Race dates were announced on Wednesday for the Dubai Kartdrome rounds of the much anticipated inaugural Emirates Schools Karting Championship (ESKC), and team entries are now being accepted online by the organisers.

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The first date on the Dubai Autodrome calendar is the Test & Welcome Day on Saturday, November 14 when teams will have practice sessions at the Kartdrome after taking part in an ESKC familiarisation workshop, finalising registration and paying entry fees.

Three qualification race dates will take place in January, February and March respectively, with the 2016 ESKC Grand Final to take place at the Kartdrome on Saturday, 23 April 2016.

The ESKC was officially launched in August by its patron, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, President of the Automobile and Touring Club of the UAE.

The series has since attracted a great deal of interest, with more than 200 students and teachers expressing a desire to take part.

With dates now confirmed, the Kartdrome has opened online entries for school teams, with the first 24 paid-up and registered applicants guaranteed spots on the grid for the mini-endurance style series to be run during the first four months of 2016.

ESKC director and Kartdrome manager Ryan Trutch explained: “The Test & Welcome Day is an opportunity for us to meet the teams and also for the team members to get to know their rivals in a relaxed atmosphere, while familiarising themselves with the format of the series.

“The workshop will provide updated information to all the participants and offer a platform to address questions from teachers, students and parents involved in the series. Registered and paid-up teams will then be able to test in race-like conditions. In this way, we’re providing a solid foundation for the school teams to launch their campaigns.”

He added: “We urge teams to sign up as soon as possible because spaces are limited and there have been a couple of hundred enquiries already. You can sign up online on the official website www.eskc.com.

“The interest in the series has been beyond our expectations, so we have opened up team registration at this point to allow those who are committed to sign up and be assured a place on the grid.

“We aim to have all teams, drivers, managers, crews and officials well prepared and well versed on what to expect both on and off the track. The goal is for all concerned to have fun in this competitive and exciting sport of karting.”