Kumho Tire claims manufacturer championship in Hyundai N Festival eN1 class

Kumho Tire announced Monday that it had claimed the tire manufacturer championship in the eN1 class of the 2026 Hyundai N Festival.

Kumho Tire wrapped up the season at the final round of the 2026 Hyundai N Festival, held Saturday and Sunday at Everland Speedway in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province (4.346 kilometers), securing the overall tire manufacturer title. The victory gave Kumho Tire three consecutive tire manufacturer championships from 2024 through 2026, cementing the company's technical standing in the eN1 class.

The tire manufacturer championship is awarded to the manufacturer whose drivers accumulate the highest total points across all rounds of the eN1 class season.

Kumho Tire backed three teams this season — Kumho SL Motorsport, Irain Motorsport and Wens Inje Podium Racing — supplying racing tires and supporting stable race operations. Consistent point scoring across all three teams carried Kumho Tire to the top of the standings for a third straight year.

Kumho Tire's EV-dedicated racing tire, the Enovix, was developed to meet the demands of the eN1 class, delivering the powerful torque of high-output electric vehicles reliably while providing grip through high-speed corners and control under hard braking. The tire also maintained stable performance through repeated acceleration and deceleration cycles and high-temperature conditions throughout races.

Drawing on driving data accumulated over three seasons in the eN1 class, Kumho Tire has steadily advanced its EV racing tire technology. The company plans to apply the technical knowledge and data validated under extreme racing conditions to the development of high-performance tires for electric vehicles going forward.

Kumho Tire also exclusively supplies racing tires to the Kumho N1 class, the top professional tier of the Hyundai N Festival. All vehicles competing in the Kumho N1 class were fitted with the Ecsta S700, which delivers outstanding grip and stable handling at high speed, and the Ecsta W701, which provides reliable performance in wet conditions.

Yoon Min-seok, senior vice president of global marketing at Kumho Tire, said the company was "very pleased" to have achieved three consecutive eN1 class tire manufacturer championships since 2024. "We will continue to advance our tire technology through motorsport and actively apply it to the development of high-performance products, including electric vehicle tires, to further strengthen our technical competitiveness in the global market," Yoon said.

Kumho Tire earlier set a record by winning all eight rounds of the Toyota Gazoo Racing 6000 class at the 2026 O-NE Super Race Championship, claiming the overall title for two consecutive years.

Meanwhile, Kumho Tire posted consolidated sales of 1.24 trillion won ($925 million) and operating profit of 130.5 billion won in the third quarter of this year. Sales and operating profit rose 11.1 percent and 20.3 percent, respectively, from the same period a year earlier. The operating profit margin stood at 10.5 percent.

The company attributed the earnings improvement to expanded sales in North America and Europe and growing demand for high-value products such as large-diameter and EV tires.