Toad

History:

Toad is known as Consigliere to Princess Peach Toadstool in the Mushroom Kingdom. As such, he wields immense political power but as a good nature Shroomhead is known for being nigh incorruptible. Still, as one of the few High-Ranking Mushroom People in a Royal Family otherwise full of Minorities he wields considerable influence. Some of his acquisitions include the Kingdom's large Highway System as well as a large Factory that produces Item Boxes for the Races themselves. Toad has thus been able to parlay the success of the Cups into an industry in of itself. Outside of these properties in Transportation and Industry Toad has extended a deep political influence over more of the Road System of the Kingdom, including the byways of Mushroom City from the glamourous Entertainment District to some of the Seedier Underpass Neighborhoods.

Super:

In SMK Toad's stats are radically different than they would be in later games. He's ranked along with Koopa Troopa as The Small Guys and only has an outstanding Handling Stat. His Weight is low and Top Speed and Acceleration Medium. There is no course he is explicitly associated with but in general he's considered a good driver, mostly due to his Handling. With the Rival System opponents will finish in the order Peach, DK Jr, Mario, Yoshi, Luigi, Koopa, then Bowser. This may hint at some antagonism between Servant and Master.

64:

Toad was ridiculous in MK 64. This began his era of being universally the Best Racer in the Game. While he gets knocked around easily by the bigger drivers and handles a bit looser and slipperier, he makes up for all by having the best Acceleration and Top Speed. It's insane. 64 also introduced Toad's Turnpike, which has no real reference to the Shroom himself but provided the template for many more Traffic-addled courses to come, usually all with some Toad reference. His Kart is blue.

Super Circuit:

Super Circuit finally differentiated slightly between the Lightweights. While Toad and Peach still had similar stats, including very high Top Speed and very low weight, Yoshi had a bit less speed in exchange for a bit more weight. Toad is still awesome here though and his acceleration is Top Notch. He has no track explicitly associated with him.

Double Dash:

Toad by himself in Double Dash is nothing special. Every light character in Double Dash is identical save for their Special Items. It's the Toad Kart that really shines though. It has the 4th Fastest Acceleration in the game and at a Top Speed of 56 mph. While plenty of Karts are faster, it also has some of the Best Shocks, which gives it great power against the many hilly courses and big jumps. While its handling is only average and it's the 19th lightest Kart out of 21 total it also has one of the best Offroad Speeds in the game. The positives far outweigh the negatives here.

The major drawback to using Toad in particular though is his item. The Golden Mushroom seems like an excellent one, it provides an infinite amount of Mushroom Boosts in a short span of time. However if you're in a High Position in the Race you'll never see it, so it doesn't offer much help. There are also dangerous courses like Wario Colosseum and Rainbow Road which offer enough tight turns that boosting through will leave you rammed into a wall instead of at the head of the pack. It's excellent for the Mushroom and Flower Cups but not much else.

DS:

DS is the first game since 64 where Toad isn't absolutely awesome. The only major difference between characters in this game is weight and Toad is one of the lightest, adding about 0.2 to the weight of all his Vehicles. All of his Kart Options offer very high Acceleration and decent Handling and Drift but their Speed is awful. His fastest, the Mushmellow tops off at a measly 4.3 in exchange for a paltry 3.3 Item ranking. This is still probably his best Kart, count on using it to get ahead and racing well instead of acquiring the good Items. Here's a chart:

He has Staff Ghosts on Shroom Ridge in 2:05:123 as well as the Double Dash Retro Courses Baby Park in 0:50:920  and Mushroom Bridge in 1:30:600. For all of these he uses the Mushmellow. It's interesting that they had to fit him into Baby Park because he's the most innocent, baby-like character in the game.

