Update on the CIK-FIA U 18's World Karting Championship, by Round 2 Winner, Adam Stirling

The 2^nd round of the CIK-FIA U 18’s 2010 World Championship was held on the 28-29^th of August at Alcaniz, Spain. There are three rounds in this new Championship for 2010, which the CIK has introduced this year to offer a more cost effective opportunity for karters to race in a World Championship.

Temperatures were reaching the high 30`s all weekend after a high of 44 on Thursday! For qualifying I was in the 1^st out of 2 sessions and I was able to qualify in second position in my group, which put me on 5^th Overall. I started 2^nd for all of my four heats, but unfortunately this meant starting on the outside row for all of the heats.

My target for all of the Heats was not to worry about winning them, but to have consistent finishes towards the front as far as was possible, without taking any unnecessary risks of a DNF through trying to win them.

Starting on the outside, my primary concern was to ensure that I would lose as little ground as possible and keep a front running position after the starts.

In the first heat I managed to get to the inside in 3^rd place and pushed Stefan Riener (Austria) around the track to pull a gap on 4^th place. I tried to make a move, but only managed to finish 3^rd. In the second heat on the Saturday, I was able to come to the inside line around the first corner in 2^nd place, but was passed by Ireland’s John Norris in the middle of the race and finished in another 3^rd position. In the 3^rd heat I was able to slot myself into 2^nd position behind Jordan Chamberlain. Throughout the race I just continued to push Jordan, which enabled us both to pull away from the rest of the field. I remained in 2^nd place to the finish. In my final heat, I slipped into 3^rd place by the end of the first lap behind Britain’s Jake Dennis, and from there I remained behind him to the end, as I knew Jake would be up to the winning pace.

I was aware that consistent front running finishes in the Heats would give me a good position within the top ten for the first Pre-Final, which proved to be the case.

In the first Pre-Final on Sunday morning, I started on the outside on Grid 6. On the first lap going into the first corner, there was confusion by the front runners which created a melee right in front of me. I had to swerve to avoid it and in the process I got passed by about seven karts, which dropped me down to 13^th place. From there I was determined to gain positions and got myself up to 6^th by the end of the race.

For the second Pre-Final it was reversed grids, so I started down in 31^st at the back of this grid. I had nine laps to get up into the top ten, to have a chance to take the win in the Final, and so throughout the race I just focussed on going forward. Fortunately I managed to get myself up to 6^th place before the flag.

The moment of the Final had arrived! I started on the 3^rd row for the Final, on the inside in 5^th place. There were 18 laps in this Final, with a good opportunity on this fast flowing wide circuit to pass a few karts, to hopefully take the flag for the win.

After the second corner I had got myself up to 3^rd behind Adrian Del Rio. By the end of the first lap I had passed Del Rio to take second place behind the leader, Teemu Suninen of Finland, who had by this stage pulled out a lead of about eight kart lengths. I pushed hard for the next four laps, in the process catching Suninen.

For the next thirteen and a half laps I stuck my front bumper underneath Teemu Suninen, keeping it there, which enabled us both to pull away from the rest of the field. When I saw the last lap board, I knew I had to make a move, and in the second corner I made a move on the fast Finn and passed him. Despite his challenging me after I overtook him, I kept the lead, defending for the remainder of the lap, keeping Suninen behind me to take the flag by +0.176 of a second! 

As we head to Val D’Argenton, France, for the last Round at the end of September, this now leaves me on 32 Championship points, behind joint leaders Jake Dennis, GBR and Teemu Suninen, Finland, who are both on 36 points. As 25 points are awarded for a win in the Final, with 20 points for 2 nd and 16 points for 3 rd, the action in France should be very interesting, with no doubt some close racing to come!

The nearest following Championship competitors are Matias Koykka, Finland and John Norris, Ireland, both of whom are tied jointly on 20 points, 12 points behind me.

