Birthday boy as he sends out a calling-card for 2011
Prior to last weekend, James Singleton had never raced on his birthday before, but in his latest outing at Shenington on the day that he turned 15, the highly-rated young North Wales karting star made it three triumphs in swift succession with another masterful performance.
Heading into the meeting and preparing to pit himself against 30 high-calibre Junior Max class rivals, James had been buoyed by back-to-back victories at Whilton Mill and PF International – and palpably had his sights set on pulling off the hat-trick.
To further lift his optimism, the last time the Conwy-based hotshot had competed around the high-speed Oxfordshire circuit – in the national Super 1 Series two months earlier – he had produced a mesmerising, truly spellbinding charge up through the order from 30th into eighth in the second final, having been forced out of the first final on the warming-up lap with spark plug failure after qualifying an excellent fourth.
“I wanted to win again,” he affirmed. “We were feeling really confident after Whilton Mill and PF, and we knew we would be quick round Shenington. I equally knew there would be some really good drivers there – pretty much the 2011 Super 1 grid – so it was definitely a tough field, but our aim was to go there and win.”
Some initial engine issues – the last thing any driver wants at Shenington, where power is king – were rapidly rectified during practice, and in a wet opening heat race, James fought grittily to recover from a difficult start that dropped him down to tenth place to recover to third at the chequered flag.
On a wet-but-drying track surface in heat two, the Penmaenmawr speed demon then brilliantly scythed his way through from 15th on the grid to emerge on top in a fraught scrap over the runner-up spot and secure himself the coveted pole position for the final.
Unfortunately, he subsequently found himself at an immediate disadvantage in the most important race of the day, for with only the later third heat having been dry, by extension, only those drivers who had participated in that heat had been able to warm their slick tyres up. The others – the Ysgol Aberconwy pupil amongst them – found themselves needing to scrub theirs in during the final, leaving the pole-sitter vulnerable in the extreme over the first few laps.
“I lost the back end a little bit going into the first corner with my tyres being cold still, and Nathan Harrison gave me a nudge from behind which pushed me on and dropped me down to fourth,” he recounted. “Luckily, the tyres came on after about three laps, so there wasn’t too much damage done and I got back past Nathan for the lead with seven laps to go.
“After that, I had to defend a little bit – he was able to stay in my tow and he remained pretty close all the way through, but I was confident I always had him covered. I knew I just had to concentrate on defending well into the hairpins each lap, because he wasn’t going to get me into the chicane. When my tyre pressures came on as his seemed to fade slightly, I knew I had the kart to do the job so the rest of it was up to me.”
And his part of the bargain he fulfilled to absolute perfection, truly earning the top spot on the podium, with the determined manner in which James wasted little time in battling his way back through mightily impressive to behold. Confessing that he was ‘chuffed’ to win – ‘especially as it was my birthday and it was against such a strong field’ – with three successes in a row now, and all at different tracks that will be visited by the national Super 1 Series in 2011, the Coles Racing ace is leaving his calling-card in style.
Encouraging indeed for his prospects next season, James’ perfect birthday present to himself – on a good day for the family, as his cousin Ryan similarly triumphed in the Senior Max class – demonstrated that he really has the bit between his teeth now and is hugely fired-up to succeed.
“We know we’re quick and we know we’ve got more racecraft than we had this time last year, too,” he concluded, “so the top five next year has to be the aim.”
He adds that the top three – to match his 2009 achievement at Mini Max level – would be a dream, but then on the basis of his current form, for James Singleton in 2011, nothing would appear to be beyond the realms of possibility.
James is seeking sponsors to help support him next year; if you are interested in backing North Wales’ brightest young F1 hope, please contact his father Mark on 07795 297350 or at: gwyneddforklifts@ukf.net
