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| April 12, 2011 |
| Super One Rotax Series - Shenington Report |
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 | Josh White
(Photo: Chris Walker - kartpix.net) |
Blessed with exceptionally hot and sunny weather, 181 drivers had entered the second round of 2011 Ginetta Cars sponsored series, including for the first time a Chinese driver, as well as several other drivers from Europe. Mini Max entrant Yue Yang Sun from Shanghai was with the Paul Carr Racing team for the weekend and he hopes to take in another couple of rounds later in the year. Shenington is at the north end of Oxfordshire, in the English Midlands, and the circuit is just over 1km in length, offering plenty overtaking opportunities. The next round is at Rowrah in the Lake District, on 5th June where the Clerk of the Course will be expecting better driving standards.
Mini Max
Ross Gunn was the only driver to dip into the 43’s during timed qualifying, with Ben Hingeley a smidgeon behind, although Dan Fazzone set a new lap record of 43.70 in the first final. Although Gunn took the first heat, Piers Hickin won his two to earn pole for the first final to lead the first lap, then swapped places twice with Ross Gunn before falling behind Harry Webb. Much trading of the lead position followed with Webb, Gunn and eventually Josh White going clear of Lemuel Pay to win. Piers Hickin, Webb and Hingeley were all given four place penalties, leaving Gunn third over Jack Mitchell who had roared up from grid twenty. Pay was gutted when his kart failed to start for the second final, whilst White and Gunn pulled away, saving their fight for later. Webb cleared the next bunch, but only until Hingeley got fully into gear, and arrowed through for third whilst Webb backed the others up. Gunn had a brief spell in the lead, but White quickly recovered to seal his second win.
Final 1
1 Josh White (Tonykart)
2 Lemuel Pay (RK)
3 Ross Gunn (Tonykart)
4 Jack Mitchell (Tonykart)
5 Greg McKenzie (Kosmic)
Final 2
1 White
2 Gunn
3 Ben Hingeley (Tonykart)
4 Harry Webb (Tonykart)
5 Mitchell
 | Lucas Orrock
(Photo: Chris Walker - kartpix.net) |
Rotax Max 177
Tom Holland just skipped onto the top of the timed qualifying sheet ahead of David Griffiths and Lucas Orrock, but Orrock soon set the scene for the weekend with two heats wins over Griffiths. The pair quickly put space behind them on James Darch in the first final. Darch managed to throw off a challenge by Colin Davis, retaking third but then unfortunately finding himself underweight and excluded, leaving Tom Pyttlik in that position over Davis. At the front, nine seconds ahead such was their pace, Griffiths managed twice to snatch the lead, but both times Orrock recovered it to win. For the second final, Griffiths was unable to hang onto Orrock, who cruised to a five second victory whilst Griffiths was caught by the next pack. Davis had jumped ahead of Pyttlik for third, and held him off until the penultimate lap when he succumbed to the challenge. Tom Holland was fifth.
Final 1
1 Lucas Orrock (Kosmic)
2 David Griffiths (GMS)
3 Tom Pyttlik (Alonso)
4 Colin Davis (Tonykart)
5 Danny Andrew (Gillard)
Final 2
1 Orrock
2 Griffiths
3 Pyttlik
4 Davis
5 Tom Holland (Alonso)
 | Luke Wooder
(Photo: Chris Walker - kartpix.net) |
Honda Cadet
The Honda powered Cadets are really coming into their own this year, with a full grid, and long trains of very evenly matched karts contesting every position. Last year’s champion Billy Monger, now a Super Cadet star, was a guest driver testing a Birel for his Prima team, and set 13th in TQ, whilst Max Wieteska, Ben Thompson and Jack Young headed the table. Wieteska and Thompson took the heat wins, the latter on pole for the first final which was quickly red-flagged to attend to Gordon Mutch, granting a reprieve to Kyle Petricca who had come off on the opening lap. At the restart Thompson led, until Jordan Brown-Nuttley usurped the position, followed by Monger going to the fore. After much trading with Jack McCarthy and Young, McCarthy went out ahead but was reeled back by Thompson and Mitchell. McCarthy went off but restarted as Mitchell claimed the win over Thompson and Petricca, with Monger fourth on the road but penalised five places. Mitchell soon lost his lead to Young in the second final, the latter leading an eight kart train until the last lap. Mitchell ran wide at the Stratford hairpin, allegedly pushed by McCarthy, with Luke Wooder coming second and Thompson taking a wide line to stay in third. Along with Brown-Nuttley, McCarthy was docked five places and then lost his appeal to the Stewards. He has now appealed the penalty further to the National Court so the results are provisional.
