Daytona Tamworth

We returned to the popular D40 format for Superchamps’ penultimate round at Daytona Tamworth, and it was still all to play for in both championships at this late stage in the season.

N-35 ST

Nikodem Benonski edged out Zak Bolton by five tenths of a second to take both overall and lightweight pole positions in qualifying, with Leo Jackson joining them in the top three – only a few tenths behind. Kristine Kolodziejski dominated the heavyweight category, taking a commanding pole ahead of Ivan Norris and Chris Lomas.

The race saw Jude Lillymann and Benonski battle it out for the majority of the forty minutes. Lillymann took the lead after about ten, and then was just about able to hold off a charging Benonski to the line. They were joined on the podium by someone who had a very quiet race, Leo Jackson, finishing comfortably ahead of his nearest challenger in fourth but also quite far behind the leaders after not being able to stick in their pack early on. As for the heavyweights, Kolodziejski made it yet another victory. There were significant battles behind where Chris Lomas and Ivan Norris pushed eachother right to the line. They even came together at turn three in a dramatic spin, eventually Lomas getting the better of Norris.

DMAX-GT

Alex Jackson nailed his one shot qualifying lap to put it on pole in the DMAX class, but by only one tenth of a second to newcomer Tommy Lee-Davis – who impressed on debut. Last season’s N-35 Lightweight champion Neil Hampson would start with them in the top three. And just like in the N-35 class for the heavyweights, Kolodziejski dominated the DMAX times. She would have pretty good competition from William Hitchcock and Robbie Scott heading into the race, however.

During the race, Tommy Lee-Davis prevented Alex Jackson from taking a second consecutive round victory through a dramatic and aggressive move towards the end. He had a bit of defending to do in the last five minutes or so, a task he was absolutely up for, winning by five tenths. Joseph Simcock had a relatively straightforward time completing the podium, getting ahead and staying ahead of Neil Hampson. Speaking of straightforward, Kolodziejski once again dominated the heavyweight class, ahead of a much improved William Hitchcock. They were joined on the podium by a debutant to the series in Robbie Scott, who can be very pleased with his first round.

The grand finale of Superchamps will take place on the 27th July, and all four of our championships still need to be decided.

InKart

The penultimate round of Inkart Season 2 at Daytona Tamworth took place on the 14th of July, and we returned to the cup format where drivers would be given a test of endurance during their twenty-five-minute race.

The pace-setters throughout junior qualifying were Zachary Smith and Alfie Kells, topping their respective sessions with very impressive laptimes. Harry Fitch also secured himself through into the A-Final with a very strong laptime to nudge ahead of fellow second-placed runner Reuben Potter. All eyes were on Rhys Kings, Cordell Potter-Hayles and Joseph Smith though regarding the B-Final, as these drivers would start in the top three and would certainly put on a very good show.

It was similarly as close for the cadets, where Ethan Guest was the early front-runner ahead of Harry Kennedy. Jayden Steatham and Will Roberts battled for the final qualifying spot, with Jayden sneaking in based on his very respectable fastest lap. Will would have a tough challenge in Henry Gordon, who was upset to miss out on the A-Final but determined to try and win the B-Final.

Speaking of the B-Final, it saw a very well-mannered fight between Joseph Smith and Rhys Kings. Joseph was taking part in only his second round in the Junior class, and so would be delighted to be so high up the order. He showed really good race-management to get through cadet traffic during the longer race format, which was the reason he took a really good 2.5 second victory. They were joined on the junior podium by Cordell Potter-Hayles, who got some good championship points on the board in the late stages of this season. As for the cadet category, George Marriot stormed to victory after taking the lead from Henry Gordon early on. Henry battled hard with Will Roberts, and wasn’t actually able to get passed him on track. However, Will did make a bump and pass into turn ten, receiving a one place penalty that promoted Henry into second.

Something we’ve said quite often this season is ‘Zachary Smith dominated the A-Final’ and this race was no different. Zachary had the fastest lap of the race by an entire second, eventually winning by over twenty seconds to the next kart. There were battles behind, however, where Alfie Kells and Reuben Potter were inseparable for most of the race. At the line Alfie was just about able to squeeze ahead to take that second spot. In the cadet class, Ethan Guest had a dominant drive of his own ahead of Harry Kennedy, taking the fastest lap in the process. Jayden Steatham had a troubled start to the race but showed very good resilience to come out of the pits and drive home to third.

