Fitzpatrick Floats to Debut Win

Sam Fitzpatrick claimed his first EP Cadet League victory at Round 2 of the Winter series in horrendous conditions. The circuit resembled an Olympic rowing basin rather than a kart track but all the drivers coped tremendously with the conditions. Fitzpatrick got his night off to an excellent start with a measured win ahead of Michael Hughes with Oliver Grantham third. Heat 2 also went the way of Fitzpatrick with Mitchell Fenn spinning out of second early on, quickly followed by Hughes. Grantham inherited second place and ,despite a quick spin of his own, held the postion to the flag with Hughes third. Heat 3 saw Fitzpatrick lead the field again early on but soon had Hughes right on his tail. The two battled for the lead all race long and after a frantic final lap it was Hughes who just edged out for the win. Fenn came home a creditable third. The Final got underway with rain having now stopped but track conditions still extremely treacherous. It was Fitzpatrick who once again lead the chasing pack early on but as in Heat 3 he soon had Hughes on his bumper looking for a way past. For ten laps the two remained locked together and it again came down to the final lap. Hughes tried every which way to find a past but with a terrific second half to the lap it was Fitzpatrick who crossed the line first to pick up a long overdue debut win. Fenn came home third to claim his first podium in the league with Grantham in fourth place.
Going into the final round of the Winter Series Fitzpatrick now holds a slender two point lead from Hughes with Grantham and Fenn a further 50 and 70 points off respectively. For full results and championship tables visit the forum http://elloughpark.proboards.com/.

Reeve Dominates for Debut Win

Shaun Reeve put himself into contention for the EP Pro-Kart Sprint Winter Series title with a dominant display in the fourth round of the championship. Reeve, who only made his debut at round 2, took three wins from the nights four races with a second place in the other to claim almost maximum points from the meeting. Reigning champion Roger Smith took the win in the other heat to give him second place overall from the evening. Carl Eweleit continued his consistant form with another podium to leave him still well in with a shout of the title. It was a bad night however for Ben Binder who suffered a heavy shunt in Heat 2 which left him out of contention. It was a worse night for Joe Martin who suffered an engine failure in Heat 2 which left his kart up on the trailor and the driver propping up the coffee machine for the rest of the evening!
The penultimate round of the Winter Series takes place on Monday 7th March with open practice between 4pm-6pm with the race meeting commencing at 6pm. To book a place or for more information call 01502 717718 or visit the forum.

Mallett Splashes to the Top

Vince Mallett splashed his way to the top of the Non-MSA Senior Rotax championship with a dominant display in the atrotious conditions at the second round of the series. James Canham was the early pace setter of the day and started the Final from pole position. Unfortunatly a first corner pile up dropped him and reigning champion Matt Hunting to the tail of the field and eliminated Steven Knowles on the spot. At the flag it was Mallett who picked up the win from Aaron Charles and Steve Jennis. His win also puts Mallett to the top of the championship, eight points clear of Canham.
In the Libra Cadet class reigning champion Herbie Grout returned in style with a clean sweep of wins for the day. He headed home Thomas Weyer and Thomas Line with Matt Round winning the Easykart Cadet category.
Archie Albone made it two wins from two races to remain top of table in the hotly contested Honda Cadet series. Nineteen drivers faught it during the day but few were able to match the stunning pace of Albone, who’s performance also earned him the marshals ‘Driver of the Day’ award. Thomas Imamzade crossed the line in second place with reigning champion Ben Kasperczak rounding out the podium.
In the Junior class Benjamin Bee came home first in the Junior Rotax category while Tom Thickpenny just edged out Zack Nickson in the Junior Easykart battle. The Junior TKM spoils went the way of Connor Smith, who also now leads the championship, ahead of the returning Oliver Graham. The Minimax class saw Adam Hatfield dominate the early heats but as the weather conditions got worse it was rookie driver Harry Holdbrook who coped the best, snatching the win on the final lap of the final.
The Pro-Kart class was won by Tom Girling, who took a clean sweep of wins ahead of Trevor Gowing.

Round 3 of the championship takes place on Saturday 12th March with the eagerly anticipated night race meeting under the floodlights. For full details of the meeting timetable and information or to book a place please call 01502 717718 or visit the forum.