Kart racing champ, 9-year-old Shiv Tummala, is not letting age trim his ambitions
From winning races online to translating the wins on karting tracks, you can that nine-year-old Shiv Tummala from Hyderabad raced his way to recognition. Recently, he won the Micro Max category championship at the 2025 Meco Meritus Cup, and is now gearing up for RMC FMSCI Indian National Championship- micro max category (8-12 year). Whoever wins Indian national championship gets to represent India in the ROTAX MAX CHALLENGE (RMC) World finals.
Karting is the foundation of motorsport, and for many young racers around the world. Shiv, who is part of Peregrine Racing team, hopes to emulate his idols Michael Schumacher and Max Verstappen, and race on some of the top tracks in the world.
What makes his recent win sweeter is that he chose to follow his passion even after a crash last year. “I was shaken after crashing. Though I did not sustain any serious physical injuries, the fear of crashing again became a mental block. I had to work on my courage again to wear the racing suit. This victory has cemented my victory in myself,” says Shiv. The Meco-Meritus cup was a national-level series, held across MECO Kartopia in Bengaluru and the CoASTT High Performance Centre in Coimbatore.
His love affair with racing started during the pandemic when his father bought him a PS5 simulator with a game called Gran Turismo 5. When his parents saw that he was winning races online and showed promise at the sport, they started looking for professional racing teams. Balancing studies and the sport, this budding races dedicates his weekend to racing. When asked about the qualities a good racer must have, he says, “A good racer must be skilled, have focus, remain calm at all times, and be strong mentally and physically.”
Talking about how he prepared for Meritus Cup, he says, “Typically in a day, I practise 8-10 sessions which last 15 mins each over a period of eight hours. I practise two weekends a month (4 -6 days).”
In order to participate in karting championships, one needs to procure a license from Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India.
