Photos:
For all Daytona Championship photos and more, please click here.
SuperChamps - Season Two Round One
Daytona Sandown Park
SuperChamps at Daytona Sandown Park premiered its new season this weekend, with drivers in both SODI and DMAX karts taking on the Grand Prix format. With several familiar faces and new entrants from both Junior series and external competitions, the scene was set for a phenomenal first round.
SODI Qualifying hit the circuit first, and Heavyweight driver Reece Harris initially topped the leaderboard, with nearly half the session elapsed before Leger Dimitriou was able to temporarily hold the top spot. As the timer ticked down, Ryan Bentley took pole with Leger second and Abhay Parmar in third.
As the karts left the grid for the Shootout, a slightly delayed reaction from Leger left him battling with Abhay into Turn One. The two swapped back and forth, but Leger secured second over the first lap. In the midfield, Tyler Orridge got a brilliant start and made decisive overtakes to climb into sixth before the field streamed past race control for the first time. With their initial squabbling settled, Leger and Abhay began to reel in Bentley ahead of them, pressure building throughout the race until Lap Twelve, when Bentley was swamped by Leger and Abhay. Both drivers passed Bentley and almost brought hard-charging Peter Tilev through with them. Bentley and Tilev regrouped after swapping places at Turns Four and Six and began to focus their attention ahead. On the final lap, Bentley passed Abhay at Turn Two, leaving Leger with some breathing room to secure the win. Heavyweight winner Reece Harris set consistent times throughout the race, climbing to sixth overall.
In the final, Leger led Caesar and Abhay, with Dylan Hourican picking up an early penalty for ‘loading’ in the first few corners of Lap One. By Lap Three, Ryan Bentley had begun his recovery drive, moving into third and then second as he passed Parmar at Vale. Peter Tilev was right in the action, and although Leger had built quite a lead, he dropped back into the clutches of the charging field on Lap Seventeen after a small error. Leger, Ryan, and Abhay went three-wide into Turn Four on the next lap, with Leger regaining the top spot at the final corner. Peter Tilev overtook Abhay at Turn Eight to take fourth, and Ryan Bentley led from Lap Twenty Six. The race remained incredibly close, with the top five drivers separated by less than a second as they crossed the line for the penultimate time. Contact at Turn Five saw Peter pick up a penalty, promoting Abhay Parmar to third behind Leger and Ryan Bentley.
As the DMAX karts hit the track for their first session of the day, the drivers worked to generate tyre temperature and secure a good grid position for the Shootout. Max Miller initially set the pace ahead of George Lawlor and Thomas Williams, with Amor Zayana also in the mix. Lawlor played his strategy well, settling in behind Williams and using the free air and slipstream to set the fastest lap of the session, just managing to stay clear of a hard-charging Amor, who took second quickest. The Heavyweight category was incredibly hard-fought, and although positions remained stable, very little separated the top three of Yaseen Khan, Zack Llewellyn-Morris, and Benny Reid.
The Shootout began with a flurry of karts charging through the fast opening corners, with George Lawlor leading Ayan Roy after a great start by the latter. Also making an impressive start was Fin Ions, who climbed to fourth by the end of Lap One. Amor Zayana set the fastest lap of the race so far on Lap Eight in second place, with Fin having moved up to his bumper in third. Yaseen and Zack were locked in an incredibly close battle for the Heavy category lead, and while Fin pressured Amor, George was able to pull out a small gap up front. Adam Palmer and Thomas Williams worked together to close in on fourth-placed Jamie Warner, while Fin took second. An overzealous lunge saw Amor pick up a five-second penalty, with Jamie Warner moving into second. Meanwhile, Ashton Woolger and Harrison Rudge enjoyed a fantastic battle, with the latter securing eighth in the final moments. Zack Llewellyn-Morris briefly took the Heavy category lead on the penultimate lap, but a penalty dropped him back to second in class.