Wii:

Each Wii character may choose between six Karts and six Bikes in his or her Size Class, each with widely varying statistics. In addition each Driver adds certain bonuses to each Vehicle. Toad again has acceleration as his staple, adding a whopping 6-pts to any Karts' Acceleration Stat. He also adds 6-pts to Drift speed, which basically means that even if he's driving pretty slowly he'll never really lose speed, and if he does he reclaims it very fast. Here are all the Vehicle Stats specific to Toad:

As you can see, some of these stats get real good. It's hard to resist using either the Cheep Charger or the Quacker, as ridiculous as these vehicles are. He also makes the Blue Falcon and Bullet Bike pretty usable, but let's face it, at this point you haven't chosen a Light Racer for Speed. I think acceleration is much more useful in Grand Prix Mode when you're constantly being assaulted with all kinds of dangerous Items, while in Time Trial Mode it is all about speed. Thus Toad has a single Staff Ghost Track, his eponymous Factory. The Normal Staff time is 02:22.480 in the Bubble Bike and the Expert is 02:05.593 in the Blue Falcon. These are also probably the two vehicles he can be most associated with, if any.

Donut Tracks

History:

The Donut Plains are a wide expanse of grasslands in the Western Tracts of Dinosaur Land. They are some of the Richest Farmlands in the region and provide foodstores for much of Dinosaur Land and the neighboring Mushroom Kingdom. After heavy unseasonal flooding ruined crops in the Summer of 1987 the Purveyors of the Territory started constructing Race Courses in order to attract some attention and tourism to their local economy. Since then it has been a formidable course in Mario Kart History although has not been relevant until the latest incarnation, Mario Kart Wii.

Super:

There are three Donut Plains courses in SMK. They are all dirt tracks surrounded by grassland and all have some lake or water that may be dangerous. The First Circuit comes after the initial Raceway Circuit in the Mushroom Cup, a trend that continued in 64 and Wii. The Second Donut Plains is the third track in the Flower Cup, and the Final Donut Plains is the lead-off for the Special Cup. All three of these tracks reappeared in Super Circuit, which recreated the entire SMK game, tho reorganized the 5-Track/4-Cup into the more standard 4-Track/5-Cup (although admittedly every other game has featured sets of 4-Track/4-Cup). Donut Plains 1 also made an appearance in DS. They are all twisty tracks with Mild Hazards, as any good racer will do. Its DS Staff Ghost is Dry Bones, which doesn't really seem to fit at all. The track is neither dry nor spooky, although it is a relatively simplistic track, perhaps fitting for a simplistic character.

64:

The Spiritual Successor to the Donut Plains courses is Moo Moo Farm. Like the SMK courses, it features a dirty path surrounded by rolling grassland, although this time the Farm Setting is clear and Cows are everywhere. There are also Monty Moles, which featured in Donut Plains 2 and 3. The course itself is a simple loop that is complicated by its vast amount of sloping hills on either side of the track as well as a ton of Monty Moles. Clearly the track designers need to hire someone to deal with the varmint. It also came back in DS. I think this is a course better for middleweights who won't bounce around on the hills, nor lose speed when they drop. Its Staff Ghost in DS is Donkey Kong, possibly due to the clear connection between Apes and Cows.

Wii:

Moo Moo Meadows in the Mushroom Cup of Wii actually combines the natures of the Donut Plains and Moo Moo Farms. It retains the Monty Mole factor that has been present throughout, along with stretches of grassy meridians and a flatter quality reminiscent of Donut Plains, but also the cows, farms and white picket fences of Moo Moo Farms. There are some good Offroad shortcuts although few drifting opportunities. Beyond the obvious Funky Flame Runner I'm digging Toadette in the Tiny Titan for this track. The Staff Ghost here is Baby Daisy in 01:37.856, implying some connection to this track, possibly because of its innocent, idyllic nature.

Luigi

History:

Luigi has always lived in the Shadow of his Older Brother, Mario. He has continually came in second, an afterthough, the afterbirth slithered out of his mother's filth. He should have been put in a glass jar on the mantlepiece. Instead through adventuring with his portly older brother he amassed an impressive coin collection of his own, eventually allowing him to purchase his own series of Circuits as well as surviving the property tax on the Boo Mansion he won in a rigged contest. He has always been bitter of his more popular brother and yet has always been a loyal partner, if not with a simmering seathy interior.

