The 14th K-TAI, a 7-hour endurance enjoyment class, will be held on September 7 (Sun)! Although it started to rain in the morning, by the time the karts began to line up on the grid, the rain had weakened, and there was a relaxed atmosphere as participants checked their machines and took commemorative photos without any tension. 94 karts divided into 2 groups entered the rolling lap, and the start is finally approaching.

Returning from the opening lap in the lead was [#129 Yomiuri Automobile College]. They quickly pulled away from the second place and established a solo run. Following behind were [#69 E・R・O Racing S], [#35 Keep Light K3 Racing], [#39 U1-WORKS], [#81 Kamin Team Bear], and [#15 RA Racing B＠GEN], all in a group. As the rain intensified, each car slowed down, but [#196 Team IMA・OMSC] showed exceptional speed and surged to the top. It seemed they would pull away from the rest and establish a solo run. Later, as the sky brightened, the rain stopped. The track was gradually drying, but there were still wet patches in places, causing some cars to spin out when they hit them.

About 50 minutes after the start, PUTO entered the pit, and PUTO rose to the top. Starting from the 67th grid position in the second group, PUTO showed outstanding speed in the rain conditions and steadily moved up the positions. Even after taking the lead, the momentum did not stop, and they quickly built a solo lead. PUTO also marked the fastest lap and was chasing PUTO, but after 2 hours, they were barely on the same lap. From behind, PUTO was closing in.

At the point when there was 1 hour left, [#59 Espresso] had marked 116 laps, leading by 2 laps over [#196 Team IMA・OMSC] in second place. Following them were [#39 U1-WORKS] and [#32 Rosso@GEN]. The leading [#59 Espresso], facing tough fuel consumption, slowed down while maintaining a sufficient margin. The team staff watched anxiously, but after 7 hours and 2 minutes, they cleared the finish line. They completed 136 laps and were delighted to take the top checker. "The rain setup worked well, and it was very easy to drive, which allowed us to increase our pace from the beginning. Even after the conditions became dry, we were able to maintain a good pace using the slipstream of other machines. However, fuel consumption was tight, so it was nerve-wracking at the end," said Yuya Yamashita of [#59 Espresso]. It seems there were tough aspects even in the overwhelming victory.

In second place, #32 Rosso@GEN, who made a late charge in the race, finished with 133 laps, and #39 U1-WORKS also crossed the finish line on the same lap. Both teams were awarded the second place for the most laps completed.

Team IMA・OMSC finished with 132 laps after falling behind in the last hour. The team that led early in the race, Yomiuri Automobile College, ran out of gas at the end and had to push their machine to the finish. They also marked 132 laps. RF・AOYAMA Sakapowers and last year's champion Hayakobare Racing also completed 132 laps, making it four teams that achieved the third-best lap count award.

The MVP award, which includes the Subaru KX21 engine, was awarded to #76 RF・AOYAMA・KRT, who, despite being a large team, demonstrated excellent teamwork as per their profile and ran in the top positions. Although they unfortunately did not reach the lap count award, they adhered to the rules and manners sufficiently.

This year, not only speed but also many people enjoyed the road course at Twin Ring Motegi with go-karts. There must be teams that were satisfied with their K-TAI, teams that felt regretful about their K-TAI, and teams that simply enjoyed their K-TAI, each creating memories of the 2014 K-TAI. See you next year... at K-TAI!