The Feature Race began with a clean start, Lawlor dropping behind the hard-charging Fin Ions, who crossed the line in first at the end of Lap One. A mid-pack bunch swallowed Jamie Warner at Turn Six, dropping him down the order after a promising start. The front four of Fin, Amor, George, and Ashton began to pull clear, with Yaseen and Zack glued together at the front of the Heavy category. Thomas Williams moved forward, taking fifth on Lap Six at Turn Four. A late move from Amor at Turn three dropped Fin to second but was judged unfair, earning Amor a penalty. Ashton passed Lawlor at Turn three, and the pair traded places before George pulled off perhaps the pass of the day — overtaking both Fin and Ashton in one move up the inside at Turn Four. Yaseen and Zack continued to fight tooth and nail, sometimes too hard, and both received final warnings for contact — a quarrel that risked dropping them further down the order. The leaders caught traffic on the penultimate lap, but Lawlor kept a cool head and secured the win ahead of Fin and Ashton.
Round One delivered fantastic racing, with rivalries and friendships formed in equal measure. We look forward to the next round, with the fast-paced Heats format promising plenty of action on the Alternate Circuit layout.
Daytona Milton Keynes
A very wet start to the season saw Round One of SuperChamps commence at Daytona Milton Keynes, with 37 drivers tackling tricky conditions as they fought to lead the championship from the get-go.
Race of Champions winner Charlie Fenton was on storming form, topping the SODI qualifying times. Racing in the Heavyweight category, he out qualified both Heavies and Lights on circuit. Second place went to Adam Pughe, who also outpaced the Lightweight field, while returning SuperChamps Champion Barry Morris secured third on the Heavyweight grid.
In the Lights, seasoned professional Lewis Bowey took the top spot, with Dom Fleming and Megan Earing claiming second and third on the first race grid.
In the DMAX Qualifying session, another Heavyweight driver set the pace. Ashley Mayston-King was a tenth quicker than the entire field, including returning Daytona wet-weather master Lee Schnitzler, who topped the Lightweight category. Second and third in the Heavies went to Antony Wypych, currently leading the DMAX Nationals Interweight Heats Championship, and Thursday Night League frontrunner David Line. In the Lightweight class, 24Hr winner James King secured second, with Dawid Sniezko in third.
The SODI Shootout race was an intense battle at the front, with Bowey and Fleming both gunning for victory in the lights. Fleming managed to take the lead by the end, beating Bowey by just seven tenths. Earing secured third, nine seconds clear of Nathaniel Stebbings in fourth. The Heavies were topped by Pughe, who delivered a wet-weather masterclass against Fenton, finishing three seconds ahead. Morris held firm to take third, just five seconds back.
The DMAX Shootout had its own drama, with King taking the win after qualifying second. Freddie Burden charged from sixth on the grid to P2 in a superb drive, while Schnitzler claimed third despite receiving a penalty for hitting a cone on the rolling start. Mayston-King not only won the Heavyweight race but also overtook five light drivers in another wet-weather display. His nearest Heavy rival was Wypych, 17 seconds adrift in second. Agastya Lahkar claimed third after starting fourth, managing to pass Line during the race.
The SODI karts then headed out for their Feature Race. Bowey wasn’t about to let this one slip, building a three-second gap over Fleming by the chequered flag to secure the win. Fleming held on for second, while Earing took third, just one second clear of Stebbings.
The DMAX Feature Race began with Schnitzler hitting a cone again, this time ending any chance of a podium. King stormed away, with Burden, Sniezko, and Julia Stankowiak battling near the front. The longer feature format allowed gaps to open, but the top five stayed close, finishing within six seconds of each other. King took gold, Burden silver, and Sniezko bronze, with Stankowiak just 2.9 seconds adrift.
The DMAX Heavies were once again dominated by Mayston-King, who overtook five Lightweights on his way to victory. Wypych secured second, while third was fiercely contested between Line, Lahkar, and Dylan Penfold. Penfold won the battle on track, but a rolling-start penalty cost him ten seconds, dropping him down the order and allowing Line to clinch the final podium spot.
Daytona Tamworth
Superchamps returned for a new season at Daytona Tamworth, and with two brand-new grids it was set to be an amazing season. The first Round took place on the Grand Prix format, meaning drivers were going to have their endurance tested over the morning's racing.