Rounds 1 & 2 of this new World Karting Championship have now both been won by British competitors. Obviously it would be a fantastic achievement for Great Britain if Round 3 is won by a British competitor as well, and here’s hoping that it’s me!

The next three rounds of the Ginetta G50 Championship, were hosted by the 1.2713 mile circuit of Knockhill.  Drivers do battle here along it's sweeping bends, climbs and dips in scenic Scottish surroundings.  Frank and Adam were joined for this weekend by guest driver, Jonathan Adam, former Renault Clio Cup Champion, double SEAT Cupra Champion and podium finisher in the British Touring Car championship.
 

Qualifying (Saturday)

The 20 minute dry qualifying session, was made particularly difficult, due to a red flag incident and so many track incidents. The drivers found it hard to get a clear track.  However, Frank qualified 4th, Adam 8th and Jonathan took pole position.

Race 1 (Saturday)

The 16 lap race was held in dry, cloudy conditions.  The startline at Knockhill is on an incline and the drivers have to hold their positions on the clutch, without rolling, until the race start.  All three drivers got away safely, but Jonathan was handed a drive through penalty for a start line infringement of rolling forward on the line, which ruined his chances of  replicating World Touring Car racer, Rob Huff's, hat trick of wins earlier in the year in the Dynojet guest car, at Thruxton.  Frank slotted into second ahead of Benji Hetherington, and set about doing battle with another guest driver, and previous G50 championship winner, Nigel Moore.  Into the last third of the race the Dynojet car started to suffer from brake problems, but Frank drove a defensive race to finish second on the road, behind Nigel, but took maximum points, as the guest driver was ineligible to score.

Adam got a good start and immediately capitalised on Tom Sharp's mistake at the chicane.  He went onto do battle with Freddie Hetherington to finish a very creditable 6th place.

Jonathan recovered after the drive through penalty to finish 8th, and posted a new lap record of 53.215

Race Result:

1st   Nigel Moore             14.23.836

2nd  Frank Wrathall        +3.206

3rd    Benji Hetherington      +3.528

6th   Adam Morgan        +8.707

Race 2 (Sunday)

Grid positions in the 24 lap race, were determined from race one results.  Nigel Moore scorched away from pole position, but Frank caught him within a couple of laps and worked hard to apply pressure.  On lap six his efforts paid off as he moved into the lead with a superb pass at Scotsman.  Moore made a comeback fight, and on lap 11 regained the lead at the hairpin. Frank drove a calculated race and settled to bring the Dynojet car home in second place, to take maximum points again, as Nigel had 'guest' status.

Adam maintained his 6th place from his grid position, losing a slot on the 8th lap to the charging Jonathan Adam. He later moved up the order with a great pass on Freddie Hetherington on lap 19, and eventually finished 5th.

Jonathan fought through the field from his 8th grid position carving his way past Joachim Ritter, Adam, Freddie Hetherington, and Carl Breeze to take 4th 

Race Result:

1st   Nigel Moore               21.32.987

2nd  Frank Wrathall          +1.060

3rd  Benji Hetherington           +1.504

4th  Jonathan Adam         + 2.941

5th  Adam Morgan           +10.464

Race 3 (Sunday)

The reverse grid draw for race three, picked the top four finishers from race two, meaning Jonathan was on pole, with Frank on 3rd and Adam remaining in 5th.

Nigel Moore grabbed third from Frank on the first lap with a forceful move at Scotsman.  Frank took third from Hetherington on the second tour, with a brilliant move around the outside of the hairpin.  On lap ten Moore made a mistake and ran wide at Clark's, allowing Frank to move into a comfortable second place.  On lap 16 however, Frank had an off track excursion over the chicane, to hand second place back to Moore. This left Frank in third behind the two guest drivers. He was happy to stay in third, and not to make a challenge in order to take the championship points.

Adam took fifth place after a solid drive, finishing just 0.4 seconds shy of the group ahead, and some 13.5 seconds ahead of the sixth placed Aaron Williamson.