Super:

Luigi is statistically identical to his brother Mario in SMK. He's ranked as one of The Bros., with medium rankings in handling, acceleration, weight and speed. In the game's admittedly strange Rival System if Luigi finishes first the Rank Order will be Yoshi, Mario, Bowser, Koopa, Peach, DK Jr and Toad. Clearly there's a bit of a fight with Yoshi over Mario's affection. He's prone to getting Stars on the track so watch out for this little dude.

64/Super Circuit:

Characters were basically identical across 64 and Super Circuit with some minor exceptions. Luigi is no different, he's straight in the middle of both of these games, basically identical again to Mario. His Kart is green. That's really the only major difference between him and Mario, to give players a separate but equal choice in the middleweight category. And yet they couldn't make a Mario Game without Luigi right? Right? Oh crap.

Double Dash:

We were starting to wonder, L.

Luigi again ranks in the middle with his brother here and his weapon is only cosmetically different. Luigi wields the Green Fireball, which is actually really only useful if you're very close to an opponent. If you're in the middle of a course with no one around, it's actually a pretty useless item. This differs from something like the Super Mushroom or even a Giant Banana, which can do plenty when used anywhere.

The real highlight of Luigi though is his Kart, the Green Fire which is...pretty terrible. It's actually got one of the best speeds in the game at 58 mph, but loses all this on its turns. It has minimal bounce for a Medium Kart, although it's also one of the lightest Medium Karts. It's most crippling stat though is the acceleration - it's the second worst Accelerating Kart in the game, meaning you'll never see that great Top Speed. So it's basically a Medium Kart with a Light Weight and otherwise typical Heavy Stats, but with good steering. It's a weird combo that really doesn't work that well.

Double Dash had Secret Staff Ghosts for each track. Luigi drives with Mario riding along on the Luigi Circuit in a time of 1:26:277 and they flip-flop for the Mario Circuit in 1:41:384. Since no Secret Characters or Karts are used by the Staff Ghosts he's cruising in the Red Fire for both of these.

DS:

Luigi actually has two of the better Karts in DS, the Streamliner and the Poltergust 4000 (they really can't let that Mansion thing die, can they?). They've both got decent stats in every category except Drift. I might give the edge to the Streamliner, whose great Item stat makes up for its comparatively lower speed. Take a look:

Even his Standard isn't terrible. Luigi adds about 1.8 to the weight of all his Karts, making him tied with Mario as a Middleweight Driver. Luigi's Tracks by Staff Ghost include his eponymous Mansion with the Streamliner in 1:59:357 and two of his Luigi Circuits remade, both in the Poltergust 4000. The Double Dash version is in 1:29:759, the Super Circuit incarnation completes the race in 1:46:581.

Wii:

The Wii statistical categories are crazy. Any size class of the eight Small, Medium or Large Drivers have six Karts and six Bikes to choose from, which presents a staggering amount of possible combinations. Each character also gives each Kart a boost in some particular stats. Luigi, like his brother gives each Medium Vehicle a heavy 6-pt Weight Boost but unlike the added handling, acceleration and drift boosts, Luigi only adds a 2-pt Speed Increase, which again hints that he tends to be the Faster Brother. I wonder if Daisy minds. Anyway, here are Luigi's Stats for Every Vehicle:

Luigi doesn't have any signature vehicles in this game, but his speed and weight bonuses make him great in the Mach Bike or Wild Wing. His only Staff Ghost is for his own Luigi Circuit, the Normal Ghost uses the Bk Dasher Mk. 2 in 01:29.670, the expert uses the Mach Bike in 01:19.419.