The finale of Inkart will take place on the 28th July, and we look forward to welcoming all of our drivers back for one last time in season two of 2024.

Thursday Night League 

There was a virtually full grid for the first round of Thursday Night League at Daytona Tamworth, and all drivers were raring to go as a new season got underway.

N-35 ST

After an impressive qualifying for Casper Juszczak, putting it on pole position, he stormed to victory in the race – making it a lights-to-flag victory. He did not have a straightforward time, however, as the driver that started alongside him on the front row, Grace Lee-Davis, kept him honest throughout the majority of the race. They ended up being separated by just two and a half seconds at the line. Harrison Fisher ended up rounding out the podium, with consistency being the key mark of his day – finishing quite far behind Lee-Davis but also comfortably ahead of Sam Chaplin and Tim Avery, the drivers rounding out the top five. The battle for the top five was certainly very close, with just a handful of tenths separating those fourth and fifth place runners at the line.

DMAX-GT

Looking to mount a title challenge in season two, Abi Sanders got the ball rolling by taking pole position in the DMAX category. She was a commanding four tenths ahead of Jack Whitehouse, who held onto the second place spot by just three thousandth of a second ahead of Ben Foden. The entire top five were remarkably close, with just nine tenths separating all the way back to Mark Rollinson in fifth position – Luke Inglis sitting in fourth.

Heading into the race, Sanders and Whitehouse got the early breakaway from the rest of the top five, building a lead together. However, Sanders’ pace proved to be too much for Whitehouse, who ended up falling off the back of the leader – slipping to six seconds behind at the chequered flag; clearly a very good start to the season for Abi Sanders. Unfortunately for Jack, his second place was actually in vein, as he made a bump and pass on Ben Foden early on in the race, therefore receiving a one place position penalty. This promoted Ben Foden up into second, a driver who actually did a very good job of getting into that second spot.

We’ve potentially seen some of our title challengers emerge at this round of Thursday Night League, and we look forward to seeing how the championship battles develop heading into round two, which takes place on the eighth of August.

Daytona Milton Keynes

The morning began with the final round of SuperChamps on the international layout for the heats format. With the championship being extremely close once drop rounds are considered, all the title rivals would be looking to get as many points as possible.

SODI

After missing an earlier round, Jacob Csepreghi started on pole and needed to make up for it being in contention for the season win in SODI lights. His brother Charlie, having missed two rounds, was out of contention and started at the back of the pack. It was a great start from Liam Weatherall who jumped from P3 to P2 into turn 1, although after attempting a poor dive on Jacob into turn 2, dropped back and allowed Jacob to pull a lead. The mid pack battled throughout the race, and it was Owen Turpin who made most of the move. Jacob took the win by just over a second to Liam Weatherall and Charlie Fenton in the heavies. Freddie Jenkins took fourth ahead of Turpin while in the heavies Scott Woosey and Jaden Do-doo Ankrah were sixth and seventh.

Heat Two had a much quieter race in the first lap, although turn 10 on lap two was where the carnage appeared with half the field all making contact and swapping places. Jacob found himself making places a little bit better than his brother starting from last this time round, although still struggled with a tenth-place finish at the end of the race. Out front Charlie, who had built an early lead, dropped back into the grasp of Frederik Navarro. Navarro finally made the pass after a few failed attempts of making a dive at the hairpin of 10, as Charlie found the switchback each time. Navarro won the race ahead of Charlie with Max Lindgren in third, just beating Nathan Clark. Further back in the heavies Fenton took another race win ahead of Adam Green.

The final race saw Fenton once again battling with the lights at the front of the field while Jacob and Navarro attempted to not only keep him behind but take the win. As the race drew to a close the battles heated up with a lot of late lunges. Carnage appeared at turn two as two lunges at the same time, up the inside of a third driver, caused a lot of contact and a couple of drivers scraped the barriers. It was all deemed as racing until Weatherall, who was slow out of turn 3, got hit in the rear by a fast Clark and got spun around, with Clark receiving a 3 place penalty. At the chequered flag it was Fenton who took the win both in the heavies and overall, leading the lights of Navaro and Jacob Csepreghi. Turpin joined them on the podium while further back Green and Woosey joined Fenton on the heavy podium.

