Mitchell, who lives in Wrotham a stone’s throw from Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship team Motorbase’s headquarters, qualified fourth fastest in his JWB Motorsport-run MINI and stormed to second place in race one, just 0.8 seconds shy of the win.

Adding a third place result in race two, having started the contest on the front row, Mitchell then took his second runner-up finish of the event in the last race of the year and was a mere 0.2 seconds away from victory – taking his podium tally for the season into double figures, including four wins.

Team-mate and fellow Motorbase Driver Academy racer Jamie Osborne claimed a top three Rookie class finish in the opening encounter, 14th overall, and then took a weekend best of 12th position overall and third in the Rookies again in race two.

Unfortunately, race three wasn’t as fruitful and a tougher encounter ended with seventh in the Rookie class and 20th in the overall classification. Osborne’s maiden season in MINI racing concluded with him sixth in the Rookie Cup standings.

Harri Reynolds’ bid for third place in the Ginetta Junior Championship standings sadly didn’t go to plan over the course of a vexing final event of the season. Qualifying fourth and looking well placed to battle for more podiums, he was unfortunately disqualified from the opening race having taken the flag in sixth.

Lining-up third on the grid for race two, Reynolds had to settle for an eighth place finish and after not contesting the third and final encounter he concluded the championship in fourth position for Assetto Motorsport. Over the course of 2022, Reynolds took 12 podiums including three wins.

In the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship, JTR-run NAPA Racing UK backed driver Hugo Ellis experienced a nightmarish end to an otherwise strong season when he was wiped-out in the opening race at Graham Hill Bend. He had qualified eighth in the Pro-Am class and the incident also ruled him out of the second encounter. He ended the season fifth in the Pro-Am standings.

Pete Osborne – Motorbase Performance Team Owner and Team Principal:
“We were delighted to see Jack take a clean sweep of podiums at Brands over the weekend, so close to a couple of wins, but it’s been a great season for him in MINI. Jamie has shown some fantastic promise and has had some real standout performances, and he raced well again this weekend on the GP track which is a proper test of a driver’s abilities.

“Unfortunately for Harri and Hugo their respective challenges didn’t end as planned in Juniors and Porsche, but it’s been a very impressive year for both of them and there have been some fantastic highlights. It’s been a real delight supporting such talented young racers in the Motorbase Driver Academy this year, we can’t wait for 2023 now!”

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Garford started off the double-header conclusion to the season at PF International near Grantham with second and sixth in the two Heats on Saturday. Starting the Final on the front row, he hit the front inside two laps and went on to take a jubilant win – or so he thought. Incredibly, his kart’s rear bumper had snapped in half on the last lap and so he was disqualified due to the damage.

After such immense disappointment, Garford hit back in style on Sunday and achieved the redemption he’d been seeking. Qualifying on pole position, he won the first Heat and finished second in Heat Two. Beginning the Final on pole, he did slip to second but after a stunning final lap, trading the lead multiple times, he sealed the lead and the win in style with half a lap to go.

In the Daniel Ricciardo Series at Hooton Park, near Ellesmere Port, Bryn Calder was fastest in qualifying and broke the track record for an IAME 100 kart. In the opening Heat he led the entire race, just missing out on the last lap and finishing second. In the Pre-Final, Calder started in second place and finished runner-up after fighting hard for the win throughout.

Beginning the Grand Final second on the grid, Calder aced his start to rocket into the lead but the action was soon red flagged and a full re-start took place. Pushed wide onto the grass when the race got underway, Calder kept a cool head and finished second again to make it a hat-trick of podiums.

At Silverstone National Circuit, where Motorbase Performance’s Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship team departed with the lead of the Teams’ Championship with its NAPA Racing UK entry and the Drivers’ Championship lead with Ash Sutton, Academy racers delivered additional success in support categories Porsche Carrera Cup GB, Ginetta Junior and the MINI CHALLENGE.

In Porsche, NAPA Racing UK’s Hugo Ellis produced a star weekend for JTR. Qualifying seventh overall, second in Pro-Am, he finished race one in those positions and then delivered even more in race two. From the fourth row of the grid he charged to a superb fifth overall and second again in Pro-Am, only 0.3 seconds shy of the class winner and just 0.7 seconds from the overall podium.

Harri Reynolds re-took third in the Ginetta Junior Championship with a very competitive outing for Assetto Motorsport. Qualifying third, a great battle at the sharp end in race one ended with him taking fourth – having fought back from seventh after contact on lap one. In race two he finished second, thanks to a great last lap pass at the final corner, and then added second again in race three.

