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Daytona Sandown Park InKart Season 3 2024: Marcus Cooper & Ethan Critchley crowned champions
A pleasant morning set the stage for an electrifying season finale for our InKart drivers at Daytona Sandown Park on Sunday 22nd December. The cup format tested endurance as two fiercely competitive championship battles unfolded.
It was no surprise to see the championship go down to the absolute wire in the cadets, as eventual first and second Marcus Cooper and Sebastian Mejer were great rivals all season. Highlights for Cooper include the dramatic finale and his round sweep in round six. As for Mejer, him falling slightly short is no negative as he had demonstrated throughout the season his incredible class. The same goes for Adam Telford, who could have easily found the fourteen or so points he needed throughout the season.
Felix Sheldon-Heywood and Ethan Critchley’s championship battle ended in the most dramatic of fashions, and they really did trade blows throughout the season. Despite the result, Heywood’s finale was probably the best drive of his season after recovering from the disappointment of being in the B-Final. Critchley however, showed great resolve to make the move at the latest opportunity. The battle for third was just as interesting, and it was greatly unlucky for Leger Dimitriou to miss out despite a very strong final round. Daniel Marutyak’s absence from the final round did not matter for his podium chances, and consistent performances throughout meant an incredibly high finish.
As It Happened
Cadets
Amanze Nwosu was fastest in the qualifying, managing to outpace Sebastian Mejer, who was first in the other group of qualifying. Adam Telford and Marcus Cooper both showcased an excellent performance. It was going to be a cracking scrap between Mejer and Cooper, who were separated by nothing in the championship.
After being disappointed to miss out on the A-Final, Arno Nurijanyan strolled to a lights-to-flag victory in the B-Final. Most of the battling occurred behind, with Ed Siberry, Lily Catignon, and Milan Pillay duking it out for the podium spots. Catignon finished third, and she slowly managed to build a gap ahead of Pillay but was not quite able to stay ahead of Ed Sibery.
In the A-Final, the championship came to a boil as Marcus Cooper and Sebstian Mejer found themselves battling for the championship victory in the closing laps. This was just after Mejer had misjudged a move for the lead (despite being in position to take championship victory) and got an Advantage-By-Contact takeout penalty. The championship swung to Marcus Cooper, but the penalty ultimately did not matter as he managed to get ahead of Mejer on track in anyway. The gap at the line between Cooper and eventual second-place finisher was just four tenths of a second.
Juniors
Ethan Critchley and Felix Sheldon-Heywood were the two championship contenders heading into the round, and there was drama in qualifying as Heywood failed to get into the A-Final. He knew that he would have to rely on his promotion to keep his championship hunt alive, as Ethan Critchley was able to secure his passage.
Fifty percent of the job was completed immediately by Heywood in an attritional B-Final. He had to work hard to keep his nose clean while lapping unpredictable cadet traffic, to avoid getting any penalties, and managed to walk to a firm victory by nearly twenty-five seconds. He was approximately a second faster than the nearest competitor, an unbelievable performance. Caeser Chen and Sarah Telford were alongside him on the podium, the latter having a really hard time keeping Max Walton behind but was ultimately successful.
The grand finale was unbelievable. Heywood finished the second lap of the race in the lead, despite starting in last as the promotee from the B-Final. He was controlling the race for a time but was slowly reeled in by a charging and hungry Ethan Critchley. Critchley found himself within tenths of Heywood, knowing that an overtake would see him gain the decisive three extra points needed for championship victory. He got a run into the final corner of the race, managing to shock everyone by taking not only victory, but the championship as well. Heywood’s incredible efforts after a tough qualifying were ultimately in vain, but he still showed everyone why he was worthy of standing on the championship podium. They were joined on the podium by Leger Dimitriou, who’s efforts for third in the championship were ultimately fruitless despite his impressive pace throughout the season.
P1: Marcus Cooper
P2: Sebastian Mejer
P3: Adam Telford