Jonathan delivered a supreme performance, in the guest car, from pole position and never looked back on his way to a dominant 8.6 second victory.  He also posted the fastest lap of  53.411 seconds.

Race Result:

1st   Jonathan Adam      21.37.729

2nd   Nigel Moore                     +8.600

3rd  Frank Wrathall              +8.916

5th  Adam Morgan              +9.767

Frank: "Jonathan and Nigel have been excellent this weekend so I had to use my head, sit behind them in the races, and take maximum points.  Once again the team have worked extremely hard to give me a great Dynojet car "

Adam:  "The team have worked really hard this weekend, as we've made a lot of changes to the set up.  I was very happy with the handling of the car in the last race.  To get points for 3rd, 4th and 5th was a good bonus, as I am still closing the points gap to Tom Sharp.  Thanks again should go to the Dynojet team."

Jonathan:  "It's been great to be racing back at Knockhill, my local circuit, and it's ended up a great weekend for me, especially getting a win in front of such a good home crowd.  I'd like to thank the Dynojet team for giving me a such a well set up car to drive.  Thanks also to Ginetta and Production Glassfibre for giving me the opportunity to race the G50"

2010 Michelin Ginetta G50 Cup Championship Positions (after Rd 22):

1st  Frank Wrathall    612pts

2nd   Carl Breeze    599pts
3rd   Benji Hetherington  424pts

4th   Tom Sharp    401pts

5th     Adam Morgan   382pts

Next race:  Donington Park 18th/19th September

Note: These articles are written and supplied by you the competitors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Championship

For the fifth consecutive season Formula Kart Stars upped sticks and travelled across the English Channel to Genk for the start of the second half of the 2010 season where once again the facilities at the 1350-metre Paul Lemmens owned track left all the championship newcomers in awe.

Drivers who were lucky enough to be awarded the Bernie Ecclestone Driver of the Day award back in 2009 get set to head to Monza for the 2010 Grand Prix!

Matthew Parry bounced back from frustrating weekends at both Larkhall and PF International to take another step towards securing the Super 1 Series Junior Rotax title with a solid performance in round six at Shenington.

Consolidation was the name of the game for the 15-year old, who knew that he needed to be in and around the top three finishers in each of the weekend’s two finals to keep his advantage in the point standings and, although the weather did its best to keep the entire field on its toes, Parry and the Paul Carr Racing team achieved its aim.

The Bury St Edmunds native arrived at Shenington on the back of a busy academic week, collecting the GCSE results he needed to qualify for a National Diploma course in engineering at his local college and also enrolling for the Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence at Loughborough. Between the two, he was also invited to Lotus Racing headquarters at Higham to meet with key team members Mike Gascoyne, Nino Judge and David Evans, who oversee the squad’s young driver development scheme.

With his education secured for the next two years, Parry was able to focus on his karting commitments from the off, and featured alongside his main rivals at the head of the timesheets in varying track conditions during Friday testing. The only headache for the PCR team was a seemingly down-on-power engine that refused to be cured and, although matters were a little better when qualifying began on Saturday, Parry found himself only fifth fastest in his group, and eighth on the combined list.

That meant that he would start on the outside of row two for his two heats and the conservative approach to the weekend started in Saturday afternoon’s race where, despite feeling that he may have been able to challenge for a higher position, Parry settled for third on the road. Come Sunday morning, and heat two, however, he couldn’t help himself, and duly claimed a narrow victory to boost his confidence ahead of the point-scoring finals.

His results combined to produce third on the grid for Sunday afternoon’s first final but, once again, prudence reigned. While second may have been possible, the PCR kart crossed the line third, with Parry less than a second behind his two main championship rivals.

The front-running trio became a quartet in an equally exciting main event, with Jack Barlow joining Parry, Jack Marshall and Sean Babington in setting the pace, and sharing the lead between them during the course of the 15-minute race. Parry led into Wilkins on the penultimate lap but, as is so often the case at Shenington, found himself not only passed by Marshall, but also hung out to dry as both Babington and Barlow used the gap to squeeze by. In any other circumstances, he would have tried to respond on the final tour but, with one eye firmly on the points situation, he settled for fourth.