In the Shootout of the N35-ST class, Joseph Smith took victory in the Lightweight category, though the top three were separated by just about a second. It was Inkart Champion and graduate Reuben Potter in second, just three tenths ahead of Grace Lee-Davis, who returned to the series after some time out. The Heavyweight category was won by James Holliday in relatively comfortable fashion ahead of James Clare.
Reuben Potter fell away a little bit in the twenty-five-minute Final but still managed to secure a strong top-five finish. Instead, the battle for the win was between Grace Lee-Davis and Joseph Smith, and it was absolutely spectacular. Only three tenths separated the two at the line after a long battle, with Smith taking his first round sweep of the season. On the back of her first-ever championship podium in the Jamie Chadwick Series the week before, Darcie Batty was able to get secure a third place podium finish, making it a streak of two in two weeks. In the Heavyweights, James Holliday fended off James Stevenson, also by three tenths of a second, to take victory after a short battle between the two. Harrison Fisher completed the podium.
A nearly full grid odf DMAX racing karts went out for the Shootout, which was won in dominant style by Jude Lillyman, someone who has his eyes firmly set on the championship trophy at the end of the season. Reigning champion Joseph Simcock was second, fighting a battle with Will Kenny throughout the fifteen minutes. The Heavyweight category was slightly less hotly contested, with a comfortable win of about twenty seconds for Lewis Middleton.
The last race of the day saw Jude Lillyman blow everyone away for a second time, this time winning by fifteen seconds ahead of Simcock, who continued his battle with Will Kenny for second position. Similarly to the Shootout, there was no way through for Kenny, but the points gained in this round would be worth a lot for him considering the length of the season. Similar stories unfolded in the Heavyweights, where Lewis Middleton won by over twenty seconds ahead of Sam Makinson, an absolute statement victory in the first round of the season. They were joined on the podium by Kieran Glover, who was gaining experience on his first championship outing in the DMAX category.
We are already seeing the potential championship protagonists come through at the start of this Superchamps season, and we already look forward to welcoming drivers back on the 28th – where the big news is that they will tackle a new layout of the Daytona Tamworth circuit for the first time since 2022.
InKart - Season Two Round One
Daytona Milton Keynes
It was an early start for the new season of the InKart Championship at Daytona Milton Keynes, with a host of returning faces alongside some new ones and a full grid of 44 drivers across both categories.
In the first Qualifying session of the season, Nathaniel Garai set the fastest lap in Juniors, just a couple of tenths clear of Jacob Noble in second, with Sarah Telford a further two tenths back in third.
In Cadets, George Dickinson stormed to pole position with a blistering 1:18.635, more than three tenths quicker than second-placed Oliver Catchpole, the only other driver into the 1:18s. Jack Dowding claimed third by just a few thousandths of a second.
In the B Final, Declan Pires took the Junior race win by nine seconds over Arel Kesimgil, who charged from last on the grid to second within the opening three laps but couldn’t quite find the pace to challenge for victory despite setting the fastest lap. Anthony Hagan-Naylor claimed his first InKart podium on debut, finishing just seven seconds behind Kesimgil.
In Cadets, Teddy Mullan secured the race victory, the only Cadet not to be lapped by the Junior race leaders. Zane Williams finished second, with Aubrey Harrington-Evans taking the final podium spot.
The A Final delivered an epic battle for the win, with drivers swapping positions almost every lap and the top seven Juniors separated by just seven seconds. Rayaan Malik produced a defensive masterclass to hold on for victory ahead of Garai. Noble crossed the line in third but dropped out of the podium places due to a five-second penalty, handing Dominic Fleming the final step on the rostrum.
In Cadets, Dickinson dominated to take the first win of the season, four seconds clear of Leo Sibthorpe, who climbed from fourth on the grid to second. Dowding wasn’t far behind, securing third place.
Season Two of InKart has sprung into action, delivering as much on grid excitement as you'd expect in a championship of this caliber where already Junior racers are developing their craft and paving their way towards a bright future in motorsport.
Photos:
For all Daytona Championship photos and more, please click here.