Mario Circuits

History:

The Mario Circuit was completed in 1956 by the Italian Motor Architect Enzo Gorlomi. After Enzo disappeared shortly after the Raceway fell into disrepair until purchased by a Plumber who had won tremendous amounts of coin through adventuring in the Mushroom Kingdom in the mid-1980s. It is widely believed that the Toadstool People did not believe in the same capitalist system as the portly Westerner did, so while their coins lay idle across the land, Mario felt no reason not to collect them, making himself fabulously wealthy. This combined with his immense political influence allowed him to become a de facto figurehead in the Kingdom as well as provided plenty of leisure time for pursuits like this. Mario beefed up the track and through its many incarnations has always served as a classy track in the Mario Kart Series.

Super:

The 3rd Mario Circuit

There are no less than four Mario Circuits in Super Mario Kart, each with an increasing degree of complication and difficulty but they all adhere to the same basic Raceway principle. They are the only Raceway-style tracks in SMK and actually the only ones with real roads. Circuit 1 leads off the Mushroom Cup and Circuit 2 closes it. Circuit 3 closes the Flower Cup and Circuit 4 closes the Star Cup. In this sense, besides Rainbow Road, a cup always finishes with a Mario Circuit, a trend that repeated in 64 but no where else. These tracks are pretty simple and have appeared in many other Kart games. Super Circuit recreated the entire SMK experience although it re-organised the tracks from five each in four cups to four each in five cups so their positioning is a little screwy.

Circuit 1 also appears in DS where the Ghost is Mario in the Standard MR at  0:50:688, the shortest in the game. Circuit 3 comes back in Wii where the Ghost this time is instead Baby Mario with a 01:38.880 in the Standard  Kart S. The Expert Ghost with the same Character switches to the Bullet Bike and pulls a 01:26.659. Finally, to round things out, Circuit 2 comes back in 7 with some added air time for the big mid-course jump boost. The Ghost here is Mario again, who uses the Pipe Frame, Standard Wheels, and Super Glider in 01:28.106, which is a fairly basic combination, although there is no underwater advantage for the Pipe Frame. The Expert goes 01:17.777 using the B Dasher, Slick Wheels, and Super Glider, which is an excellent combination for this course. Its only major disadvantage is handling and off-road, neither of which has a huge impact. Using a heavyweight though will push that speed up.

64:

Mario Raceway appears in 64 at the end of the Flower Cup. It is actually a pretty twisty track although there aren't many hazards besides grass, sand and a giant unscalable hill. Mario's personal fetishisation of Pipes is on display here, with a giant one appearing prior to the starting point. It is located in a pleasant part of the Kingdom, with rolling fields, low brick walls to prevent escape and a spot of trees. There are also a few fearsome Piranha Plants that threaten to munch on the more retarded of the drivers (possibly D.K.). It is likely that the Sand was imported from one of the many nearby beaches. This also returned in Wii where the Ghost is again Baby Mario, at 02:14.799 with the Nano Bike, the Expert goes 01:59.053 in the Mini Beast.

Super Circuit:

There is again only one Mario Circuit in the main game here. It actually follows the trend from 64 pretty well. There are a couple tight turns but overall it's relatively short and buffered by pleasant trees and sandy banks. Again, the sand was most likely imported. For both this course and 64 it's tough to choose a racer who may be suited best, there is no clear advantage here for anyone, there are both tight turns and long straightaways, no need for Off-road work or shortcuts. Everyone is fair game.

This course returns in 8 as a Retro Track in the Shell Cup. It has a few major revisions, including some subtle gradients and hills that were absent in the Super Circuit version. Most importantly, though, that long stretched out turn in the northwest corner has been transformed into an anti-gravity section, which makes for slightly crazier gameplay. The Staff Ghost in Time Trials is Baby Mario pulling a 1:49.158 using the Yoshi Bike, Standard Tires, and Super Glider. It's a fun callback to Yoshi's Island, but with a faster Heavyweight this combo can be surpassed.