“I was down on power all weekend and, as Shenington is Paul Carr’s local track, we would have expected to have run away with the round, as my existing lap record would prove,” a satisfied Parry commented afterwards, “However, with the lack of full power and the need to be careful with regard to the championship, third and fourth in the finals is a solid result.

“It leaves me with a little room to spare going into the final round at Three Sisters and, while I am not counting my chickens as there is a lot of work to do just yet, I can go there both confident and enthusiastic.”

Although the current standings show Parry trailing Marshall by eight points, the situation is reversed when dropped scores are taken into account, with the Paul Carr Racing driver sitting on a 27-point cushion going to the final event.

However, in light of the effect switching between the Junior and Senior Rotax classes had following Parry’s appearance in the RGMMC Euro Max series at Speedworld in Austria, he has taken the decision not to enter round four at Genk to concentrate on securing the Super 1 title.

Picture credit - Chris Walker

Note: These articles are written and supplied by you the competitors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Championship

Silverstone, the home of British motor racing, hosted rounds 18 and 19 of the Ginetta G50 Championship.  The 1.639 mile 'National' circuit was in for some real action as the G50 Cup battle heated up.  Joining Frank and Adam this weekend, in the guest car, was Aero Tech Laboratories' Giles Dawson who has previously competed in the Ginetta G20 series.  Only two races were scheduled for Silverstone this weekend.

Qualifying (Saturday)

The 20 minute morning session was held in dry conditions initially, but with spots of rain falling towards the end of the period.  Frank qualified 3rd in the Dynojet car, Adam 8th and Giles 17th on the grid for his initial venture in the Ginetta G50 Dynojet car, after an absence of racing for some 8 months.

Race 1 (Saturday)

The absence of pole setter, Chris Dittman, due to a last minute mechanical failure, effectively elevated Carl Breeze to pole ahead of Frank.  The scramble into Copse at the start of the race left Frank in third on the road, but he soon regained the place.  He was hampered by a broken door catch, which ultimately led to the door opening and closing during the 22 lap race, depending on the direction of the corner.  Undeterred he set about chasing down Carl.  Frank produced a fantastically determined and ultimately rewarding drive.  On lap 9 he produced the fastest lap of the race, and made his move on Carl at Beckett's, staying ahead to bring the Dynoet car home in top spot, and an extra Championship point for the fastest lap.

Adam's race was hampered by a poor start and he dropped down the order to ninth.  He endured pressure from Colin White and Freddie Hetherington.  As the race progressed he managed to chase down Tom Sharp and pulled away to finish seventh.

Giles made a good clean start in the guest car.  He moved up the order and brought the guest car safely home in 14th place.

Race Result:

1st   Frank Wrathall    22.29.591

2nd  Carl Breeze     +1.655

3rd    Benji Hetherington       +2.668

7th   Adam Morgan      +19.505

Race 2 (Sunday)

The second race of the weekend provided another twist in the season long battle between the title hopefuls.

Grid positions were taken from race one results, with no reverse gird being applied.  Frank got a good start to take the lead on the road, as the following pack jostled for positions. By lap two Carl Breeze was on Frank's tail and made a move into Brookland's, but contact between the pair, damaged the Dynojet car, and Frank was unable to continue.  Carl dropped down the order but was able to continue the race.

Adam had a cracking start and was upto fifth going into Beckett's, as the race progressed, Nigel Moore got the better of Adam.  The safety car was deployed on lap six, due to the removal of the Dynojet Car from the gravel run-off area.  On the re-start Adam capitalised by taking fifth from Dan Denis.  Nigel Moore retired on lap 10, leaving Adam to finish fourth very close behind Tom Sharp.