DMAX:

In the DMAX a few regulars, including championship contenders James King and Ashley Mayston-King were absent to take part in the karting 24hr of Le Mans, meaning Ethan Pritchard and Lee Witney had a good chance to score highly and take the championship.

The first heat saw Harry Asher and Pritchard line up on the front row ahead of Benjamin Tomkinson-Gray and Ben Leslie. Pritchard was hanging onto the lead from Asher`s divebombs at the hairpin by using the switchback constantly, until a small mistake meant Asher kept the position to bolt away and take the win with a second lead. Tomkinson-Gray finished in third ahead of Leslie. In the Heavies it was a clean start with Lee Witney and Kuba Wozniak who took the lead ahead of Sailesh Shah. Barry Morris and Scott Woosey struggled to find a way past and ended up dropping back. After a few more laps Morris made a pass and had 4 seconds to close on the front two. As the last lap began Morris had failed to close the gap, with Woosey another few seconds back after finally passing Shah. In a last attempt to take the win Wozniak dived to the inside of the last corner too late, and made contact with Witney. As Witney recovered he had to turn into Wozniak who ended up on the grass, losing the chance for the win and almost losing P2 to Morris, who must have been furious with himself for not finding the pace to be closer and take advantage at the end.

The second heat saw Pritchard have an amazing start to jump from the second row to the lead by the end of lap one and make an impressive lead for the rest of the race. Asher struggled to find his way past easily and fought for a few laps before making a break from Leslie and Tomkinson-Gray. While pushing too hard he received a black flag for exceeding track limits too many times, what could be a costly mistake in the championship fight. The rest of their race was very quiet with Pritchard winning by over 6 seconds to Leslie with Tomkinson-Gray a further 2 seconds back. In the heavies Morris found himself with an early lead and a small gap over Woosey, Wozniak and Witney behind. Although the four drivers were all close, there wasn’t many attempts to pass, with Morris winning ahead of Wozniak and Witney. Woosey just missed out on making a pass and finished in fourth.

In the lights the final saw Asher and Pritchard on the front row ahead of Leslie with Tomkinson-Gray starting from the pitlane after speeding out the pitlane and under yellow conditions to catch the pack ahead. It was a close race throughout with the trio on circuit battling away. Harry and Pritchard took turns leading over the fifteen minutes with their typical divebomb at ten and switchbacks, although at the end it was Asher who took the win just beating Pritchard, with Leslie a second back in third. In the Heavyweights Wozniak and Witney also took turns in leading ahead of Morris and Woosey. It was not as close together this time round but a lot more enjoyable to watch with looks much more common, and at the end it was Wozniak who took the win ahead of Witney. Morris took another third ahead of Woosey at the end of the race.

With the season over, in the SODI Lightweights it was Jacob Csepreghi who took the largest trophy and the championship with 335 points. 7 points back was Liam Wetherall and Max Lindgren was a further 15 points back with 313, both drivers taking part in all 7 rounds and therefore also having a drop round. After a poor performance, Nathan Clark missed the podium by 10 points.

In the SODI Heavyweights it was Scott Woosey taking the championship with 346 point and aa large 15 points ahead of Charlie Fenton. Adam Green took third with 323 points and although not having the highest scoring rounds, consistency meant Jaden Do-doo Ankrah finished in fourth.

The DMAX Lightweights saw Ethan Pritchard take the championship with 349 points, just a single point ahead of an absent James King. The pairs dominant mid-season performances meant they had 25 points over Harry Asher in third.

The DMAX Heavyweights saw Lee Witney win with 339 points. His consistently high scoring throughout the season meant he also had the largest drop round score of 54. Ashley Mayston-King who was also absent took second by just 9 points, and 3 points behind was Barry Morris to finish in third, and the closest top 3 this season.

