Jason Parrott (Crowland, Peterborough) took control of the hard-fought Formula A championship in spectacular style at Dorset’s Clay Pigeon Raceway on Sunday, winning both points-scoring Finals and earning the chance to meet the Renault F1 Team as an exclusive guest at a forthcoming Silverstone Formula One test.
The only driver in the class to score back to back wins at the same round this season, Parrott has been catapulted to the top of the table with a useful 17 point lead after his excellent Clay Pigeon performance in round three of the Renault-backed B4 Group/MSA British Karting Championships.
Having started Final One in fourth position on the grid, Parrott immediately moved into second place before inheriting the lead when Gary Catt (Andover, Hampshire) retired with a mechanical failure.
Catt, who arrived at Clay Pigeon as the championship leader and started the first Final in pole position, was forced to line-up for Final Two way down in 21st and last place, but the 2003 champion mounted a storming recovery to finish in fifth place.
Despite the performance, Catt has now slipped into third position in the Formula A title hunt with 2003 Formula JICA Champion Riki Christodoulou (Sutton Coldfield) now in second place.
Christodoulou started the first Final alongside Catt on the front row, but slipped down the field and finished sixth. Final Two got off to a much better start with Christodoulou moving into fourth place on the first lap, later taking third from reigning champion Mark Litchfield (Rocester, Staffordshire) who was fourth in the second Final.
Christodoulou is now a point ahead of Catt in the driver standings while Litchfield, who also finished fourth in Final One, is fourth in the championship.
A delighted Tiffany Chittenden (Chislehurst, Kent) enjoyed by far her best performance since graduating to Formula A at the start of the season, the UK’s top lady karter underlining her potential with a highly competitive weekend.
She quickly moved from sixth on the grid in Final One to second place and in the second Final, Tiffany briefly led the race during the early stages before finishing runner-up once again. Her results have lifted her into sixth place in the championship.
The Renault-backed B4 Group/MSA British Karting Championship season resumes on 18th/19th June at Larkhall in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. But before then, Formula A points leader Parrott will enjoy the rare opportunity of going behind the scenes at a Formula One test – at Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit on Wednesday, 1st June - as an exclusive guest of Renault UK and the Renault F1 Team.
Formula A Provisional Driver Standings:
1st Jason Parrott, 280pts; 2nd Riki Christodoulou, 263pts; 3rd Gary Catt, 262pts;
4th Mark Litchfield, 258pts; 5th Chris Rogers 250pts; 6th Tiffany Chittenden 236pts
For the latest British Championship Karting news visit the official Renault Sport UK website www.renaultsport.co.ukbuilt by Racecar