Giles made a good start, and had an incident free race, but towards the later stages was pressured by Ben Jackson, as the two fought hard for the upper hand.  Giles crossed the finishing line in a very creditable 12th spot.

Race Result:

1st   Benji Hetherington   27.04.870

2nd  Phil Broad  +1.895

3rd  Tom Sharp  +8.349

4th  Adam Morgan       +8.695

Frank: "The first race was fantastic. As soon as I rounded the first corner my door came open, so I had a lot to deal with! Once I got the door situation out of my mind, my car felt great. I easily caught and passed the race leader and pulled away for a comfortable win. The set up of the car was perfect from start to finish, which is down to my great team. The second race was a disaster, I came together with Breeze battling for the lead, when we went for the same bit of tarmac. As soon as we touched, my rear right upright snapped and it was race over. We have been able to show our true pace this weekend though, which will carry over to Knockhill in two weeks time"

Adam:  "Another up and down weekend for results.  I would have liked to be further up the field in race one, but finishing 4th in the second race has once again given me more confidence.  I've managed the bring the points gap closer to Tom Sharp this weekend.  Thanks again to the Dynojet team for giving me a great car."

Giles:  "I've had an awesome weekend.  The car was as good on the last lap as the first lap in both races.  The team worked very hard  to get the clutch changed in between qualifying and race one.  I'd like to thank the Dynojet team for giving me a very warm welcome and a great car to race.  I haven't raced for quite sometime, and to get these results is a testament to a well set up car, from a very professional team."

2010 Michelin Ginetta G50 Cup Championship Positions (after Rd 19):

1st   Carl Breeze    543pts
2nd  Frank Wrathall    515pts

3rd   Tom Sharp    365pts

5th     Adam Morgan   310pts

Next race:  Knockhill 4th/5th September

The Formula Kart Stars championship moved into its second half with a double-header round held at the spectacular Genk circuit in Belgium last weekend (14/15 August).

After reducing his deficit to just three points in the title race, Jack Barlow was eager to maintain the pressure on his fellow title-protagonists.

In Saturday’s qualifying session Jack recorded the fourth-fastest time to secure second row starting positions for the two heats. In the first race he initially dropped to 8^th in a scrappy start, but came back to finish 2^nd at the chequered flag. After being hit from behind he dropped to the back of the field but staged a gritty fightback to cross the line in 10^th position.

“I started the main final from 5^th place and had to scrap my way up the order. It was an enjoyable race, although I made a couple of mistakes, which possibly cost me a crack at going for the win. Still, 2^nd place gave me more vital championship points and keeps me very much in the overall hunt,” he said afterwards.

Sunday proved to be a tougher experience, with the Benelux weather creating challenging conditions for the competitors.

In timed qualifying, Jack recorded the second-quickest lap and went on to score a brace of 2^nd-place finishes in the heats to guarantee his third front row start of the weekend.

“I went off p2 and there was a lot of argy-bargy at the start,” he explained. “I managed to hold my starting position and to take the lead at one point. I was in a four kart battle for the front and dropped to 4^th. I pushed and pushed as hard as I could and managed to get into 3^rd but pushed a little too hard in the later stages and ran wide in one corner. This allowed the driver behind me through and I settled for 4^th rather than risk any more dramas.”

He added, “Overall I’m pleased, because I’m a rookie in the class and at this crucial stage of the season I’m consistently running at, or near the front. All is still to play for and I won’t give up.”

The Lewis Hamilton and Bernie Ecclestone-backed series moves to the fast Three Sisters circuit in September (25/26) for the penultimate round, before reaching its conclusion at Ellough Park in Suffolk on 16/17 October.

Milton Keynes-based youngster makes most of new kart and gets back on track in rounds seven and eight of the Lewis Hamilton and Bernie Ecclestone Formula One Management-backed Formula Kart Stars (FKS) series.

Samuel Oram-Jones showed impressive pace in rounds seven and eight of the Formula Kart Stars (FKS) meeting at Genk last weekend, despite having to get to grips with a new kart.

