Bobby Thompson made an outstanding start to his senior car racing career with a pair of top 15 finishes in the opening two rounds of the fiercely competitive Vortex Dunlop Ford Fiesta Championship at the Rockingham Motor Speedway in Corby last weekend.
The 16 year-old driver, known throughout the paddock as Bobster is still a year away from being allowed to drive on public roads but he proved that age and inexperience is no barrier as he battled with many of the seasoned veterans in the well supported saloon car championship, leaving the weekend with a growing reputation as a potential Touring Car star of the future.
After finishing a glittering junior career in karting last year with a top three finish in the Bernie Ecclestone and Lewis Hamilton backed Formula Kart Stars Junior Rotax Championship Thompson, who is part of the exclusive MSA Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence Academy, lined up against 28 other drivers for rounds one and two of the sixteen round championship.
Despite a lack of knowledge of the 2.05-mile part oval, part road course circuit and an unavoidable spin in qualifying when a rivals engine blew in front of him leaving the Barking and Dagenham College student stranded in a gravel trap Thompson lined up his family run car on the sixth row of the grid for the first race, ahead of many more experienced rivals.
Going into Tarzan Hairpin I saw a big cloud of smoke and there was liquid all over the track, recalled Thompson of his qualifying excursion. I thought I missed it but my tyres were soaked and I went straight into the gravel. I was thinking dont do any damage but luckily the car was fine and after I was towed out I got back to the pits.
Thompson, who is a brand ambassador for Stilo helmets, the company run by former World Rally Championship winning co-driver Nicky Grist, paid the price for his lack of pre season testing with a slow start in race one and found himself at the tail end of the top 20 when the snarling pack completed the opening lap.
However he soon began picking up places and showed no fear of Rockinghams intimidating first corner, which drivers take at speeds approaching 125mph just inches from the outside concrete wall, which forms part of the circuits NASCAR style oval. When the chequered flag fell Thompson was in 15th place, less than two seconds away from a top ten finish.
I wasnt nervous before the start as I just wanted to do well, stated Thompson, who supports Caudwell Childrens Charity through his racing activities. The starts are something I have to work on because that is where my lack of testing and experience shows up but I was happy that I was able to come through the field as quickly as I did and make lots of passes, even if the car had a few battle scars on it by the end.
Bobbys race one finish meant he lined up on the eighth row of the grid for the second race of the weekend and, in a mirror image of his race one performance he found himself in the thick of an almighty tussle as he strove to make up several lost positions at the start.
Because I had a bit of panel damage after race one I had to take things a bit more steady in race two, said Thompson, who guided his #19 Carp Trader/Euro Car Parts backed entry into a career best 13th place. In karting you can be really aggressive and make lots of moves but if you do the same in cars then you get re-passed straight away. I had to wait behind people for several laps before I made my move so with a bit more experience I think I would have been in the top ten.
Overall it was a really good weekend and each time I get in the car I am getting quicker and quicker.
The next two rounds of the championship takes place in two weeks time at the Snetterton circuit in Norfolk, where Bobby will be looking to put his previous experience of the winding venue to good use and score his first top ten finish as a senior driver.