JWB Motorsport team-mates Jack Mitchell and Jamie Osborne were both rapid at Silverstone in the MINI CHALLENGE, the former taking third place in race three before a penalty dropped him to fifth position. He started off the event with sixth in the opener, up from 10th on the grid, and finished fifth in race two also.

Osborne, younger brother of BTCC racer Sam, produced an excellent qualifying inside the overall top 12 – third fastest of the Rookies. Finishing 11th overall and third in class in race one, he was fourth in the Rookies and 14th overall in the second contest. Set for a top 10 result in race three, an unfortunate penalty for a false-start dropped him to 18th in the classification, fifth of the Rookies.

Pete Osborne – Motorbase Performance Team Owner and Team Principal:
“Another fantastic weekend across the board, from our BTCC team right the way through the Motorbase Driver Academy racers in the TOCA support categories and in karting. Alfie delivered an outstanding weekend in the British Kart Championship, hitting back brilliantly with his final round win, and Bryn was on superb form as well in DRS with a hat-trick of podiums. Fantastic stuff!

“Hugo was incredibly impressive in Porsche, so close to that first Pro-Am win and right up there beating a number of the established Pros. It was great to see Harri on the podium twice in Juniors and Jack and Jamie were strong in MINIs. I was very impressed with Jamie’s pace this weekend, he was unlucky in the last race but overall a fantastic weekend.”

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After finishing in fourth position during round 12 on Saturday, 13th August, having challenged for the podium early on, Mitchell – who lives close to the Motorbase headquarters in Wrotham – then took fourth again in round 13.

The weekend’s third race was the undoubted highlight, with Mitchell nailing his start and leading throughout the 10 laps to claim the win by just under a second. In terms of the championship, he departed Norfolk second in the driver standings.

Team-mate and fellow Academy driver Jamie Osborne had a more frustrating weekend under the scorching skies, with a brace of retirements bookending the event. Having moved up from 25th on the grid into 19th place in race one, his involvement reached an early conclusion on the sixth tour.

Race two delivered his sole finish of the weekend, 21st position and seventh in the Rookie class the result after a fairly sedate encounter. In the final race, round 14, Osborne was on course for a much-improved 16th place until it all went awry on the last lap.

Fellow Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship support category the Ginetta Junior Championship brought two more trophies for Motorbase Driver Academy racer Harri Reynolds, who is third in the title race for Assetto Motorsport.

Qualifying sixth fastest for the round 14 grid, Reynolds was involved a fantastic battle for the podium and did actually lead into the final lap before having to settle for third position – just 0.2 seconds shy of victory on the dash to the line.

Producing a similarly impressive performance in round 15, his hopes of a podium hat-trick were dashed when he had to take to the grass to avoid a spinning car and ultimately finished eighth. In the finale, round 16, Reynolds stormed through from the fourth row of the grid to finish third again, sealing his second trophy of the weekend after another super-close sprint to the chequered flag.

In the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship, NAPA Racing UK supported driver Hugo Ellis had to settle for a pair of sixth place finishes in Pro-Am after two frustrating races. In qualifying he had displayed his clear promise with the second fastest time in class, 10th overall.

Pete Osborne – Motorbase Performance Team Owner and Team Principal:
“It was fantastic to see Jack back on the top step of the podium in the MINIs, exactly where he should be, after such a great drive from pole position. Overall it was a very strong weekend for him and keeps the championship very much alive.

“Equally, Harri did a fabulous job in the Ginettas and it so easily could have been three podiums from three. He raced incredibly well, in very challenging weather, and the strong points he’s taken away could be crucial with just a few races to go this season.

“It’s a shame Jamie and Hugo both experienced a tough weekend at Snetterton, sometimes that’s how motorsport is and you just have to hit back as strongly as you can at the next event. I know both of them will be doing their very best to do just that.”

The post THIRD WIN OF MINI SEASON FOR ACADEMY DRIVER MITCHELL AND DOUBLE GINETTA PODIUM FOR REYNOLDS appeared first on Alliance Racing.

On a weekend where Motorbase and its NAPA Racing UK entry secured its first race victory of the season in the headline Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship with Ash Sutton, for the young Academy drivers it was a less fruitful outing by and large with a series of luckless incidents.

For Scottish racer Clark, though, his home races went well and particularly in round nine of the MINI CHALLENGE where he stormed through the order from an uncharacteristic 20th on the grid to finish an excellent 12th overall and second in the Graduate class for JWB Motorsport.

Repeating the runner-up result in the Graduates in round 10, the Perth racer – who celebrated his 22nd birthday this week – was an improved ninth overall. Unfortunately, his run ended in round 11 with retirement on the opening lap.

