Charlie Robertson led Team LNT Ginetta to a well-deserved victory in the third annual Henry Surtees Foundation Brooklands Team Karting Challenge at Mercedes-Benz World in Surrey this week, capping off a successful few days for the Scottish youngster.Just two days after departing Croft in North Yorkshire with the championship lead in the Michelin Ginetta GT4 SuperCup, the 17-year-old was back in competitive action on Tuesday, 1st July, in the spectacular charity event which drew involvement from drivers across the motorsport spectrum – up to, and including, the FIA Formula One World Championship.Partnered in the Team LNT Ginetta line-up by Ginetta Junior Championship drivers James Kellett and Jamie Chadwick, as well as kart racer and aspiring Ginetta graduate Esmee Hawkey, Charlie took the opening stint of the two-hour endurance race and delivered a sensational performance. Lining-up third on the grid, the MSA Academy racer and British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star quickly moved into the lead of the race before pulling clear of the chasing pack – reminiscent of his formative career in karting where he was Formula Kart Stars KF3 Vice-Champion in 2010, having finished runner-up in the MSA British Cadet Karting Championship two years prior.With his team-mates all producing strong performances too, the win ultimately went to the Team LNT Ginetta squad ahead of Titan Motorsport, the team which claimed victory in the inaugural HSF Brooklands event in 2012. Third place went to the Racing Steps Foundation/Sky F1 team which featured Ben Barnicoat, Oliver Rowland, Jake Dennis and Sky Sports F1 presenter Simon Lazenby.“It was fantastic to win the HSF Brooklands Team Karting Challenge and a real privilege to just be involved in such a great event”, said Charlie, who is backed by Investigo and Blackstar, “The main purpose was obviously to help raise as much money as possible, so to win the kart race with Team LNT Ginetta was the icing on the cake.“Being back in a kart was great fun and racing with James, Jamie and Esmee was really enjoyable, I think we did a pretty good job! After a good weekend at Croft, moving back into the championship lead in the GT4 SuperCup, winning at Brooklands rounded off a fantastic few days.”In total, £60,000 was raised through the special day which was organised by John Surtees OBE in memory of his late son Henry, with proceeds being shared between the Henry Surtees Foundation and Brooklands Museum. No fewer than 140 drivers took part in the charity race, spread across an incredible 35 teams.As well as the karting, a number of track demonstrations took place featuring some of the superb cars from John Surtees’ legendary career. Taking part in the display himself at the wheel of the iconic Ferrari 158 which he steered to the F1 World Championship some 50 years ago, other cars included the Surtees TS7 – the first F1 car Surtees Snr ever constructed.
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