Sammy, who races in the FKS MiniMax class for 11-16 year olds, scored against the odds last time out at Glan-Y-Gors in June, but that event took its toll and the 12-year-old was forced to get a new machine for the trip to Belgium.

In practice on Thursday and Friday he made the most of the time and was never outside the top-four in his KR Sport Racing Team-run kart. That set him up well for Saturday's action and after qualifying ninth he was on form in both of the heats and despite losing out at the start he fought his way back, and eventually took two very respectable 13th places.

He then came through to take eighth in the round seven final of the Lewis Hamilton and Bernie Ecclestone Formula One Management-backed series, showing impressive pace by setting the second quickest lap overall, the best time in sector 3 and the fastest theoretical lap of all 27 runners.

"It went very well today," Sammy reflected. "We were quickest in the final, but we had to come from the middle to the front.

"We had two incidents in the heats where I was hit off at the start. In the first heat we bent one side of the bumper and the second heat was even worse because the person that hit me lifted the kart of the ground and put me up in the air. It damaged the kart a bit, but we still came back in both of those races.

"Then in the final we were really quick. I think we were about two tenths quicker than the guy that won. There was a train of about three or four people in front and we could have got ahead of all of them and taken P4 had there been a few more laps. We just didn't have quite enough time. Overall though, I was still pleased and it was very positive."

The next day however, was a tougher one for Sammy, and the weather changed dramatically, with torrential rain hitting the 1350 metre circuit - the longest on the FKS calendar - from around mid-day.

Prior to that though, Sammy was tenth in the second FKS MiniMax qualifying session and he then took a very strong sixth in the opening heat.

However, unfortunately he was later disqualified when it was discovered that his kart was ever so slightly under the minimum weight, a result of an additional rolling lap that proved extremely costly.

Then the heavens opened and with a wheel forced off the rim in the second heat and water getting into the carburettor for the round eight finale, he had to settle for 23rd and 24th respectively.

;"Sunday was frustrating," Sammy recalled. "There was a false start in the first heat and we used a bit more fuel than we thought we would use. We ended up being 10 grams under weight and were excluded as a result. We finished sixth initially.

"Then after the first heat it started pouring down and it just didn't stop at all for about three to four hours. It was just like a monsoon, absolutely terrible.

"In the second heat someone took off our tyre on the rolling-up lap and that meant I had to drive with a tyre off its rim. That was impossible. I had to put both hands on one side of the steering wheel to even keep it going in a straight line. It was crazy.

"In the final we started at the back and it was wet again. We were going very well at the start. We went from 24th to 15th in a couple of laps. But some water had got in the carburettor and it just got worse and worse. It completely messed up the race and really slowed me down."

Despite missing out on points though on the second day, Sammy remains confident he can still achieve his target of finishing in the top-five in the 2010 FKS MiniMax Championship standings.

"We moved up in the standings on the Saturday, but I think we dropped back a bit again on the Sunday because of the bad luck we had," Sammy explained. "But we can just drop those scores. We are still aiming for the top five. It is possible. There are four rounds left. It can be done.

"The person that I wanted to be closest too this weekend was the guy that won at the end of it, George Russell. He was at the front for the whole weekend and just had good luck. If we had been at the front we would have been just as quick as him, I'm sure of that."

Sammy's focus now shifts to Shenington for the next round of the Super One Rotax Series, which takes place from August 28-29. He will be doubly determined to do well there after having to sit out the Super One Rotax Series event at Larkhall in July while a new kart was acquired and he has already been testing to prepare.

"We were at Whilton on Tuesday and it went well," Sammy continued. "The track was not at its best but we were still very fast."

Beyond that Sammy will be back in action in the Formula Kart Stars (FKS) series next month (September 24-25), when he heads to the Three Sisters Race Circuit in Wigan.