Team-mates Jack Mitchell and Jamie Osborne both endured a tough weekend with the latter posting two unfortunate non-finishes, in rounds 10 and 11, and Mitchell having a mountain to climb in the second and third races after his MINI ground to a halt just off the startline in round nine.

Conversely, Osborne raced to a fifth place finish in the Rookie class and the top 15 overall in the opening contest but his visit to Knockhill then unraveled in the next two races to bring a frustrating end to the event for the JWB driver.

Mitchell, who had qualified fourth fastest for race one, had to begin round 10 from the back of the grid after the enforced retirement in the opener and he charged through the order brilliantly from 27th on the grid into 14th place at the finish. More fantastic progress was made in round 11, slicing through from 14th at the start into the top six – salvaging vital points for second in the standings.

Ginetta Junior Championship contender Harri Reynolds experienced his most vexing event of the year by far, picking up a total of just seven points at Knockhill with a 14th place finish in race two of the weekend, round 12. After qualifying eighth for round 11, a mechanical issue forced him out on only lap three and in round 13 another non-finish occurred on the fourth lap of the encounter.

Star rookie in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship, Hugo Ellis, endured a Knockhill nightmare when a start-line accident, involving five cars, ruled him out of the first race of the weekend on the spot and the damage sustained to his car also prevented him from participating in race two. On the positive side, Ellis was thankfully uninjured in the incident as were the other drivers.

Pete Osborne – Motorbase Performance Team Owner and Team Principal:
“We’ve seen, and celebrated, some fantastic success for the Motorbase Driver Academy over the first half of the season so we mustn’t be too disappointed with how the Knockhill weekend turned out for our drivers. Harri and Jamie had some terrible luck in Ginetta and MINI, and the crash in the first Porsche race was pretty worrying. We were so relieved to see Hugo walk away uninjured.

“Looking at the positives, Ru delivered two outstanding drives in the MINIs and Jack fought back very impressively after the frustration of race one when he was forced to stop as soon as he’d started. Obviously, it was great to see Ru finish second in class twice at his home track, particularly in front of such a great Knockhill crowd – oh, and happy birthday Ru from everyone at Motorbase!”

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As there is a break in the MINI CHALLENGE calendar now until the next event at Knockhill in Scotland at the end of July, both Academy drivers are available to appear on the Wera Tools stand at Goodwood with Osborne appearing this Thursday, 23rd June, and Mitchell on Saturday, 25th June.

Wera Tools, of course, is a major force in the world of screwdriving tools and consistently searches for new ideas and innovative ways to develop the range of products the company offers. Operating globally, with more than 3,000 different tools available for end users, the German brand delivers the highest quality tools and has done since the business was founded back in 1936.

Motorbase Driver Academy racers Mitchell and Osborne each pilot Wera Tools branded cars run by JWB Motorsport in Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship feeder category the MINI CHALLENGE, with Mitchell mounting a major bid for the 2022 title.

Currently second in the championship, with two victories and four other podiums, Mitchell has been able to mount a challenge in MINI this year, his first season in the series, thanks to the vital backing of the Academy.

Team-mate Osborne, son of Motorbase Performance owner Pete Osborne and brother of BTCC racer Sam, is embarking on his debut year in MINI and became a Rookie Cup podium finisher in his very first race at Donington Park. In race two of the season, he charged to his first class victory in ninth overall with a star drive. After three events thus far, Osborne is seventh in the class standings.

Goodwood Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard is renowned worldwide as the biggest and best celebration of the motorsport and automotive sectors. More than 200,000 spectators attend the four-day festival each year.

Along with the appearance of the Motorbase Driver Academy duo with Wera Tools, Motorbase’s BTCC racer Dan Cammish will be attending Goodwood this Thursday, 23rd June, and Friday, 24th June, where he will pilot a NAPA Racing UK Ford Focus ST touring car up the famous Hillclimb course. Cammish will then travel up to Croft in North Yorkshire for this weekend’s BTCC race meeting.

Pete Osborne – Motorbase Performance Team Owner and Team Principal:
“It’s fantastic Jack and Jamie will be representing Wera Tools and the Motorbase Driver Academy at Goodwood later this week, the festival is one-of-a-kind and an absolute must for any fan of race cars, road cars and anything associated with the automotive world. Our partnership with Wera is extremely important and I’m delighted we can provide support for the company at its stand.

