The KTM X-BOW has been designed for use on both the road and the racing circuit, yet it is on the closed racing circuit that the super sports car can best exhibit its finer points. The car had already proven these talents very early in its development, to be exact even before the series production, because parallel to the development of the series model was also the development of the KTM X-BOW GT4, which was to set impressive records. Just four months passed between the first meeting with the racing team and the successful approval by the FIA, for which there was naturally a mandatory crash test that had to be passed.
The GT4 European Cup was chosen as the ideal field of activity and together with the experienced Reiter Engineering Team, preparations were made to compete in the Supersport class against competitors like those from the House of Lotus, Donkervoort and Ginetta. As far as the races were concerned, the car was de facto competing against much more high-powered teams who lined up with the Aston Martin N24, BMW Z4 M, Ford Mustang, Porsche 911 or Nissan 350Z. The first season (2008) was characterized by the unprecedented dominance of the KTM GT4 in the Supersport class. It was here that driver Christopher Haase clinched the tile before the season finished and the three KTM drivers took the top three places in the Supersport standings. It was also possible to irritate the so-called ‘greats’ and even be in front of the GT4 cars when it came to pole positions and podiums. Just one year later, in 2009, a privateer driver repeated the triumph in the GT4 Supersport class. Augustin Eder won the race series in a KTM X-BOW, entered by Sperrer Motorsports. This was the second success for the brand from Mattighofen, Austria.
Then in 2010, KTM came up with the idea for a racing series for customers. The KTM X-BOW BATTLE was to offer an affordable but also attractive motorsport activity for all owners of the KTM X-BOW. Included in the concept were three classes that would allow all three versions of the KTM X-BOW to compete in one race series. No one was to be excluded; no one should be forced to put up a disproportionate amount of money to meet any regulation requirements. Georg Silbermayr, with support from KTM, took on the creation of the series, which began at the end of April 2010 with 16 starters on Austria’s Salzburgring.
The KTM X-BOW BATTLE concept had started its first season – and at the end of the year all the efforts of those involved were rewarded with an invitation from the ITR to be part of a guest appearance at the final DTM (German Touring Car Masters) event at the Adria Raceway. Thirty enthusiastic drivers were responsible for an impressive spectacle on the racing circuit south of Venice and this resulted in another invitation for a guest DTM appearance in 2011. So now the first race weekend for 2011 has already been held and weeks before this first event (also this year at the Salzburgring) the entire available grid places were booked out: 35 drivers were on the start!
The KTM X-BOW BATTLE Calendar 2011:
- 29-30 April: Salzburgring / Austria
- 20-21 May: Slovakiaring / Slovakia
- 17-19 June: Eurospeedway Lausitzring / Germany (Guest appearance at the DTM)
- 1-2 July: Eurospeedway Lausitzring / Germany
- 22-23 July: Hockenheim / Germany
- 16-17 September: Red Bull Ring / Austria
- 7-8 October: Brno / Czech Republic
