The eighth event of the Wera Tools British Kart Championships [19-21 August] saw drivers take on the fast-paced and challenging international circuit at Whilton Mill.
Full of exciting overtakes and wheel-to-wheel racing, the Bambino, IAME Cadet, Junior X30, Senior X30, Junior TKM and TKM Extreme classes took to the track for a weekend of last-lap lunges and podium shake-ups.
Bambino
Having only lost out on the win once this season, Riley Murro continued his domination at the top of the Bambino standings.
After securing yet another win in the final, following a triumphant weekend of table-topping results, Murro extended his championship lead to 27 points ahead of the final race of the year.
Crossing the line just a tenth of a second behind him was Ethan McClelland, who forced Murro to take a serious defensive line in the last few laps. Finishing third was Harper Das, who made a decent start but couldn’t manage to keep up with the leading pack as they pulled away.
It wasn’t the best weekend results-wise for Chester Forkes and Austin Oman, who finished fifth and sixth respectively in the final, but they remain in the overall top three and are now level on points.
Junior X30
It was Gabriel Stilp [Croc Promotion] who claimed the victory in Junior X30 to extend his championship lead over Fionn McLaughlin of Fusion Motorsport to 33 points.
Despite an impressive drive, a penalty for Macauley Bishop [DHR] meant he lost out on his second place and dropped down to finish fifth. This made way for Harry Burgoyne Jnr to move up to second in the final and leapfrog Bishop in the overall standings. McLaughlin, who finished third, clinched the fastest lap.
A remarkable performance by Brandon Carr saw him storm through the field, making up 21 positions to claim eighth place and join the dog fight in the closing laps, which produced exciting overtakes but allowed the top four to slip away into an unassailable lead.
Senior X30
The Senior X30 final saw Sam Heading [MDL Motorsport] take his first 2022 race win ahead of Gus Lawrence [PF International Karting] after a tough battle ended with a clean overtake to see Heading through. Lawrence was knocked off the top spot after strong pace all weekend saw him dominate the results.
The whole grid was closely matched through the entire length of the long final, with limited overtaking; those that did make a move, made slick and concise overtakes without holding up either driver.
Khali Atkins [Croc Promotions] looked strong in third place until an unfortunate off-track excursion dropped him down the ranks; only recovering to 10th, but keeping a hold on the fastest lap of the race. This left Bart Harrison [Mick Barrett Racing] to regain his starting position and pick up valuable championship points, enabling him to keep his overall lead ahead of Lawrence going into the final round of the season next month at PFI [23-25 September].
IAME Cadet
A chaotic last few corners saw a podium shakeup with only Kit Belofsky [Fusion Motorsport] safe from the events unfolding just behind him as he crossed the line first. Belofsky gained five positions after working strategically to close in on the leading pack throughout the race.
Last lap lunges coming through the Boot into Pit Bend saw Riley Cranham [Fusion Motorsport] and Kanishk Rao [Oliver Rowland Motorsport] come together, making it anyone’s game on the last feet towards the finish line. Benefitting from this was Fusion Motorsport’s Jesse Phillips, who made it a 1-2 for the team and extended his championship lead over team-mate Jenson Graham to 30 points.
Archie Lovatt [Oliver Rowland Motorsport] finished off the podium with third place after coming through the front pack from his starting grid position of seventh, gaining three places on the opening lap alone.
Junior TKM
It was all to play for when the green flag was waved following several laps under Battenburg, giving Joe Cheek [Klaassen Motorsport] and Alfie Garford the opportunity to catch Tyla Harris with only a few action-packed laps of the race remaining. With exciting overtakes, it was a nail-biting end to one of the closest races of the season, as almost the whole grid was compact into one train through the high-speed twists and turns of the Whilton Mill circuit.
Crossing the line just one hundredth of a second ahead of Cheek, Harris took an impressive win to take him further up the championship standings in chase of Ollie Rands [TWM], currently only one point ahead of Harris.
After an unfortunate disqualification for Cheek, Garford took the second spot of the podium, with Leon Frost [TWM], eager to stretch his championship lead going into the last event of the year, claiming third.
TKM Extreme
Close racing, exciting overtakes and thrilling battles, the TKM Extreme final had it all. But it was Harvey Roffe [TWM] who managed to snatch the lead from Joe Fowler [Klaassen Motorsport] following a close struggle out front. The last two minutes saw a podium switch-up, with frontrunner Fowler losing out on the top three entirely, finishing just fifth despite leading a large majority of the race.
Sam Johns [TWM] pulled off an impressive drive through the pack; after starting seventh, he crossed the line third behind championship leader Chris Whitton. It was a crucial result for Johns as he moved into overall second place ahead of Aaron Lask [RSR].
The BKC continues its double-header this weekend with Event 9, featuring the Rotax and Honda classes, coming up at Clay Pigeon on 26-28 August.
Written by Lucy Derrick