Sammy’s father and manager, Emil, is hopeful things will go well there: "It was a challenging weekend for us in Genk," he summed-up. "On Saturday Sammy was quickest in the final and clearly the pace was there.

"But on Sunday it was a bit disappointing. In the first heat we came in slightly underweight. Typically there is only one rolling lap. However, for that race, there was a couple and the fuel level burned. It was very, very unfortunate. We had finished sixth and he could have finished fourth. If we had been able to carry the points from that heat we would then have started a lot higher in the final and done better in that race. I partly blame myself for that.

"Then in the afternoon there was a massive downpour and water got into the carburettor. In fact one of the leaders, Oliver Myers, had the same issue, but worse, as he couldn't even start the race.

"Overall I think we had a fair weekend, but we were just terribly unlucky. Really, really unlucky - and to be underweight by just such a small amount was just ridiculous. But that is just motor racing.

"Sammy put in a tremendous amount of work on the Thursday and Friday and certainly deserved to take a lot more out of the weekend. The pace was there during the races and in testing he was never outside the top four. We had the pace from the off and were very, very fast. It just didn't reflect in the results.

"We are at Shenington in a couple of weeks time now and so we did some testing on Tuesday to get back into the feel of running on tarmac rather than the concrete we ran on in Genk.

"Sammy is going to have a break now and when he comes back we are straight to Shenington and then off to Wigan a few weeks later for more Formula Kart Stars action."

Image courtesy of Chris Walker at www.kartpix.net

Tom Ingram proved himself to be comfortably the fastest driver in the field as the hotly-fought 2010 Ginetta Junior Championship resumed from its mid-summer break at Snetterton – and whilst ill-fortune denied him the victories he clearly deserved, the highly-rated young High Wycombe star nonetheless closed the gap in the title standings as the chase for the coveted crown reaches fever pitch.

Having been the very model of consistency and controlled aggression during the opening half of the campaign in the ITV-televised, British Touring Car Championship-supporting closed-top sportscar series, Tom had promised a new approach going into season’s second half, vowing to go all-out for glory and that he would reveal ‘a different side’ – and that showed in his impressively feisty, attacking driving throughout the Snetterton weekend.

Despite having not had the opportunity to test during the seven-week hiatus and having never raced at Snetterton before, the 16-year-old betrayed no rustiness when he did belatedly return to the cockpit for practice. Progressively improving from seventh to fifth to third in the three sessions as he got used to the lines, gear change marks and braking points of the high-speed Norfolk circuit – reducing the deficit to the benchmark from just over a second to scarcely a tenth – he headed into qualifying in optimistic mood.

“Most of the other drivers had been testing at Snetterton the previous week, so it was definitely a disadvantage having not been able to do that, but we picked it up relatively quickly and just got on with it,” Tom explained. “There’s not really a lot to the track, and it’s quite a short lap. You need to be really precise, but it’s not like Oulton Park or Croft where you’re pretty much always in a corner; it’s very quick, and with the long straights the tow is everything.

“I felt confident going into qualifying – a bit over-confident probably, in hindsight... I went into the session thinking I was going to get pole, but I didn’t use my head – rather than working with someone, I tried to do it all by myself and it didn’t work because being in the tow is just so important to lap time around there, so we ended up fifth.”

A valuable lesson learned, it is a mistake the Hillspeed ace will assuredly not make again, and with the times being so close – with barely anything to choose between the leading five contenders, as a scant six hundredths of a second separated Tom from P3 on the grid for the second race – he fully anticipated a real dogfight, but a gear selection issue as the opening encounter revved into life would deal an early blow.

“We knew no-one was really going to break away and that it would be close all the way through,” he acknowledged. “That was encouraging, and also meant it wasn’t going to be an easy race, but rather one that everyone would really have to fight for. I went to go up through the gears off the start-line, but when I tried to put it into second it wouldn’t go. It then got stuck in third and wouldn’t go down again for the next left-hander.

