After a sensational year for the Wera Tools British Kart Championships, the Rotax and Honda classes would head to PF International last weekend [16-17 October] as their final round brought the curtain down on a thrilling 2021 season.
The all-important grand slam would see five more champions crowned at the Lincolnshire circuit and with the International kart circuit providing one of the toughest challenges on the BKC tour, it would be a fitting finale’ for the Rotax and Honda categories. Each class would go down to the wire thanks to drop scores coming into effect, meaning the on-track action would be a as action-packed as the remainder of the season as each driver aimed to squeeze the most points from each heat and final.
With drivers taking part in a practice day on the Friday, With PFi being such a long track, any mistake is magnified and those who put together the perfect lap found themselves on the front row. Saturday concluded with the majority of the heats where drivers battled for position to ensure a good spot for the finals on Sunday.
Saturday played host to two practice and the all-important qualifying sessions with the benefit of the Autumn sunshine, whilst Sunday offered up a very different proposition all-together. The rain descended for the vital Final’s and subsequently meant tyre choice became a lottery as any sign of a drying line made the decision to utilise slicks or wets an interesting prospect for the title protagonists towards the end of the day.
Class Round Up
Honda Cadet – Champion – Timo Jungling
Timo Jungling (SFR Motorsport) came into the weekend with the upper hand in the championship standings but would need to work hard to fend off the chasing Noah Wolfe (Synergy Race Team) and Joshua Graham (Ambition Motorsport). With the title fight going right down to the final race of the season, Jungling delivered a mature and controlled race way beyond his years to take the chequered flag second on the road, subsequently doing enough to become British Champion. In a scintillating season for the Honda Cadets, Lewis Islin (Synergy Racing Team) took the final race win in 2021, but all eyes were on the championship as it reached a dramatic climax with Jungling delivering the goods across the weekend.
Race Result
1st Lewis Islin (Synergy Racing Team)
2nd Timo Jungling (SFR Motorsport)
3rd Joshua Graham (Ambition Motorsport)
Minimax – Champion – Ethan Jeff-Hall
Ethan Jeff-Hall (Strawberry Racing) has been the leading light of the Minimax pack all year and was arguably firm favourite to seal the title at the weekend. A consistent race winner or podium runner in 2021 left him with a comfortable margin to play with at PFi but the young racer was eager to make it stick early on. A win in the heats and Pre-Final allowed him to relax in to Final and dropping two places to third would never bother him as he crossed the line as British Champion. Scott Marsh (DHR) takes second in the championship with Ewan Charman (Argenti Motorsport) rounding off the championship podium.
Race Result
1st Harrison Crowther (Coles Racing)
2nd Thomas Strauven (Strawberry Racing)
3rd Ethan Jeff-Hall (Strawberry Racing)
Junior Rotax – Champion – Daniel Guinchard
No junior driver in the history of the British Championship in any of its previous forms, has won two classes in the same year. That changed this weekend however. Daniel Guinchard (Argenti Motorsport) came into the final round on the back foot, sitting in fourth in the championship and potentially an outside bet.
However, he knew what was needed and he made sure to deliver. Off the back of winning Junior X30 last weekend, Guinchard dominated the weekend winning the heats, Pre-Final and Final to seal his place in the history books with an emotional reaction in Parc Ferme. In a championship that could have been won by many drivers, Sam Gornall (Coles Racing) and Leon Henderson (Strawberry Racing) pushed him all the way but in the end they had to settle for second and third in the championship respectively.
Race Result
1st Daniel Guinchard (Argenti Motorsport)
2nd Archie Walker (KR-Sport)
3rd Ted Bradbury (Sam Pollitt Racing)
Senior Rotax – Champion – Rhys Hunter
Rhys Hunter (DHR) arrived at PFi in a strong position thanks to a confidence boosting buffer to his nearest rival, DHR team mate and brother, Kai. Staying consistently at the front of the pack over the weekend, he had done enough to have the title sown up by the Pre-Final. Rhys has been strong all year with his brother Kai pushing him all the way as had Sean Butcher (KR-Sport) who took third in the championship. But they couldn’t do enough this weekend recover the points needed to beat the new British Champion.
Race Result
1st Sean Butcher (KR-Sport)
2nd Matthew Higgins (DHR)
3rd Lewis Gilbert (Potenza Racing Engines)
Rotax 177 – Champion – Daniel Tate
Rotax 177 has once again delivered some blistering on track action throughout the season with the title battle going down to the final race. Daniel Tate (Strawberry Racing) has driven brilliantly all year delivering regular top results but Louis Large (Coles Racing), Matthew Easton (KR-Sport) and last year’s champion Henry Ayres (KR-sport) all kept him true to the final round. With a win in the heats, and second in the Final, Tate secured the British Title for 2021 in a field of drivers that never failed to disappoint on track.
Race Result:
1st Luc Oliver (Coles Racing)
2nd Daniel Tate (Strawberry Racing)
3rd Henry Ayres (KR-Sport)
Check out the championship points HERE
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More information about the 2022 Wera Tools British Kart Championships will be announced in the coming months.