InKart

The final round of InKart had a warm sun shining down on the national layout. At the top of the Junior championship Lewis Bowey was leading by six points once the drop round was considered, with Charley Murray and Tom Justice separated by one point. In the Cadets Rayaan Malik held the lead after a drop round considered from Gillen Townshend, the only title contender who had missed a previous round. Arel Kesimgil, Ryan Cafferkey and Charlie Marden were all also in close contention for top spot.

The first heat of the day had a great, clean start from both fleets. Amelia Alice-Berreau got caught up in an incident at the fourth corner a few laps in dropped off the cadet pack. Further up the leading Cadets were all weaving in an extremely fierce battle for the lead, and luckily everyone managed to avoid contact. Tyler Rickard took the heat win ahead of Murray and Bowey in the Juniors while Cafferkey won in the cadets ahead of Leo Sibthorpe and William Bennett.

Heat two saw two lonely drives at the front of the Juniors with Zayn Perry pulling a 15 second lead over second place. Max Davies was holding second for the first half but after dropping back he finished in third behind Tom Justice who pulled out a great move to pass. Further back Abbie Boyd showed her aggression to find a space and make space and find a way through on Tudor Geanta at the very unusual turn three. Townshend had a quiet race to win the cadet race with championship rival Malik in third, what could be a championship deciding points swing to the race leader, with Kesimgil in the middle.

Brandon Edwards had a great race to take the win in heat three ahead of Murray and Rickard. The Cadet race was where all the action was as Teddie Mullan looked to beat Marden and Bennett to show everyone he was good enough to win races. In the end he succeeded with his mission only just beating Bennett to the line by less than a tenth of a second, and Bennett right on his tail. Both drivers unable to get past what was an amazing defensive drive.

Justice had another good drive to win the final heat ahead of Perry, both pulling a small gap to Geanta towards the end of the race. Ethan Steng finished in a solid fourth ahead of the rest of the Juniors. In the Cadets it was another battle which could decide the championship as Malik and Townshend went to battle and pulled away from those behind. Noah Hammond managed to take a third ahead of Jacob Noble who received a one place penalty for forcing Kesimgil onto the grass at the race start. Townshend finished in second as Malik took the Cadet win.

In the B final it was all to play for in those drivers’ final races of the season. Boyd had another great race to finish in fifth, just missing out on fourth from Logan Cunningham.

Michael Oxtoby-Page won the final ahead of the battling Harvey Preen and George Wilamowski who both had great performances. In the Cadets Sibthorpe had a dominant win over Noble, putting in a good recovery drive after mistakes in his previous races. Noah Hammond took the last step on the podium.

The final race of the season saw two amazing battles out on the circuit in both classes. In the cadets Kesimgil managed a podium after outdriving both Cafferkey and Bennet throughout. Once again Townshend and Malik had a battle for the win swapping back and forth. In the end it was Malik who took another win only just in front of Townshend. Further forwards Perry just missed out on the junior podium after contact with Edwards forced him onto a grass, but ultimately it was his decision to carry more speed onto the grass than rejoin whilst on the kerb that cost him the podium. Justice finished the season with a third on track before being promoted to second whilst Rickard went on to win the race, just a second and a half separating the podium finishers.

At the end of the season, it was Malik who took the Cadet championship away with him on 355 points. 2 points being the difference between him and Townshend, their battles today being one of the deciding contributions. Kesmigil managed to take third on 337 with Cafferkey and Marden on 321 and 310.

In the Junior championship it was Bowey who just managed to beat Justice by a single point, 339 to 338. Murray was just 3 points behind with 335, a close finish between the trio. Geanta and Oxtoby-Page finished on 303 and 297 to take fourth and fifth respectively.

Thursday Night League

The first round of the SODI Second 2024 season of Thursday Night League at Daytona Milton Keynes kicked off on a very warm evening, with drivers taking on the challenging Linkback Cliffdrop Variant of the track. The atmosphere was electric as seasoned racers and newcomers alike prepared for an intense night of competition.

Qualifying saw immediate action with Craig McAllister jumping to the top spot on his out lap. However, Richard Danby quickly made his mark with an impressive second lap of just over 82 seconds, securing a position right behind McAllister. David Rollins, a regular at Daytona, climbed to third by the third lap, making the top spots a battle among the experienced drivers.