“It’s an extremely busy week for everyone at Motorbase, with Dan appearing at Goodwood with the touring car as well and then the BTCC event at Croft. There’s a lot of hard work to be done but we’re all really looking forward to being part of both events which are massive dates on the calendar.”

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Qualifying second fastest for the opening race, Mitchell – who lives just down the road from the Motorbase team HQ in Wrotham, Kent – went on seal the runner-up spot in race one and made it a brace of podiums with second place in race two at the wheel of his JWB Motorsport prepared car.

Team-mates Ru Clark and Jamie Osborne had a mixed outing at Oulton, with Scottish driver Clark racing to 12th position overall and third in the Graduate class in round seven after a great battle and then 13th overall, third in class again, in round eight.

Nottinghamshire driver Osborne, brother of Motorbase’s Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship racer Sam, took away a best of fifth in the Rookie class and 19th overall in the second MINI contest, having sliced through from a lowly 27th on the grid following a luckless retirement early in race one.

Also in action at Oulton, NAPA Racing UK’s Hugo Ellis achieved a pair of top four results in Pro-Am in Porsche Carrera Cup GB after qualifying fourth in class – even with three laps disallowed for track limits infringements. In round five, which was re-started after a red flag stoppage, Ellis took his JTR-run car to 11th overall and in round six he was 11th overall again.

Karting sensation Alfie Garford made a return to the Junior TKM class for the first time this year during a club meeting at Kimbolton and was the dominant force. Featuring mixed grids of more than 25 karts, Garford sliced his way through all three to claim a magnificent hat-trick of wins.

Going from eighth to first in Heat One, he was even more impressive in Heat Two after winning from 16th on the grid. In Heat Three, Garford claimed victory again from eighth at the start. In the Final he had to settle for third, after a terrific battle at the front late on. Leading from pole, and opening a good lead, he was on course for the victory but slipped to third at the finish. Still a star weekend.

Pete Osborne – Motorbase Performance Team Owner and Team Principal:
“Alfie was clearly the star driver on his return to Junior TKM at the weekend at Kimbolton, what a series of performances! Three wins was outstanding and it was very nearly four, we’re looking forward to seeing what he can achieve in the ‘O’ Plate just under a couple of weeks from now.

“Jack continued his great season in the MINIs, two second places shows the consistency and speed he has and he left Oulton a very healthy second in the championship. It wasn’t quite the weekend either Ru or Jamie wanted, but I know they’ll both be looking to hit back at Knockhill at the end of July after the break in the MINI calendar. In the Porsches it wasn’t quite a podium for Hugo, but he raced well and the consistent finishes are obviously very positive as he learns more and more.”

The post MORE PODIUMS FOR ACADEMY STAR MITCHELL AND SENSATIONAL PERFORMANCE FOR KART ACE GARFORD appeared first on Alliance Racing.

Added to a double podium for Motorbase’s NAPA Racing UK driver Dan Cammish in the headline Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship, in the supporting Ginetta Junior Championship points leader Reynolds further increased his advantage at the top of the table with two podiums.

After racing to fifth place, from ninth on the grid, in a dry round four on Saturday, Reynolds secured third place in round five later in the day. On Sunday, in slippery damp conditions, he bagged his third victory of the season with Assetto Motorsport and now leads the standings by 12 points.

Mitchell, driving for JWB Motorsport in the MINI CHALLENGE, stormed to pole position in qualifying for round four and converted it into a lights-to-flag win on Saturday – his first. Although slipping to fourth at the start of a damp round five on Sunday, Mitchell battled back to make it two consecutive victories. Unfortunately, round six delivered a non-finish after contact late-on from a rival.

Team-mates Jamie Osborne and Ru Clark didn’t enjoy such a fruitful weekend sadly, with the former taking a best finish of 14th position in the red-flagged wet sixth round – fifth in the Rookies. Race one brought an unfortunate non-finish, but Osborne battled through the order to 20th overall in race two.

Clark faced a monumental challenge after problems in qualifying meant he had to begin round four from the back of the grid in 30th position. Impressing with a great drive to 16th place, he followed Osborne home in round five in 21st spot but a tough finale ended with 23rd position.

Porsche Carrera Cup GB driver Hugo Ellis produced a sensational qualifying performance in his JTR run NAPA Racing UK car, claiming his maiden Pro-Am pole position in fifth overall – a mere 0.107 seconds shy of the outright pole.

Round three on Sunday started dry but when rain arrived, several drivers encountered difficulties and the race was red flagged. After the resumption, drivers having been able to change to treaded tyres in the meantime, Ellis eventually finished his first wet race 21st overall and seventh in Pro-Am. In round four, Ellis took his second Pro-Am podium after charging to third place in class, 14th overall.

