You never find out why you were slow
You know the lap time. You do not know the three corners that cost it. With nobody reviewing your onboards, the same mistake survives the whole season.
Valor Driver Development Programme
One programme. Three levels.
Every Valor driver starts with the same application. Tell us about your racing, show us your results, and we place you at the level that fits.
One application for every level. About five minutes.
The problem
What another season on your own costs you
Most rental drivers get quicker by accident. Not for want of talent, but because nobody is watching, nobody is comparing, and nothing gets corrected before the next round.
You plateau at your home track
Same circuit, same drivers, same reference points. You get good at one layout, then find out at a national round that it does not travel.
The races that would stretch you stay out of reach
Europe’s biggest indoor events are entries, travel, logistics and a team. On your own that is a lot of work for one weekend, so most drivers never go.
The three levels
Where you start is decided by your racing
You do not pick a level. We read your application and your results, and place you where you fit. Every level has a route to the one above it.
Level 1 · Free · 20 places
Valor Challenger
For drivers on their way up. Race your local or national championship and earn your place in Valor colours.
- Free to join, twenty places
- Earn the Valor Challenger visor strip with a championship result
- A clear route into the Academy
Level 2 · 10 seats · UK
Valor UK Academy
The UK squad for proven winners. Club100, BRKC, EKS and SRK with a coach, goals and compared driver data.
- Season goals set with your coach
- Data and footage compared across Valor drivers
- Team kit and support at every round
Level 3 · 5 seats · Europe
Valor Works Team
The European squad. The biggest rental events in Europe, in Works colours, with the team around you.
- European indoor championships
- Superpole, the South Garda Super Cup and the SODI World Series
- Works colours and the Works driver group
Why drivers race for Valor
You stop racing alone
Drivers who join a karting team stop turning up alone. Most rental drivers arrive by themselves, race, and go home none the wiser. Valor drivers arrive with a team behind them, a plan for the weekend and someone watching every lap. That is the difference, and it shows up on the timing screen.
Race as a team
Your name, number and colour on the grid, in team kit and a custom race suit in Valor colours. You stop being a solo entry and become a team driver.
Never alone at the track
The team trackside with you, briefings before you race and a debrief after, so every session counts.
Get faster, properly
Regular coaching reviews of your onboards from senior Valor driver coaches.
A real pathway
A season goal and milestones set with your coach, with a route from the UK programme into the Works team.
Your season organised
Entries, schedules and event planning handled with you. You turn up and race.
Valor Paddock
The private team app with your calendar, event plans, coaching and progress in one place. Only Valor drivers get in.
The rest you see once you are in.
Who is behind it
The people reading your application
Valor was not started by people new to this. The drivers who founded the team have won national titles, built the championships you race in, and raced professionally in cars.
British Indoor Karting Champion
Jonny Elliott, co founder. National title at the BIKC, after 17 years across Club100, owner karting and BPEC.
Founded the BRKC
Brad Philpot, co founder. He started the British Rental Kart Championship, one of the first professional rental championships in the UK.
Formula 2 race winner
Ramón Piñeiro, co founder. Race winner in Formula 2 and a driver mentor, now a Valor Works Team driver.
Events on the 2027 calendar
From the British Rental Kart Championship in January through to the Euro Karting Cup in December.
Every application is read by the team, not by a form. Meet the drivers.
How it works
Four steps from application to a seat
Apply
One application for every level. Drivers 18 or over apply themselves. For drivers under 18, a parent or guardian applies.
Show your results
Tell us where you race and any championship win or podium, with the results link or a screenshot. Every result is checked against what the published results show.
Get placed
No championship win yet, or not ready to invest: Valor Challenger, free. A checked championship win and ready to invest: reviewed by the team for the UK Academy or the Works Team.
Move up
Challengers keep racing and send in new results. Academy drivers chase their season goals for a shot at Works.
What counts
Which results we can use
It has to be a Grid Series round, a track championship or above. Every result is checked against what the published results show.
Counts
- A TeamSport Grid Series round
- A track championship round
- A national rental championship: Club 73, Club100, SRK, EKS, BRKC or another national rental series
- The final result, or the overall result of the round
Does not count
- TeamSport open events
- Thursday night events
- Practice sessions
- Arrive and drive and open races
- Heats, qualifying and lap time leaderboards
- Corporate and party events
For the Challenger visor strip: a win or podium in a championship final, or the overall result of a championship round. For a UK Academy or Works Team review: a championship win, in a final or an overall round, and ready to invest. Not racing a championship yet? Get onto a championship grid, then come back and apply.
Before you apply
Two things worth knowing
Start where everyone starts
Arrive and drive sessions, TeamSport open events and Thursday nights are the best place to start, and every quick driver started there. Valor Challenger begins once you are racing in a championship. Get onto a TeamSport Grid Series, your track’s championship, or a national rental championship such as Club 73, Club100, SRK, EKS or BRKC, then come back and apply.
A parent or guardian applies
Drivers under 18 apply through a parent or guardian. The parent fills in the application, makes every choice about the driver’s data and receives all contact. A parent or guardian attends any Valor event with a driver under 18.
2027 seats
Five, ten and twenty.
That is the whole of Valor for 2027. Five seats in the Works Team, ten in the Valor UK Academy and twenty places in Valor Challenger. Thirty five in total, across the three levels, and they are filled from the drivers who apply before the calendar starts.
The Works Team and the Academy are paid. Every driver makes a monthly investment in their racing through their membership, with a one off joining fee, and race entries, travel and kit sit on top. Valor Challenger is free. If you are not ready for a paid seat yet, you can still apply, still carry the colours and still earn your way up without paying anything.
Questions
What drivers ask before they apply
How do I join a karting team in the UK?
Send one application. It covers all three levels of the Valor driver development programme: Valor Challenger, the free entry level, the Valor UK Academy and the Valor Works Team. Every application is read personally by the team, and we place you at the level your racing fits.
Do I need to be racing already?
Yes. Valor Challenger starts once you are racing in a championship, so you need to be on a Grid Series, a track championship or a national rental championship grid. For the Academy and the Works Team we want to see a championship win.
Can I choose my level?
No. One application covers every level, and your answers and your results decide where you are placed.
What does it cost to race for Valor?
Valor Challenger is free. The UK Academy and the Works Team are paid, with a monthly membership and a one off joining fee. Race entries, travel and kit are on top. The full numbers come with your seat offer.
Which championships does Valor race?
Valor UK races the United Kingdom calendar: Club100, BRKC, SRK, EKS and the UK 24 hour races. Valor Works Team races the European calendar across France, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, Poland and the Netherlands, where the indoor championships are the speciality.
How many seats are open for 2027?
Thirty five across the three levels: five in the Valor Works Team, ten in the Valor UK Academy and twenty places in Valor Challenger. Works seats are filled from inside the team first, so for a driver coming in from outside, the Academy and Challenger are the realistic routes.
Where is Valor Racing based?
Valor Racing is based in the United Kingdom and races across the UK and Europe. Most drivers come to us from the UK rental scene.
Valor Driver Development Programme
Your route starts with one application.
About five minutes, and it covers every level.
Read the privacy notice and the programme terms. Valor Racing is run by Jonathan Elliott, trading as Valor Racing.