It's a new year, and for amateur and professional kart and car racers from all over the globe there's no better place to start the racing year than attending one of the Americas biggest and most geographically diverse kart racing programs. As this story is being written hundreds of racers from around the globe are putting the finishing touches on their equipment, packing trailers, and boarding planes headed to Florida for the toughest motorsports competition they'll face all year.

2012 marks the 14th consecutive year of competition for the Formula Kart Productions produced events, collectively referred to as "The FWT". Pre-entry numbers indicate this year's FWT January events have, for the 14th year in a row, produced record entry numbers. When pre-entries closed for the January events the Formula Kart class pre-entries were up 240% over 2011. FWT Rotax Max Challenge class pre-entries have already topped the record number of total entries for last year's season opener in Orlando, all but assuring that this year's FWT RMC will continue as the world's largest official Rotax Max Challenge events. Combined, the 2012 FWT will arrive with 658 pre-entries for the January events, and the numbers are sure to grow once onsite registration opens. Could this be the year FWT sees over 700 entries during the January events?

As in previous years, the FWT events will take place over six weekends through the first three months of the year. The first event, featuring the FWT Formula Kart Racing shifter and TaG classes, is scheduled for this weekend, January 6-8, at Palm Beach International Raceway. The following weekend, January 13-15, the FWT Rotax Max Challenge classes will take center stage at Palm Beach. In February, the Tour travels to Homestead-Miami Speedway for two more back-to-back event weekends. In March, both programs wrap up their 2012 events at the beautiful and racy Ocala Gran Prix circuit in Ocala, Florida.

This year's list of FWT competitors will again include many big names from karting and auto racing. Reigning Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals Champions Pier-Luc Ouellette (Canada/DD2) and Ben Cooper (UK/Senior) will compete in the FWT Rotax Senior class, sponsored by Goodwood Kartways/Intrepid North America. Joining the two double-world-champions in Senior will be another two-time Rotax world champion, Caleb Williams (South Africa/ 2009 DD2 / 2010 Senior). However, even though Pier-Luc, Ben and Caleb have six Grand Finals Championships between them, that is no guarantee they will be favorites to take the FWT Senior MAX title. The Florida Winter Tour fields are stacked deep with many of the best drivers from around the world.

Other classes will feature key matchups as well. After dominating the 2011 FWT DD2 Master's class last year until missing the last weekend to attend to his Indy Car Racing duties, Alex Tagliani will be back to FWT. But this year he'll run the full schedule of the Keane Racing sponsored DD2 Masters events, with an eye on earning his way to the Rotax Grand Finals. If Alex is to do that he will have to be on his "A" game because U.S. shifter kart legend and perennial "King of the Streets" champion Alan Rudolph has the same goal in mind. The duel between these two promises to be epic. This class has its largest field ever at FWT, including 2011 Pan American Challenge Champion Stuart Clark (Canada) and 2011 FWT Rotax Masters Champion Carlo Rinaldi (Venezuela).

In 2011 the Florida Winter Tour was honored with the presence of Brazilian Formula One ace Rubens Barrichello, racing in the FWT Formula Open Shifter class. This year another fast Brazilian F1 driver will race with FWT. Nelson Piquet jr. will bring his entry into the SH Karting DD2 field. Piquet will face a strong field, including 2010 Rotax DD2 world champion Daniel Morad and 2011 FWT DD2 Champion Michael Vincec.

When asked why he came to the Florida Winter Tour last year, Rubens said primarily he wanted to get in shape for the F1 season, but also because it was 'a great place to take my family". And being a great place for family is one of the aspects that have helped the FWT grow through the years. Highlighting that fact, 2011 FWT Formula TaG Masters champion Jim Russell jr. returns this year not just to defend his title, but also to race with his son James who will be competing in the AM Engines sponsored TaG Junior category during the Formula Kart weekends. Other names to watch in the TaG Junior class in 2012 include Kami Moriera Laliberte (Canada) making his FWT Junior class debut, another Canadian Champion, Zachary Claman Demelo, and the very quick Jamaican Thomas Issa.

New for 2012 will be FWT points championships for both nationality and chassis manufacturers. The Nation's Cup and Manufacturer's Cup Championships will be earned through a system that awards points in the finals of each event to the top two drivers from each nation and the top two chassis from each major brand. These separate championships will be just some of the highlights we'll be discussing throughout the 2012 season on FWT LIVE!, Formula kart Production's live webcasts. FWT LIVE! is the karting world's first and still only live streaming media production that includes live video with up to 10 cameras and audio, live timing and audience interactivity, all on one page.

FWT LIVE! is just one of the many innovations Formula Kart Productions has brought to the sport of karting through the years. For the past two years Formula Kart Productions FWT events have utilized a dedicated video marshaling system. Put into full use last year with great effect, FKP's 16-channel video marshaling system allows real-time review of on track incidents. The system gives FWT officials the ability to review every start and provides immediate review material during protests of official calls.

Complementing the video marshaling is the squadron of brilliant LED wireless safety lights from the Norwegian company Tracksa. Tracksa wireless lights offer many safety advantages over traditional light and flag systems, and currently are only seen in North America at Formula Kart Production events.

Taken as a whole, there is no other series in the Americas, and arguably in the world, that offers this level of international competition, world class destination venues, and innovative media, marshaling and safety systems. FWT. THE Winter Place To Be.