The first round of the Champions of the Future Euro Series 2024, which took place last weekend in Valencia, Spain, was a baptism of fire for the new Maxxis tyres chosen by the CIK-FIA for the OK and OK-Junior categories, as well as for the Academy in the 2024 FIA Karting Competitions. This is not the place to revisit the tense relationship between the international authorities and the main suppliers of tyres for karting competitions, but simply to take a close look at how Maxxis tyres performed in the race on the Valencia circuit.
Maxxis is the commercial brand of the Taiwanese company Cheng Shin Rubber Industry Co, and ranks 9th in the sector, with factories in many countries and distribution in 180 nations. Maxxis began producing bicycle tyres in 1967, and its business now extends to cars, trucks, motorbikes, off-road vehicles and karts.
The Maxxis MA01 Slick Prime (OK) and Slick Option (OKJ), as well as the MW rain tyres, are CIK-FIA approved for the period 2024 – 2026. The weather conditions at the RGMMC meeting in Valencia allowed us to observe them in action in a wide range of circumstances. From a dry track, but not very hot, to heavy rain, passing through several shades of grip, from light rain to a dry track. We’ll have to wait for better days to judge their effectiveness in hot weather.
The conclusion of this first international karting event is clear: Maxxis has delivered tyres that are perfectly suited to their mission. The behaviour of the slicks is very similar to that of last year’s Vega, with a very fast start-up time. Performance seems to drop off a notch after a few laps, before stabilising. The result was some very lively timed sessions, with the fastest times achieved on the second or third lap. In pure performance, the best OK time was set by Zac Drummond (Parolin/TM) with 52.991 compared with 54.178 in 2023 for Jimmy Hélias (Tony Kart/Vortex) on MG tyres. In the OK-Junior class, Dries van Langendonck (Exprit/TM) set a time of 54.835 this year and Thibaut Ramaekers (KR/Iame) set a time of 55.029 last year on Vega tyres. The air temperature was 12°C last Thursday, but 22°C in 2023.
The performance of the Maxxis seems to be on a par with that of its more experienced predecessors. During the race, a deterioration was quickly felt, but it stabilised throughout the heats in a similar way for all the participants. The best OK times were generally set around the third lap of the first heat, and then recorded around the fifth or sixth lap. In OK-Junior, the degradation was also noticeable in absolute terms, but less so when it came to setting the fastest laps. Tyre management remains a constant preoccupation for the drivers, particularly in the numerous Qualifying Heats. In the rain, the Maxxis MW didn’t pose any particular problems.
Finally, the Maxxis Racing team was very present throughout the event, paying close attention to the various participants and their feedback, while producing specific content for the social networks.
The future will tell us more about the behaviour of these Maxxis tyres, as the teams will be working even harder between now and the first round of the Mondokart.com FIA Karting European Championship – OK & Junior, which will take place from 21st to 24th March on the same Valencia circuit. But the first impression is already largely positive.
Info KARTCOM Selection / Photo © KSP