Double Dash:

The Mario Circuit again makes an appearance here, this time smack in the Middle of the Flower Cup. Most Mario Circuits are Flower Cup circuits for some reason. It's all part of Mario being the most average Driver ever. The Flower Cup is just advanced enough that it's not a total blowover like the Mushroom Cup is, but it's still pretty simple. The Mario Circuits fit this bill perfectly. We get to drive around Peach's Castle in this one, although it's protected by some high walls, hills and a moat, which make entry difficult. There is again a long sandy stretch, ravenous Piranha Plants, a long tunnel and some tricky but wide curves. There's also a captive Chain Chomp, the second in the game after the one on the Luigi Circuit.

Double Dash also featured some Secret Staff Ghosts. Here Mario and Luigi use the Red Fire in 1:41:384. This track also returned for Wii, the third Mario Circuit to do so, and this time has a Ghost of Mario alone at 01:59.771 in the Standard Bike M. The Expert Ghost once unlocked uses the Wild Wing in 01:49.939. I think handling is the key to winning this track, there are some edges to cut with Offroad boosts with only grass to worry about as well as a tricky bit at the end with mini-hills and Goombas. I think a small combination with the Toad or Toadette Kart (probably Toad due to its slightly better speed) would be key.

DS:

DS is the only game to feature a Flower Cup without a Mario Circuit, it's instead in the Star Cup, almost out of place sandwiched between bizarrely unique courses like Tick-Tock Clock and Airship Fortress. Then again, this Mario Circuit is one of the more convoluted of its incarnations. The first half is pretty typical, wide straightaways, some slight curves, the sand, the goombas, the pipes. Then the second half goes kind of nutty with a big overhead spiral, a clear shot at Peach's Castle and some hairpin turns. It's interesting that the Mario Circuit eventually became home to Peach's Castle instead of incarnations of the Royal Raceway. Is this Mario trying to show off for the Princess? Or is it rather him attempting to assert his masculinity and dominance after she had to save him for once? I actually think with his decent handling, speed and acceleration Luigi's Poltergust 4000 or Streamliner can handle this track. The Ghost, though is Mario in the Shooting Star at 1:56:533.

Wii:

The Wii Edition is actually relatively simple. There are some gentle curves throughout the Castle Court (this game features Peach's Castle extremely prominently, it engulfs the entire horizon for a good portion of the back half of the track, clearly just another example of Mario's futile attempt at courtship. Or perhaps economic dominance of the Mushroom Kingdom isn't satisfying the Italian any more and he's vying for greater political influence? Perhaps even the title of...King Mario? It's always the ones with the moustache). Anyway, the Chain Chomp returns although he's much more fearsome with a longer reach, still a nice callback to Double-Dash and outside the Castle Court is a nice romp through the requisite sand, trees and Goombas. I think the flexibility of the Mario Circuits is interesting while maintaining the same basic themes. The courses can be in any shape of the imagination but only adhere to the same motifs.

The Ghost here obviously is Mario. He uses the Zip Zip in 01:44.777 while the Expert goes 01:33.702 in the B Dasher Mk 2. While Funky on most bikes dominates courses (in this case the Spear), this is one of the few courses in which Daisy driving the Wild Wing is your best Kart Option. According to this Records Chart there are only a handful of characters to recommend on a given course. I say like any of the Mario Circuits this can be won with just about any competent driver.

7:

The rendition of the Mario Circuit in 7 breaks with tradition somewhat while also sticking with a lot of the core elements. There are Goombas and Pipes, including a bendy one to drive through, and of course, Peach's Castle makes an appearance. For the first time though, Drivers actually race through the interior of the castle, tho not all that far and also participate in some huge jumps and valleys, incorporating 7's new air gliding. It also seems very Peach-like with pink trees and pretty flowers every where. The loop is simple enough, but this is also the only Mario Circuit to feature a major water hazard.

