following brush with F1
Jordan King is getting revved up to chase glory on foreign shores in the annual Winter Cup season curtain-raiser at Lonato in Italy – after a brief brush with fame in the shape of reigning Formula 1 World Champion Jenson Button only served to drive home the path that the Harbury ace similarly hopes to follow right the way to the pinnacle of international motor racing.
Having already come into contact with Button once before at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards ceremony several years ago, Jordan again found himself face-to-face with Britain’s motorsport hero of the moment when he was presented with his trophy for proving to be one of the leading drivers in the country in the KF3 class of the UK-wide Super 1 Series in 2009 – and he acknowledged that it was ‘quite something’ and ‘certainly a bit different’ to receive his accolade from a driver of the McLaren-Mercedes star’s status.
It was also undeniably a boost as the 15-year-old SWR-run speed demon prepares to renew battle on dual fronts following a prolonged Christmas and New Year break, readying himself for upcoming outings in the more powerful and fiercely-competitive KF2 class in both the final round of the 2009/10 Winter Series at PF International in Lincolnshire, and the Winter Cup at Lonato close to Garda.
Bidding to clinch the coveted ‘O’ Plate in the former and head into his main summer campaign on a high, Jordan also has a top five finish firmly in his sights when he subsequently heads abroad on his Italian Job, given that by his own admission he endured a disappointingly ‘average’ debut in the same event last year.
“In testing we’ve been really quick,” underlined the Repton School pupil, “so I’m feeling quite confident and quite happy with everything. I’ve not been out in a little while, but I always get up-to-speed really quickly, and I’m really keen to be back in the kart again – I miss the adrenaline rush!
“The Winter Cup will be my first proper race in KF2 in Europe, and pretty much everyone who is anyone will be there, so the competition will be pretty tough. It’s a prestigious event, and it would be brilliant to add a win there to my career CV. I’ve done quite a few laps around Lonato and have been quick; it’s a mid-speed circuit with a lot of hairpins, tight-and-twisty in parts and probably one of the most challenging tracks in Europe.”
Just the kind of place, then, that should suit him right down to the ground – and besides, Jordan King doesn’t do anything to be merely ‘average’.
