What's the ultimate karting driving style?

The Ultimate style is the one you choose, develop and maximise - after you fully investigate the alternatives, and choose from strength rather than weakness.

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What’s the ultimate karting driving style? I drool over videos from the nineties of drivers like Pantano absolutely having it, putting the kart into magnificent angles, one handed on the carb, like a magician. No other driving is as beautiful as this to me…. Villeneuve, McCrae, whoever you want, can wait in line behind this:

God, I’m really tempted to leave the article here and say, ‘everyone should drive like Pantano, and that’s the end of it’

But I can’t, because there is a starkly opposite style that is equally as powerful.

This video hurts my head to watch - it’s Bas Lammers going around Kerpen. Watch his steering inputs… or rather lack of them. I can’t get over how good this driver is:

It’s KZ (shifter), so he’s not going to be hanging it out on the brakes anyway, but the point is that kart may as well be on rails. He’s fully lit, and the kart is not moving under him at all…. it’s spectacularly subtle magic.

Both videos give me goosebumps, so which is best?

Easy answer: Modern karts and tyres won’t do what Pantano does and be quick. So, follow the Lammers example.

But, if you watch some of the very best modern drivers, plenty of them do move the kart around subtly, not quite full Pantano style, but they do. They will rotate the kart on the brake, and be very quick. Perhaps quicker than really on super smooth steering inputs to initiate a turn, they use the brake to do the rotating and don’t need to turn into the bend at all.

I used to stand at the 90 right at PF, and watch Danny Kierle (2017 World Karting Champion) drop people by rotating the kart on the brake. But you need to watch super closely to pick it up - it’s nothing like watching Pantano.

So that’s how I will distinguish the driving styles available today.

• Driving on rails, where minimal steering inputs direct the kart.

• Driving with some rotational flair, subtle angles are made with your feet to use even less steering.

And by flair, I mean the kind of flair that requires serious examination of your driving to even spot it!

Yeah but, which style is the best!?!