Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport (BOM) Karting Team, also sponsored by Supsan, introduced the 2024 Turkish Karting Championship team to the automotive and sports media with a special event. The attendees of the signing ceremony hosted by Borusan Otomotiv Chief Executive Officer Hakan Tiftik and Borusan Otomotiv Co-Chairman Levent Kocabıyık included 5-year-old Zayn Sofuoğlu, Türkiye’s youngest karting pilot; Efe Ayhan, who successfully competed in the BOM Karting Team in the 2023 season; Rüzgar Evci, who ranked third in the Mini Category in the 2022 Turkish Karting Championship; and Sarp Arhan Or, Türkiye Formula Junior Karting champion.
Borusan Otomotiv Chief Executive Officer Hakan Tiftik stated that Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport was founded 16 years ago to support development and expansion of motorsports in Türkiye and added, “We founded BOM with a forward-looking vision and great dreams; we are now filled with great pride and happiness that we are realizing that vision and these dreams one by one.” Tiftik also stated that the BOM team works with great candor, dedication and motivation to improve and expand the motorsports in our country, and continued, “We achieved great accomplishments in the last 16 years. Our BOM team was at the starting line in approximately 440 races at 38 different tracks in 21 countries across 4 continents; they achieved a place on the podium many times and they are also the one and only team that represented our country at the GT4 European Series for the last 7 years. Also, our Karting team continues to introduce young athletes to motorsports through the great success it achieved in 3 Turkish Championships since its foundation in 2020. I wholeheartedly believe that Zayn Sofuoğlu, who will be named Türkiye’s youngest karting pilot, and Efe Ayhan, Rüzgar Evci and Sarp Arhan Or will become great champions representing our country in the international arena.”
Borusan Otomotiv Co-Chairman Levent Kocabıyık reminded that the team that competes in karting, which is considered to be the introduction to motorsports, was established in 2020 and added, “BOM Karting Team achieved championships in Senior Category and Master Category in these 3 seasons; they also achieved second place in Teams category several times since the first season they started racing.” Kocabıyık also stated that their goal for 2024 is to achieve championship in the categories they compete and continued, “We are ready for the new season with our racers who are talented and have a bright future. I believe that our BOM Karting Team will give us an exciting and competitive season this year as well.”
The sponsors of the BOM Karting team are Borusan Otomotiv, Supsan, Shell, Borusan Lojistik, Borçelik, Gedik Piliç and Borusan Oto.
About BOM Karting Team Pilots
Zayn Sofuoğlu
Zayn was born on April 11, 2019. His interest in both motorcycles and karting vehicles started when he was one and a half years old. He participated in the Turkish Supermoto Championship at the age of four and won his first official motorcycle race. He will be the youngest participant of the TOSFED Micro Support Cup in the 2024 season and will compete fiercely with his rivals.
Efe Ayhan
Efe Ayhan was born in July 2013. His interest in automobiles and motorsports started at a very young age. Efe started his motorsport career at BOM Karting in 2023 and he raced in six legs of the seven-legged Turkish Karting Championship in the 2023 season. This season, he aims to compete for the Mini Group Championship with his Turquoise car numbered 132.
Similar to those in the pilot training programs implemented by many top racing teams and automobile manufacturers around the world, Efe has been a part of BOM since the first day he sat behind the wheel of a karting car, and his biggest dream is to participate in races with his team for many years to come and win championships in different categories.
Rüzgar Evci
Driven by his interest in motorsports, Rüzgar got his basic training at the age of 6 and started karting. He has been competing in the Turkish Karting Championship for the last 3 years and managed to secure a place on the podium in all the races he participated in, except for the ones where he had mechanical problems. He achieved 1st place in the 2023 season of the Rotax Max Challenge Türkiye and got qualified to represent Türkiye in the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Final to be held in Bahrein with the participation of 396 pilots from 60 different countries. He became the 2nd Turkish pilot, after Berkay Besler, to successfully complete the qualification race and qualify for the final race in the RMC where Türkiye is being represented since 2008.
Rüzgar will compete in the Turkish Karting Championship in 2024 as a Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport team driver. He will also compete in Italy with Babyrace Driver Academy in the WSK Open Series, Euro Series and Final Cup Series.
Sarp Arhan Or
Sarp Arhan Or started his motorsports career with motocross at the age of 9 and he started racing for BOM in 2024. He achieved significant successes such as motocross championships and fifth place in the European racing season.
Continuing his career in karting, Sarp Arhan Or became the Karting Champion of Türkiye in his first year in this sport, leaving his experienced rivals behind and showcasing his talent.
Sarp participated in 51 races during his karting career, finished 41 of these races in the top three and won first place in 13 races. He also started 15 races from pole position.
Race Schedule for the Turkish Karting Championship 2024 Season
April 20-21 - İzmit Körfez Karting
May 25-26 - İstanbul Tuzla Park
June 22-23 - İzmit Körfez Karting
August 10-11 - Uşak Karting Track
August 31 - September 1 - İzmir Race Track
October 12-13 - İzmit Körfez Karting
November 9-10 - İzmit Körfez Karting