As the qualifying session progressed, Rollins managed to edge ahead of Danby with a time two-tenths quicker, securing second place. On the sixth lap, Jude Lillyman shook up the standings by taking third from Danby, while Dominik Zaremba slotted into fourth, pushing Danby down to fifth.

In the final lap of qualifying, Lillyman claimed pole position, relegating McAllister to second. Danby fought back to take fourth, just missing out on third, which was held by Rollins.

The race started with all drivers showcasing impeccable reaction times. Lillyman managed to pull away slightly in the first half-lap, creating a small gap to McAllister. However, McAllister was relentless, making a bold move around Turn 9 on the first lap and nearly overtaking Lillyman at Turn 10. His persistence paid off as he secured the lead at Turn 4.

The race saw early drama with Rollins being taken out at Turn 10 by Zaremba in a confident overtaking attempt. By the midpoint of the race, McAllister had built a commanding 6-second lead, while Lillyman and Danby engaged in a fierce battle for second place.

The mid-pack was equally competitive, with Tom Ludovico in fourth, Blair Craig in fifth, and Lily-May Watkins in sixth, all within a second of each other. Further down the field, Matt Woollett and Samuel Barker were locked in a tight contest for 12th position.

Zaremba, after serving a black flag penalty, rejoined at the back but demonstrated his speed by lapping 5 seconds quicker than the next driver, Tanvir Khondake.

As the race approached its final stages, Lillyman closed the gap to McAllister while Zaremba, a lap down, defended fiercely, causing McAllister to lose half a second per lap. In the final minutes, Blair Craig made a decisive move to claim third, knocking Danby down to fourth.

The chequered flag fell with Craig McAllister taking a well-deserved first place, followed by Jude Lillyman in second, and Blair Craig securing the final podium spot. Dominik Zaremba, despite his earlier setback, claimed the fastest lap point with a blistering time of 1:21.139.

It was an exhilarating start to the season, setting the stage for more exciting races to come. We are all looking forward to the next round on the 15th of August

As the sun set over Daytona Milton Keynes, the first round of the DMAX Thursday Night League began under beautiful skies, setting the stage for a thrilling evening of racing.

James King quickly established himself as a frontrunner by jumping to the top of the qualifying times after the second lap. Fresh off a Sodi Thursday Night League win, Craig McAllister secured second place early in the session. However, Jamie Tiley-Gooden soon surpassed McAllister's time on the fourth lap, claiming the second spot. Tyler Thom continued to shake up the standings by knocking McAllister down another position on his sixth qualifying lap. The session concluded with Tiley-Gooden on pole, Thom in P2, and King in third.

The race began with Tiley-Gooden making a strong start, while Thom dropped back to third place within the first few corners, allowing King to move into second. McAllister faced early pressure, slowly dropping back as he defended his position against Richard Danby during the opening laps.

One of the standout performances came from Lee Schnitzler, who started in P15 and managed to climb to P8 in just five laps, demonstrating his years of experience. Meanwhile, Amelia Wolf, David Rollins, and Paul Studd were engaged in a fierce battle for a top-five position at the midpoint of the race, with less than a second separating them.

The seasoned SODI Thursday Night League regulars—William Fry, Ash Chivers, and Michael Bowles—found themselves just outside the points, led by Fry. Charlie Newman, leveraging his DMAX experience, was locked in an intense battle with the SODI regulars.

As the race entered its final quarter, Tiley-Gooden maintained a strong 5-second lead over the field, with King 3 seconds ahead of Thom, who was holding onto third. Schnitzler, after advancing to 7th, found himself stuck behind Wolf (P6) and pushed his kart to the limits. His aggressive driving earned him a black flag penalty for exceeding track limits too many times.

The race concluded with Jamie Tiley-Gooden taking the victory, James King finishing second just 7.5 seconds behind, and Tyler Thom securing third, a further 2.2 seconds back. Tiley-Gooden also recorded the fastest lap of the event with an impressive time of 1:11.231.

Round one of the Daytona Milton Keynes Thursday Night League delivered an evening of exciting racing under the setting sun, showcasing the skill and competitiveness of all participants. We are all looking forward to the next round on the 15th of August.