Britain’s top kart drivers will descend on Clay Pigeon Raceway in Dorset this weekend, 30th April/1st May, for what promises to be a highly eventful and exciting third round of the Renault-sponsored B4 Group British Karting Championships.
With an unusually short gap of only a fortnight since the previous round of the season, this weekend’s meeting at Clay Pigeon could well prove to be a turning point for many of the drivers.
Not only will they be battling for championship points, but also the chance to attend an exclusive Formula One test day at Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit in Northamptonshire as a guest of Renault UK and the Renault F1 Team.
This wonderful opportunity will be open to whichever drivers hold the respective leads of the Renault-backed Formula A, Formula ICA and Formula JICA classes following the conclusion of this weekend’s races.
Formula A
In the country’s premier karting category, former champion Gary Catt (Andover, Hampshire) holds a 12-point lead in the driver standings from rising star Jason Parrott (Crowland, Peterborough) while 2003 Formula JICA Champion Riki Christodoulou (Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands) is in third position.
A couple of great points-scoring Finals victories at PF International two weeks ago ensured reigning champion Mark Litchfield (Rocester, Staffordshire) moved into the top five in the title race, while leading lady karter Tiffany Chittenden (Chislehurst, Kent) will be aiming to repeat her excellent performances of a fortnight ago.
Formula ICA
Matthew Bell (Morpeth, Northumberland) almost saw his 100 per cent win record for the 2005 season come to a sudden halt at PF International, but the youngster fought hard to claim victory in both points-scoring Finals and now holds a healthy 25-point lead over nearest rival Daniel Rowbottom (Mamble, Kidderminster).
Things are much tighter a little further down the Formula ICA championship table however, with only eight points separating third placed Benjy Russell (Wisbech, Cambridgeshire) from Henry Arundel (Arundel, West Sussex) and Garry Findlay (Eye, Suffolk) in joint-sixth position.
Formula JICA
The country’s number one junior class has seen a real upsurge this year, the huge field of more than 30 karters having provided some great racing during the opening two rounds of the season.
Lee Bell (High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire) will be aiming to increase the eight-point championship lead he took two weeks ago while Will Stevens (Hadleigh, Essex) will be hoping for a return to the dominant form he showed during the opening meeting of the season at Three Sisters. Ollie Millroy (Claygate, Surrey) and Oliver Rowland (Penistone, Sheffield) should also be strong contenders at Clay Pigeon.
Round three of the 2005 British Karting Championship, the halfway point of the season, takes place at Clay Pigeon Raceway in Dorset this Saturday, 30th April, and Sunday, 1st May.
For the latest British Championship Karting news visit the official Renault Sport UK website www.renaultsport.co.uk built by Racecar
