Go-kart: green light for the partnership between OTK Kart Group and TM Kart
The consolidation of the world-leading made-in-italy go-kart production chain goes on
19th September, 2025 - OTK Kart Group (“OTK”) - the Italian company and world leader in the production of competition karts - and TM Kart (“TM”) - key player in the global market for the production of competition kart engines - announce to have retained a partnership aimed at strengthening their world leadership in the field.
The business was carried out thanks to the participation of BIC Capital and QCapital, the private equity companies that in 2022 had promoted a club deal on 70% of OTK's capital, and with the financial support of Crédit Agricole Italia, which had already financed the acquisition of OTK, and Intesa Sanpaolo.
Following the deal, the financial investors will continue to hold control of the OTK Group. With the entry of TM, the Flenghi family will also join the Group, retaining the lead of their company and participating in the capital of the new industrial site, as happened already between the Robazzi and Mantese families, who continue to maintain their leadership in the development of engines and chassis, both for competition and rental, at OTK, and kart tyres at Vega, respectively.
Both the OTK Group and TM have recorded a continuous economic growth in recent years. OTK closed 2024 with approximately €69 million in revenues and approximately €12.5 million in EBITDA. As for TM, the Company recorded approximately €13 million in revenues and approximately €4.6 million in EBITDA for 2024. Thanks to this new business operation, the new group expects to achieve an total EBITDA of approximately €18 million and revenues of over €85 million in 2025, of which more than 70% outside Italy, employing a total of approximately 250 people.
Competitive karting is a thriving and rapidly growing business (with the USA, Australia and Northern Europe as the main geographical markets), driven by the passion of customer-drivers, both professional and amateur, who are extremely involved in this sport and therefore willing to invest time and resources to improve their performance and that of their own kart. The growing global interest in Formula 1 – and motor racing in general – is further driving the development trend in competition karts: indeed, almost all motor racing drivers and leading Formula 1 drivers began their careers racing karts.
Founded in the late 1970s by Claudio Flenghi, TM Kart is nowadays a worldwide recognised Italian leader in the design and manufacture of high-performance engines for competitive karting. With over 50% of its production reserved for the foreign markets and a brand synonymous with reliability and performance, TM Kart has established itself as a benchmark in the industry.
With its headquarter in Pesaro, the company produces around 3,000 engines per year in a modern 3,000 m² factory and serves over 100 dealers in Italy and more than 80 abroad, with engines distributed under its own brand. Today, TM is led by brothers Thomas and Filippo Flenghi, who, with their entry into the OTK Group, aim to further strengthen their leadership in the high-performance engine segment for competitive karting, preserving the heritage and know-how gained in over 40 years of market presence, while at the same time accelerating their expansion into international markets, thanks to OTK's solid distribution network.
OTK Kart Group, an operating holding company based in Prevalle (Brescia), makes over 85% of its revenue outside Italy and operates internationally thanks to four subsidiaries located in the United States, Japan, Singapore and Australia and to a network of over 130 dealers in more than 70 countries. At an industrial level, the company produces around 7,000 chassis and over 2,000 Vortex-branded engines per year. A few years ago, the company entered the rental kart segment with traditional combustion engines, while in September 2024, it introduced its made-in-Italy e-Viper electric kart at IAAPA in Vienna, entirely designed and manufactured in OTK's Italian factories. The Group designs and manufactures all kart components at its production facility, covering over 20,000 square metres in the province of Brescia. A distinguishing feature, since ever, of OTK Kart Group on the market is that all processes - from design and development to production - are carried out in-house and are 100% made-in-Italy. This allows to have maximum control over the entire production chain and therefore guarantee the absolute excellence of the final product.
OTK Kart Group also has a racing team in its portfolio, the Tony Kart Racing Team, winner of more than twenty world titles, in which several Formula 1 drivers have raced.
In October 2023, Vega, an Italian company and world leader in the production of tyres for competition karts, with over 80% of its production exported, also joined the Group. Thanks to a long series of world karting titles won since the 1980s, Vega has established itself over time as the leading supplier to the most prestigious national and international championships in the field, with the production located in its manufacturing plants - covering an area of 15,000 square metres - in Saronno (VA) and Alès in France. Vega is still run by the founder's sons, Paolo and Stefano Mantese, and, following the partnership with OTK, aims to consolidate its market leadership position and to achieve the target of exceeding the production threshold of one million tyres per year.
Thomas Flenghi and Filippo Flenghi, Co-CEOs of TM, stated: "Today is an important day for our family and for the whole company, which we are accompanying into an exciting new phase of its life. Embracing this great opportunity, maintaining the leadership of the company founded by our father, but at the same time being able to count on the support of excellent financial partners such as BIC Capital and QCapital, led by their respective CEOs, who believed in our company right from the start, is ultimately a source of great pride for our entire organisation."
Roberto Robazzi, President and CEO of OTK Kart Group, added: "We are truly proud to now be able to count on an industrial partner of excellence such as TM Kart, a company internationally recognised for its expertise in the sector and which completes our product range. This process of consolidation with an array of successful entrepreneurs from the karting world, with the aim of creating a completely innovative partnership, makes me proud, and I am grateful for the support of qualified companies such as QCapital and BIC Capital, which have made this project possible."