Final 1
1 Sandy Mitchell (Project One)
2 Ben Thompson (Project One)
3 Kyle Petricca (Project One)
4 Alex Quinn (Project One)
5 Max Wieteska (Zip)
Final 2 (Provisional)
1 Luke Wooder (Project One)
2 Thompson
3 Mitchell
4 Jack Young (Project One)
5 Billy Monger (Birel)
 | Nathan Harrison
(Photo: Chris Walker - kartpix.net) |
Junior Max
In the class with the largest entry totalling 54 karts, it was always going to be tough in qualifying, but rookie Oliver Pidgley did the business on his Kosmic, overcoming Adam Mackay, Sam Ward and Rob Holland. And it was Nathan Harrison, Ward and Harrison again who took the heats whilst Holland was taken off in the first, putting him down on grid 19 for the first final. But first, the repechage qualifiers were Shaun Arnold, Luke Whitworth, George Line and Charlie Streather whilst Pidgley failed to make the cut. Harrison led them away from pole followed by Callum Pointon then Ryan Morgan leapfrogging Ward. The Turk Kaan Onder lost his nose fairing and had to retire. Harrison left the rest for dead, a seven second victory his, whilst Jack Barlow vaulted into second over Ward with Pointon, Mackay, Morgan and Levi Coombs catching them at the flag. The second final was no sinecure for Harrison as he was pressed hard by Ward and Barlow throughout, and indeed had to re-take the lead from both mid-race. Sam Marsh had a good start and reached fourth ahead of Coombs and Holland whilst Onder was black flagged for a third offence.
Final 1
1 Nathan Harrison (Tonykart)
2 Jack Barlow (Tonykart)
3 Sam Ward (Kosmic)
4 Callum Pointon (Tonykart)
5 Adam Mackay (Tonykart)
Final 2
1 Harrison
2 Ward
3 Barlow
4 Sam Marsh (Tonykart)
5 Mackay
 | Andy King
(Photo: Chris Walker - kartpix.net) |
Rotax Max
Oliver Hodgson beat Edward Brand by a hundredth of a second in the TQ, Brand winning both his heats whilst Shaun Slavin and Andy King took the other two. First round winner Charlie Eastwood was having a torrid time, with a flat tyre in qualifying, then black flagged in a heat. He would finish second to Charlie Turner in the repechage, Jack Saffery and open champion Ross Wylie also going through to the main finals. Brand held onto the lead in the first final for a couple of laps but when Andy King slipped down the inside at Wilkins hairpin, having just passed his fellow CRG driver Ash Hand, Brand was hung out to dry and fell to seventh. He wasted little time climbing back to third, but King was over three seconds distant, and Hand was in no mood for a pass. In the second final, John Stewart’s nightmare weekend continued when his chain guard went missing and he had to retire. Slavin and Jake Ball were joined by James Robinson at the back after various incidents but at the front King was in charge with Hand slotted in behind. On the ninth lap, Hand made his move, demoting King behind Brand in third, then a lap later Brand took the lead and eased away. King managed to regain second over Hand, with Lewis Plato and Hodgson completed that group. Danny Russell stormed up from the back to sixth after an off in the first final. A protest has been lodged which will be heard at the next round so the results are provisional.
Final 1
1 Andy King (CRG)
2 Ash Hand (CRG)
3 Ed Brand (Tonykart)
4 James Robinson (Tonykart)
5 Lewis Plato (Tonykart)
Final 2 (Provisional)
1 Brand
2 King
3 Hand
4 Plato
5 Oliver Hodgson (Tonykart) |
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