There's all to race for...
The final round of the Daytona Tamworth Super Champs was greeted by a shower of rain in the morning, which was shortly followed by sunny skies. A greasy but drying circuit for the championship decider, we wouldn’t want it any other way!
Championship Points
N35-ST Heavies
After 7 rounds, Baxter Rawlings was leading the championship by ten points over Patryk Welna. Whilst Welna’s chances looked bleak, the attendance of fellow heavyweights; Richard Lavendar, Benjamin Tompkinson-Gray and Dylan Edwards could potentially steal enough points from Rawlings to give Welna a shot at the title.
Baxter Rawlings had a phenomenal start to the day, winning heat 1 and beating all the lightweights in the process. He beat Welna in Heat 2 and won in the finals, securing himself the championship in the process, 14 points clear of Welna.
Richard Lavender took third in the championship, just 8 points ahead of Benjamin Tomkinson-Gray.
N35-ST Lights
In the N35 lightweights, the championship was already settled, with Charlie Edge 62 points ahead of Jacob Holley and only 61 points on offer for a perfect day. Both Edge and Holley were absent, which meant that the fight for 2nd and 3rd in the championship was the focus. Holley was 57 points ahead of Tom Dillon, with Josh Gora a further four points behind.
The day did not start well for either Dillon or Gora, who finished 3rd and 4th respectively as Jake Anders impressively won his debut race in the Super Champs. The results meant Gora could no longer catch Holley for 2nd in the championship, whereas Dillon could only drop two more points throughout the day. Heat 2 was no better for Dillon, who again finished 3rd, and would now have to win the Final with the fastest lap to claim 2nd in the championship. However, an impressive drive from Gora saw him fighting with Anders for the entire race, although it was Anders who came out on top and secured his second win of the day.
With 4 points between Dillon and Gora heading into the final, if Dillon finished 3rd, Gora would have to win the race and secure the fastest lap.
Anders led at the start from Dillon and Gora. A great move from Dillon put him up to second and he fought off Gora for over half the race as Anders drove into the distance. Gora finally got past with 4 minutes to go, but Anders was already a whopping 18 seconds ahead. An inspired defensive drive from Tom Dillon earned him third in the championship, four points behind Jacob Holley and three points ahead of Josh Gora.
DMAX Heavies
The story of the DMAX Heavyweights was a story of two drivers all season long. Mario Nacarlo and Justin Elliot were separated by just two points. Of the five rounds they had battled with each other, Elliot had secured more points on three occasions, but Nacarlo was the only one who had secured a perfect 61 points when both drivers were present. They had also both missed a round of the championship, which would be serving as their drop score. All this meant we were in for a straight dogfight between the pair.
The first heat, Nacarlo started on the front row and Elliot was towards the back. Elliot closed in for the entire race and as the chequered flag fell he was less than a second behind his championship rival.
Heat 2 was the exact opposite, Elliot started at the front with Nacarlo at the rear of the field and it was Nacarlo this time hunting down Elliot and finishing just 8 tenths behind.
Heading into the Final race of the day, still two points separated the duo. Nacarlo started ahead of Elliot and after the opening lap was running 4th overall, with Elliot in 6th and two seconds behind. After five minutes, the Lightweights had filtered through and Elliot was just over a second behind Nacarlo and hunting him down. With two laps to go, Elliot made a stunning move around the outside of Nacarlo. He had the fastest lap as well, which meant he was now a point clear of Nacarlo and on his way to the heavyweight title. Mario Nacarlo, had other ideas though, as he stuffed his kart up the inside of Justin Elliot into the first hairpin and retook the lead and defended his heart out for the rest of the lap to secure the win and the championship.
A thrilling season long battle between the pair and a very fitting close to the DMAX heavyweight class. Greg Chapman took third in the championship.
DMAX Lights
Bertie Bream was leading the DMAX lightweight championship by 18 points from Ben Smiles, with Oliver Michaelis a further 56 points back. With all three having missed a round of the championship, as long as they finished every race, the championship order would remain the same at the end of the day.
Bream won the first race of the day ahead of an impressive Jude Beaven in second. Heat two was the Smiles show, as he won by a devastatingly large seven seconds from Max Housely, who had incredibly kept both Beaven and Bream behind for most of the race. Beaven and Bream did not work together to try and pass Housely, instead they only thought of besting each on circuit. It led to a thrilling battle, with Beaven pipping Bream to third by just two tenths of a second.
The final saw two battles form. Bream and Beaven battled for first, whilst Smiles defended from Michaelis in the battle for third. Beaven had the pace to sit behind Bream, as the pair set blisteringly quick mid to low 56s lap after lap. Sadly for Beaven, he could not find a way to challenge Bream and had to settle for second as Bream secured the championship. Michaelis and Smiles swapped positions every other lap, but in the end Ben Smiles took third and with it, second in the championship ahead of Oliver Michaelis.
