud moment was when I was awarded “Outstanding Athlete U19 – Motorsports, 2019” by the UAE Teen Sports & Fitness Awards.

 

I moved to Birel ART Middle East, under the guidance of Sanad Sattar, to race reminder of the UAE IAME X30 Challenge in the ultra-competitive Senior category, after having missed Round 1. After leading the entire final, I finished 2nd in Round 2 until a racing incident compromised my win in the penultimate lap. However, due to multiple challenges, I dropped out of the team and the championship, thereby ending a disappointing 2020-21 season without any silverware from with IAME X30 and UAE RMC series.

 

I associated myself with Dojomoto Racing as a reminder of the 2020-21 season by coaching their drivers while learning the ropes of managing drivers and the technical aspects of kart racing.

 

Come 2021-22 racing season, Anjum Shaikh of Dojomoto Racing offered me a seat in the UAE IAME X30 Senior category and UAE RMC DD2, which I was happy to take up in order to get back into full-time competitive kart racing. Midway through the season, I stand 4th in the UAE X30 (having missed 1 round due to racing commitments in India) and 2nd in RMC.

Having missed out on an incredible opportunity to race at the Indian Karting Championships in 2020, thanks to the pandemic, I was thrilled to compete in the Rotax Max Challenge Indian Karting Championships 2021 in the Senior Max category. It was my first time in my home country. With the amazing support of the Madesh family & Peregrine Racing, I was crowned Senior RMC Indian National Karting Champion 2021, winning 4 of the 5 rounds in a rather commanding manner. I won awards for Most Pole Positions (being pole sitter in all 5 rounds), Most Race Wins and Best Driver of the Year 2021. It was an incredible honour to have been part of the Indian karting championships and been able to win it on my first attempt.

 

In the middle of the Indian Karting Championships, the Emirates Motorsports Organization nominated me to represent Team UAE in the MENA Karting Championships 2021 in the premier DD2 category. A grateful moment to be able to represent the country that I’ve lived all my life and an incredibly proud moment when I have crowned the DD2 Champion from a grid of 24 competitors from 19 countries of the MENA region, and also playing a part in Team UAE winning the Team Championships.

 

It has been a short time for me in this sport, and unlike most of my peers, I have not had years of experience in the sport. My family & I decided to enrol on an online school (homeschool) with iCADEMY Middle East, which gives me the opportunity to travel, be flexible with my schedule and have supportive teachers guide me through all this. I have been able to work out my learning schedule, which helped me to devote many hours to the track & yes, practice makes perfect, and I have a long way to go.

 

There are many people who have been instrumental in making my journey possible, and I have only managed to name a few. You are neither forgotten nor insignificant & without you, I surely wouldn't be where I am today or make it to where I aspire to be in the future. I am eternally grateful to all of you, my family, friends, well-wishers and supporters.

 

I am fortunate to have been able to do what I love most. It has been a good ride, and I can’t wait for what is next...

© 2021-2022 by Kyle Kumaran