This class used to be called Formula A and has changed since January 2007 when CIK-FIA decided to replace the 100 cc water-cooled two-stroke engines with 125 cc Touch-and-Go (TaG) water-cooled two-stroke engines (KF type).
[3][4] As the Formula One of karting, KF1 has high costs and drivers typically spend $100,000 per year to compete.
It is needed to finance much practice, training and testing, team costs, chassis and engines, tires and parts, and traveling.
[5] Many successful racing drivers and all current F1 drivers started their careers in karts, and KF1 has been home to rivalries involving the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg and Robert Kubica in the early 2000s,[6][7] as well as Max Verstappen, Lando Norris and Nicklas Nielsen in more recent times.
[8][9] The class also played a leading role in the so-called golden era of karting in the 80s and 90s.