“It just made a horrible whining noise and there was no drive, so I pulled off to the side of the circuit and came to almost a complete stop because I thought my race was over – but then when I put it into second, it miraculously started going again as if nothing had been wrong and off we went. I was 19^th, stone dead last and more than nine seconds behind the leader – but all I could think about was trying to battle my way back through again. The race was still on and I was still in it, so I just tried to make up as many places as possible.

“It was like my old karting days in some respects, and great fun as I just tried to salvage as many points as I could. It was the first time I’d ever really been able to do that in cars, and I really enjoyed it. I had the pace I needed to make up ground, and when I got into the top ten I saw third place was only a couple of corners in front, so I thought ‘I’m going to get him’ – and I did! With just another lap or two more I would have been right with the two leaders, which would have been interesting, but still I was really, really pleased with the result, especially having had to come from so far back in order to achieve it.”

An outstanding fight back as Tom smashed the lap record time-after-time – on occasion as much as a second quicker than anybody else, with only the race-winner able to get to within half a second of him full-stop – yielded a magnificent podium finish as the ex-British Karting Champion artfully and determinedly snatched third place on the very last lap.

Coming through the pack like the proverbial hot knife through butter, he took absolutely no prisoners and passed the defending champion as if she was standing still – and having completed the opening lap almost ten seconds in arrears of the leader, the Conway House and NP Aerospace-backed hotshot took the chequered flag barely a second shy of victory, a clear sign of what might have been.

Subsequently fired-up and buoyed ahead of race two the following day, circumstances would unfortunately conspire against him, as the former Wycombe and Marlow Sports Personality of the Year found his efforts scuppered by a prolonged safety car period that effectively cut the distance in half.

“We waited about all day for the race, and then we only actually got four laps of racing!” he lamented. “That was annoying, because I’d just wanted to go out there and do my best. With the pace I had shown the previous day, I would easily have been able to fight for the win had the race been its normal length, but that’s racing – you have to take the good with the bad.”

Having passed and shaken off the challenge of Alex Austin for fifth, Tom went on to grittily chase down championship leader Louise Richardson for P3 in the closing stages – and as he again set a searing pace to take absolute chunks out of his quarry, he latched right onto her bumper by the last lap and prepared to pounce.

“She was defending, so I had to try to pressurise her into making a mistake,” he recounted. “She did into the first part of the last chicane, so she was always going to overshoot the second part and that gave me a run at her on the exit. Onto the pit straight I tried to go down the inside but she cut me off, so I pulled out of her slipstream and alongside on the outside instead. I thought I’d done enough, and afterwards everyone else seemed to think so too. I was really annoyed when I saw what the timing screens said...”

A single thousandth of a second was what the timing screens said, in Richardson’s favour, as the two cars flashed across the line in a literal photo-finish. The fastest lap of the race again proved that Tom palpably had the pace to triumph, and having had the legs of his two title rivals all weekend, third and fourth places at the end of it were ultimately poor reward.

Still, with a whole host of positives to take away from his eastern adventure and having halved the gap separating him from the top of the championship table – with the leading trio now covered by just five points – the Bucks speed demon heads next to Silverstone, the celebrated ‘Home of British Motor Racing’ and most famous circuit in the country, eager to turn the tables on his adversaries. Eyeing ‘as many points as possible’, having briefly led there on his maiden appearance last year, 12 months on he is ready to finish the job off.

“Overall I left really pleased,” Tom concluded of Snetterton. “We came away with a third new lap record of the year, some decent points, another podium and no real damage to the car. It looks like it’s boiling down to a three-horse race now, and it’s really, really close between us. I think it’s going to go right down to the wire, so it’s going to be all about consistency and staying cool.”

Tom is still seeking sponsorship to be able to complete the 2010 season; if you are interested in backing him, please call him on 07817 883469 or e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Tom is now on Twitter; you can follow him at http://twitter.com/tomingram80, and to keep up-to-date with his latest career news and results, please visit: www.tom-ingram.com