Jack Barlow closed the points gap on his nearest competitors for the MSA Super One KF2 championship with a pulverizing victory at Clay Pigeon (2 September).
The sound of gunfire from the neighbouring clay pigeon groundgiving the circuit its name - provided an appropriate aural backdrop to the on-track shoot-out as the championship arrived at the former home circuit of McLaren Formula One ace, Jenson Button.
A problem with one of his karts front wheels meant that Barlows performance in timed qualifying was compromised by severe vibration: The balancing weight had dropped off and this caused my steering wheel to shake so much I could barely hold onto it and when I braked heavily, it would snap out of my hands. It was just one of those things, he shrugged.
In the following heat, the Arai and adidas-supported driver came from the back of the field to finish 5th but complained of a lack of outright speed, prompting set-up changes to his kart ahead of the second race. It was a lot better, he said after taking the chequered flag in 3rd place. So much so, that I set the fastest lap.
This augured well for the first of Sundays two pints-scoring finals, but with just one set of tyres allowed for the whole race meeting, the early optimism of Barlow and his Millennium Motorsport team soon gave way to frustration, as Jack explains: I was lying in 4th but the tyres just hit a wall. Physically, they looked great but I went from catching the race leader to being unable to get through the corners. I had no grip and just couldnt understand what was happening. He hung on grimly for 5th place and returned to his teams awning with more work to do on his chassis prior to the main final.
During the intervening period, the low cloud cover started to produce a light drizzle and by the time the drivers were called to the starting grid, the track surface had become very greasy. We were still on slicks because the stewards hadnt declared the conditions as fully wet. I had little idea of what the circuit was like because I was the last to leave the pit lane due to a drama with my seat. As I had gone to sit in it, the bottom of it snapped but I had no time to change it for a new one.
The race got underway with Jacks backside barely an inch off the ground and, as the race progressed, he occasionally touched it at speeds over 60mph: I wore a small hole in the seat of my racesuit but thankfully suffered nothing worse!
When Ben Barnicoat passed Barlow, whilst recovering from a spin, Jack realised that the track was offering more grip than he had first thought and this spurred the multiple Junior Max champion. I worked my way into 3rd place and was reeling in the leaders when they crashed into each other.
As Barnicoat and reigning champion Mark Litchfield untangled their karts and tried to rejoin the race, Barlow flashed past and put the hammer down. He opened up a sizeable gap, but could not afford to relax. The conditions got worse and because I was out on my own, which is the worst thing in the wet. I was the first driver arriving at each corner with no idea where the grip was. I just had to feel my way through, not snatch at the brakes and keep everything neat and tidy. He added: As it got wetter, I pulled away further from Mark but when it started to dry he closed me down. Then it would rain again and I would pull away. The ensuing stalemate guaranteed Jack an emphatic and well-deserved victory, his second of the campaign.
With Litchfield later disqualified and Barnicoat parking his kart at Billys Blind, Barlow closed the gap on his principal championship rivals: Im just seventeen points off the top of the leaderboard now, with one round to go. At the end of the day, anything can happen. Im not sure if I can win overall but Sundays success has ensured that it will go all the way down to the wire.