The Normal Ghost here is Mario, who uses the Standard Kart, Standard Wheels, and Super Glider in 02:25.001. This is possibly the most boring combination ever. You should be able to find something that fits a more specific playing style to beat him. The Expert, however, upgrades to the B Dasher using the Slick Wheels and Super Glider in 02:10.018. The only thing faster in the game would be the Gold Tires, that match the speed, or a heavier weight class that will have a stronger base. Go for it.

8:

Mario Circuit is a posterchild for Mario Kart 8, and perhaps best exemplifies what that game was trying to do with its anti-gravity elements. It's an impossible mobius strip that's none too complicated, save for its trippy upside down-sections. Peach's Castle is still there, but fully inaccessible. Goombas also make an appearance, this time stacked during an optional air-time section for maximum irritation. There are also plenty of Piranha Plants, although 8 seems full of Piranha Plants, so that's perhaps less a notable trait, but at least reminiscent of a staple of many previous Mario Circuits.

Similar to his Ghost in 7, Mario here drives the Standard Kart, Standard Wheels, and Super Glider. That's about the most balanced, typical combo you're going to get, and even though a lot of this is crazy and upside-down, someone heavier with a higher speed ought to be enough. There isn't a vehicle combo with speed boosts for both Ground and Anti-Gravity travel, and this course is really equal parts both. Some Slick Wheels, though, will help those stats. Beat a 2:07.436 and it's yours.

Mario

History:

Mario has always been the go-to-guy in the Mushroom Kingdom. From rescuing Princesses to defeating Giant Turtles, this guy can do everything. Well, he can do both of those things. Throughout his adventures and continuous Coin Collection Mario was eventually able to purchase an old Racetrack built in 1956 and re-shape it in his image, the Mario Circuit. It was once the proudest of all Raceways. Mario began his life as a simple plumber, but after he realised he was one of only a handful of Humans in a Kingdom populated by Tiny Talking Mushrooms he found a chance for Glory. In these Racing Games he's typically the first choice in the Menu and one of the more well-rounded Drivers.

Super:

Just happy to be alive.

Mario is statistically identical to his brother, Luigi and classified as one of "The Bros." SMK ranked its eight drivers in four categories - Acceleration, Top Speed, Handling and Weight. Mario is in the middle of all these categories, neither having an advantage or disadvantage. Through the Rival System of SMK Mario's chief opponents in order of fastest to slowest are: DK Jr, Peach, Yoshi, Luigi, Toad, Bowser, then Koopa Troopa. Clearly there is some bad blood leftover between him and DK Jr after what he did to his father. It's interesting that he doesn't have much of a rivalry with Bowser. As a computer player he uses the Invincible Star a ton.


64/Super Circuit: 

Mario also appeared here and his Kart was red. Yippee. He's identical in both of these games, a Middleweight, a distinction he again shares only with his brother, Luigi. He's average in just about everything. His primary goal, obviously, is to win the Gold in each Cup, thus allowing him an easy segue into Peach's castle so he can bury his shroom in her garden, if you get my drift. C'mon, a Cake for all that work? Gimme a break. This man's got a Moustache Ride with that Blonde's name on it.

Double Dash:

Double Dash is a unique Mario Kart game not only for the obvious reason that you picked two drivers, but the only difference between the 20 Characters was the weight class. Otherwise Karts made up the distinction, along with what Special Item you'd be likely to receive. Mario's Item is the Red Fireball, which can be used equally effectively as an Offensive Weapon thrown in front or a Defensive one thrown behind. Its advantage over shells is the same as its disadvantage: It attacks a wide path but there is equally wide gaps in between each. So while there's a ton, there's a ton that isn't difficult to dodge. They also don't survive that long.

That's more like it.

Mario uses Middleweight vehicles except when paired with Kong, Wario, Bowser, Petey and Boo. Thus the fastest Karts he may use are the Green Fire, DK Jumbo, Koopa King and Piranha Pipes, the Best Accelerating Karts he may use are the Boo Pipes, and the Best Offroad he may find is the Waluigi Racer and Boo Pipes. The Least bounciest he may use is also the Boo Pipes, the narrowest is the Bloom Coach, and the most Turn Speed is the DK Jumbo.

