Macau to host FIA ‘Arrive & Drive’ Karting event in 2026

The Coloane Karting Track will host one of the six FIA Arrive & Drive Karting events planned for the 2026 season.

The calendar was published after approval at the final meeting of the FIA World Motor Sport Council for 2025, held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

The Macau event is set to take place from June 19 to 21 in a new series format that is split into two championships, each with three events, and will be hosted in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.

Macau will host the first round of the Asia-Pacific Championship, with events in Zhuzhou (China) and Chennai (India) in July and September, respectively.

The FIA noted, “Following the successful inaugural FIA Karting Arrive & Drive World Cup in Malaysia last month, the innovative format will expand with new Continental Championships to bring the affordable and accessible events closer to communities around the world.

The 2026 calendar, approved today, will feature a European and an Asia-Pacific Championship, each comprising three rounds, with the winners earning a grid spot in the end-of-season 2026 FIA Karting Arrive & Drive World Cup.”

This series has also undergone changes to its sporting format at the FIA Council to “raise the tension and excitement, whilst increasing the track time for drivers,” the FIA stated.

The new format replaces timed qualifying practice with 6- or 8-minute sprint races to determine the qualifying heat grids, with each weekend featuring more racing action and more opportunities for drivers to prove themselves.

Fourteen drivers will form each sprint heat, with the first grid positions assigned at random and reversed for the second heat. The classification of these sprint heats will determine the grid positions for the subsequent qualifying heats, before the grids are set for the finals.

Macau was represented at the first FIA Karting Arrive & Drive World Cup last month by 14-year-old driver Chong Ian Ip.

The event brought together 56 participants from around the world, and Chong finished 19th in the Group B Final.

This was Macau’s first time sending a team to compete internationally.

IDR to continue and expand

Other decisions on karting coming from the FIA Council included continuing the Impact Data Recorder (IDR) feature, introduced earlier this year in the FIA Karting Academy Trophy, to provide data and analytics following track incidents, which has been dubbed a vital tool to inform future safety innovations.

This device will be mandatory in all FIA Karting Championships from 2026 and in all other international karting events from 2027, with the FIA also encouraging all National Sporting Authorities (ASN) to implement it at the national level.

The device, first introduced at the first round of the 2025 FIA Karting Academy Trophy in Portugal, is a low-cost data recorder that captures key metrics, including impact G-forces, and is designed to help improve tracks and karts and prevent significant harm to drivers during on-track incidents.

Finally, the FIA Karting Senior Academy Trophy will also expand, following a successful inaugural season, with the number of drivers increasing from 36 to 54 and the age limit raised from 16 to 17.

GT World Cup and TCR World Tour ‘Finale’ confirmed

Without any surprise, the same FIA Council also confirmed the dates for next year’s FIA GT World Cup at the Guia Circuit, as well as the confirmation that the Macau round of the TCR World Tour will continue to be the stage of the “Grand Finale” of this championship, as the Times had already reported last month.

The 2026 TCR World Tour calendar is now finalized, with eight events. Starting in Mexico in April, it is followed by a European stint of three events in June and July before moving into Asia in October.

Before the final round in Macau, racers will compete in Korea (Inje) and China (Chengdu and Zhuzhou).

The meeting also marked the last under the first term of FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who said, “These have been years of momentum, purpose, and delivery. New, historic agreements across our championships have unlocked fresh opportunities and strengthened the very foundations of our sport. We are engaging a broader global community – welcoming new drivers, talent, fans, volunteers, and colleagues. Together, we remain focused on our mission: to deliver motor sport that is safe, inspiring, and sustainable. One that continues to deliver for our future generations.”