Nicola Volpi of BIC Capital and Stefano Miccinelli of QCapital commented: ‘We are very pleased with OTK's continuous growth, which today sees the entry of another leading company into the Group, in line with our target of building the world's most important kart manufacturing hub.’
OTK and its partners were assisted by EY for the financial and tax issues, ADVANT Nctm for legal aspects, and Essentia and Pedersoli Studio Legale for the financing matter. TM and the Flenghi family were assisted by the Marchionni law firm.
OTK Kart Group. The history of OTK Kart Group began with Tony Kart, a chassis brand founded in Italy in the 1960s. The turning point for the company came in the 1980s with new ownership, when technology was added to the craftsmanship. From that moment on, the company embarked on a development and investment plan that has led it to become the leader in the racing karting sector today. OTK Kart Group has always stood out for its innovations, the result of 41 years of research and development. In fact, OTK is synonymous with quality, performance and technology: every OTK product is designed, developed and manufactured in-house. Today, OTK not only manufactures Tony Kart brand chassis, but also those of the Kosmic Kart, Exprit Kart, Redspeed Kart, Gillard Kart, LN Racing Kart (Lando Norris), CS55 Racing Kart (Carlos Sainz) and Eos Kart brands. It also produces Vortex and Rok brand engines and, a few years ago, entered the rental kart segment with traditional combustion engines. In September 2024, it presented the first Italian-made electric kart under the e-Viper brand at IAAPA in Vienna, entirely designed and manufactured in OTK's Italian factories. OTK's activities are applied on the track with its Racing Team, the Tony Kart Racing Team, which has won over 20 world titles and as many European titles. In addition, OTK Kart Group also organises the Rok Cup, an international single-brand championship involving hundreds of drivers worldwide and requiring the exclusive use of engines produced by the OTK group.
Vega. Founded in 1976, Vega takes its name from the brightest star in our galaxy. One more reason to shine, to stand out, and a stimulus that has led it to become the European leader in the production of go-kart tyres. This is demonstrated by the 10 world titles it has won, in addition to numerous European titles. These results are based on the high technological level of the tyre manufacturing machinery, entirely designed within the company, which guarantees consistent quality production. The entire production chain is carried out internally at its factories, two in Italy, Saronno and the logistics hub in Fenegrò, and one in France in Alès. In-house production starts with the creation of compounds using the highest quality raw materials specifically designed for competition, and continues with the in-house production of the rubberised fabrics that form the carcass (the core of the tyre), the metal beads, the tread compounds, sidewalls and fillings, packaging and vulcanisation. Everything is rigorously and meticulously produced in-house, according to extremely strict quality standards. This is in order to pass over 200 laboratory tests, but above all to pass the most important tests with flying colours: those of the stopwatch and the drivers.
TM. Founded in 2023 as a natural evolution of the experience gained by TM Racing, TM Kart embodies Italian excellence in the design and manufacture of high-performance engines for competition karts. Founded in Pesaro from the vision of Claudio Flenghi and Francesco Battistelli, the company has conquered tracks around the world thanks to a clear philosophy: to build fast, reliable and winning engines. Over 3,000 engines are produced each year in the state-of-the-art 3,000 m² factory, where every stage – from design to machining and final assembly – is carried out in-house to rigorous quality standards. TM engines propel karts to the top of the international rankings, with dozens of world titles won and an established presence in over 80 countries. It is with these numbers, but above all with the genuine passion of the Flenghi family – now represented by Thomas and Filippo – that TM Kart looks to the future, ready to grow further in the world of racing thanks to its entry into the OTK Group.
QCapital. Founded by Stefano Miccinelli, Francesco Niutta, Massimo Busetti, Renato Peroni and Giovanni Pedersoli, QCapital is a company dedicated to organising private equity club deals on Italian SMEs. In 2021, QCapital acquired a minority stake in Venpa S.p.A., Italy's leading operator in the aerial platform rental sector, and recently acquired a minority stake in Ciam S.r.l., Italy's leading distributor of veterinary medicines. The targets of the deals organised by QCapital are Italian companies with excellent market positioning and significant growth opportunities, in sectors with good profitability and positive long-term trends. The QCapital team of partners has a long track record of success in private equity transactions, both as investors and as strategic consultants, M&A advisors and legal advisors.
BIC Capital was founded in 2021 as a consulting firm dedicated to supporting a select group of investors in the execution of international club deals, promoted by former Permira executives Nicola Volpi, Carlos Mallo, Francesco De Mojana and Antonio Zaccheo. The BIC network boasts unique expertise and includes CEOs, entrepreneurs and former partners of international private equity funds, who understand business logic and growth drivers with the ultimate goal of providing companies with the best possible support in achieving their objectives. BIC Capital was recently involved in supporting the acquisition of Bomaki, a leading operator in the foodservice world whose cuisine “brings different worlds together”, Nashi Argan, a cosmetics brand produced by Landoll, a company specialising in the research and production of professional hair and skin care products, and Técnicas Sanjorge, a Spanish leader in the production and installation of greenhouses and irrigation systems for agriculture.