Mario's Signature Kart is the Red Fire. For a Middle Kart it's one of the fastest, but also the second-slowest to accelerate. It also has the slowest Offroad of all the Middle Karts. It has one of the worst Turn Speeds of all the Middle Karts, and is one of the more bouncier Karts overall, but is still beaten by the Waluigi Racer, Turbo Yoshi and Turbo Birdo in this regard. It's size is average. In general it's only beneficial nature is really its speed, overall it's not that great, and handles more towards a Heavy Kart would but without the necessary weight.

There were secret Staff Ghosts in Double Dash, through which Mario is involved on three tracks. He's a passenger on Luigi Circuit with Luigi in 1:26:277, he drives Luigi on his own Mario Circuit in 1:41:384 and comes back on Rainbow Road with Peach in the back at 3:16:476. He steers the Red Fire for all of these.

DS:

DS further pushed the idea of Karts making the ride, not the driver. Mario's specific Karts include the B Dasher, the Shooting Star and of course the Standard MR. The only stat that varies between drivers is their weight. Mario adds about 1.8 to the weight of all his vehicles. The stats for his signature Karts are as follows:

DS started this idea of having something for everyone. While the Standard MR is just about in the middle the Shooting Star has much better Speed, Acceleration and Handling at the expense of a terrible Item ranking. The B Dasher is the other side of the spectrum. While it looses stats from the MR in every category, its Item goes way up. If only the Shooting Star looked cooler, it'd be a hot Kart to pick. It also suffers from very low weight while the B Dasher is a bit heavier.

His Ghost Courses are the Figure-8 Circuit in the Standard MR in  1:36:481, the Mario Circuit in the Shooting Star in  1:56:533 as well as the SMK Retro Mario Circuit 1 in  0:50:688.

Wii:

Cruisin' on his Turf

The Wii took DS' simple Kart-specific idea and went absolutely insane with it. Whereas characters made the difference in games like SMK, 64 and SC, and Karts made the difference in DD and largely DS (besides weight factors), Wii races are decided by both Drivers and Karts. Each Kart has a very specific stat and each Driver adds different bonuses to each. Mario adds a lot of weight to each Kart (he needs to lay off the cannolis), along with modest Acceleration, Handling and Drift boosts. Here is a nifty Mario-Specific Chart to memorize for you Plucky Plumber Fans out there:

His fastest vehicle is the B Dasher Mk 2, he gets best Acceleration out of the Classic Dragster, best handling out of the Sugarscoot, best drift and Mini-Turbo from the Mach Bike, best weight from the Wild Wing and the best Off-Road from the Zip-Zip. All of these Best Stats are in the high fifties or low sixties, so there's no Kart for Mario that's terrible in all areas. I think the Classic Dragster, despite its low speed is the best fit for Mario.

For Normal Staff Ghosts, Mario is feature on the Mario Circuit with the Rapide at 01:44.777 and on the GCN Version with the Standard Bike M at 01:59.771. The Expert Staff Ghosts upgrade to the B Dasher Mk 2 at 01:33.702 and Wild Wing at 01:49.939 respectively.

Luigi Circuits

History:

There are several tracks named after Luigi, all appearing in the Mushroom Kingdom. The Track was first designed in 1957 to compete with the earlier Mario Circuit. Luigi was able to purchase rights to remodeling the course in 1989 after winning tremendous amounts of coins scattered around the Kingdom's areas as well as from being one of the only humans in a land full of Mushroom People. His political power at its peak yet still subservient to his out-of-shape brother, Mario, Luigi purchased the rights for his namesake track to be the Opener for the Mushroom Cup in almost all incarnations of Mario Kart.

64:

The prototype Luigi course is the first track in the Mushroom Cup of Mario Kart 64, a trend that continued for every Console Mario Kart game. Being the firs track, the composite Luigi Circuit is two wide curves connected by a long straightaway. There are also usually a shallow gradient, here the road dips as the Karts enter a Brick Tunnel. The only other outstanding feature is the hot air balloon that dips down with an additional item box, said to contain a precious Blue Shell. Luigi, being an average, all-around driver, excels at this course, although it would be difficult or anyone not to.

This track comes back as the initial Retro Track for Mart Kart 7. It remains virtually identical though, not incorporating any of the more recent play developments, although it's notable that it leads off the Retro Cups, perhaps providing a reason why the Original Tracks begin with a Toad Circuit. The Staff Ghost here, naturally, is Luigi. The Normal goes 02:04.317 using the Standard Kart, Slick Wheels, and Super Glider. That's a tough combo but with a friendly, straight track like this there are much better speed options. The Expert upgrades to the Pipe Frame and Parafoil while keeping the same wheels at 01:52.206. Again, there are much faster Karts available on such an straightforward course.

Super Circuit:

The Luigi Super Circuit Course really breaks with tradition. Not only is leading off the Lightning Cup instead of the Mushroom Cup (in the only game wherein the Lightning Cup is not a Bonus Cup), but it abandons its familiar shape for a twisty crazy path through an otherwise unremarkable locale. It's also one of the few Mario Kart courses to feature a weather pattern, it's always rainy on this Luigi Circuit. Is this a sign of Luigi's loneliness and discontent? Likely. It's also clearly bordering farmland, perhaps it has more in common with the Moo Moo Regions than it does with the Circuits that take place in the heart of the Mushroom Kingdom. This also came back as a Retro Course in DS, in which the Staff Ghost is Luigi in the Poltergust 4000 doing a 1:46:581.

Double Dash:

You can see that the GCN course preserved the same basic concept as the Original Luigi Raceway, although it has added boosts along the outside of the wide turns and the straightaway is shared by racers flying towards both ends, which may result in some mayhem. There are some sneaky shortcuts worth some double-item boxes, one of which is guarded by a Chain Chomp. You really get a feel for the Mushroom Kingdom here, with its idyllic plains, intriguing shroom-like architecture and pipe motif. Most Karts would do well in this level, but I'd tend to side with Karts that have a high Top Speed due to the straightaway and the fact that no special handling is necessary to take the wide turns. Luigi's NEW Mansion is also visible on the outskirts on this course. Perhaps Luigi builds his courses on his OWN land, a remarkable trait for his family. Double Dash had secret Staff Ghosts to unlock, this track features a Luigi/Mario Combo in the Red Fire cruising a time of 1:26:277. DS also featured this track in the Retro Circuit and Luigi by himself goes 1:29:759 in the Poltergust 4000.

DS:

There is no Luigi Circuit in DS, likely because Luigi took ownership of the much cooler Luigi's Mansion course. The Mushroom Cup leads off with the Figure-8 Circuit though which is in spirit exactly like the other Luigi Courses. It features only long straightaways and wide turns except instead of sharing the central straightaway it forms into the eponymous Figure-8 instead. It's actually surprising not more Luigi Circuits followed this pretty simple design. It has the slight hills as well. Actually this is exactly a Luigi Circuit in all but name and appearance of a Green-Capped Plumber. Still, its Ghost is Mario in the Standard MR pulling a 1:36:481.

Wii:

The Wii edition broke with the exact layout of the typical Luigi Circuit but it has the same idea. Wide Curves and lots of straightaways. It does retain a slight slope as well as plenty of boosters during its widest curve. It really only loses its symmetry. Luigi has erected a giant statue of himself on this course, surely a sign of his increasing jealousy and hostility towards his fatter yet more popular brother. This is again not a horribly difficult course for any particular driver. There's not a whole lot of Offroad action besides the jump shortcut that may be used for a little boost, and even the worst handling Karts should be able to take these turns. The Normal Ghost is Luigi in the B Dasher Mk 2 at 01:29.670 while the Expert goes 01:19.419 in the Mach Bike.