At Warden Law Kart Club, teenager Alfie Garford prepared for this weekend’s second round of the Wera Tools British Karting Championship at the Sunderland venue by competing in the third round of the LGM series.

Having never visited Warden Law previously, Garford spent much of the weekend learning the track and the Heats produced a mixed bag of results – fourth in the opener, 21st place in the second Heat after a collision and then 14th place in the third Heat. Starting the Final 16th out of 42 competitors, after slipping back early on he fought through to 10th place with times a match for the top four.

Pete Osborne – Motorbase Performance Team Owner and Team Principal:
“Harri and Jack go from strength to strength in Ginetta Junior and MINI, they both performed superbly at Brands Hatch. It was great to see Harri take his third win of the year, and enhance his championship lead, and brilliant to see Jack take his first two wins in the MINIs. Jamie and Ru had a mixed weekend unfortunately, in difficult conditions, but I know they’ll both bounce back.

“In the dry qualifying for the Porsches, Hugo’s pace was sensational – taking Pro-Am pole was great but to only be a tenth off the outright pole was fantastic. After an unlucky race one, it was good he got back on the podium in race two. Alfie made some good preparations up at Warden Law for the second round of the British Championship this weekend too, we’ll be watching with interest!”

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Striving to highlight the significance of mental health awareness as part of its participation in the country’s premier motor racing category, the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship, Motorbase is utilising its platform to support the promotion of mental health causes.

Mental Health Awareness Week, which began this past Monday and runs until Sunday, 15th May, is a key date on the calendar for one of the UK’s most serious health challenges and this year the focus of the awareness week is to help tackle loneliness and the wider issues associated with it.

Figures show one in four adults feel lonely some or all of the time, with no single cause, but neither is there any one solution. The longer loneliness persists, the greater the risk of mental health problems surfacing and arising, and so Mental Health Awareness Week – which is led by the Mental Health Foundation – has been aiming to highlight practical steps to avert problems developing.

To discover more, visit https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/campaigns/mental-health-awareness-week where the Mental Health Foundation explores everything to do with loneliness – why it matters, what it feels like and ways in which individuals and society as a whole can respond.

This season in the BTCC, of course, Motorbase driver Sam Osborne – son of team owner Pete – is competing as No.77 in the Apec Racing with Beavis Morgan entry in memory of late racing driver Tom Walker, who tragically took his own life in 2018 and raced as No.77 in the VW Cup.

Prior to the current campaign, Sam raced with a ‘77’ decal on his car in remembrance and to also show support and he continues to do so on the rear of his Ford Focus ST – a message reading #77TomWalker – along with a decal supporting mental health charity Mind.

Pete’s other son Jamie, who drives in BTCC feeder category the MINI CHALLENGE, is also racing as No.77 this year and the family as a whole is determined to do as much as possible to highlight awareness of mental health challenges and the variety of struggles people face.

Pete Osborne – Motorbase Performance Team Owner and Team Principal:
“As a team we place a huge amount of importance on mental health awareness, particularly with our links to Tom [Walker] who I used to sponsor in the VW Cup, and so I am very proud Motorbase is supporting such a vital cause. Mental Health Awareness Week is incredibly important to help highlight the serious difficulties so many people face, and the support networks which are available.

“People need to be able to talk, to share their feelings and concerns without being judged, and anything we can do at Motorbase to promote this and to provide support we will do. You never know the struggles people might be facing, even if they seem happy on the outside, so I really do hope we can help to bring that to light and do our bit to assist in some way.”

This weekend, the BTCC and MINI CHALLENGE will both be in action at Brands Hatch Indy Circuit in Kent – Motorbase’s home track. All three BTCC races, which will feature Motorbase’s NAPA Racing UK drivers Ash Sutton and Dan Cammish and Apec Racing with Beavis Morgan racers Sam Osborne and Ollie Jackson, will be live on television.

Round four will begin at 11.30 on ITV4, round five at 14.10 on the main ITV channel and round six will start at 16.15, back on ITV4.

The post MOTORBASE HIGHLIGHTING IMPORTANCE OF SUPPORT DURING MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK appeared first on Alliance Racing.

All three championships began their respective campaigns at Donington Park a couple of weeks ago, where Motorbase also got its BTCC season underway, and in the Ginetta Junior Championship 15-year-old Harri Reynolds starred with a magnificent series of performances to lead the standings.

Driving for Assetto Motorsport, with whom Motorbase has partnered, Reynolds was quick throughout practice and qualified second for round one and on pole position for round two. Taking third place in the opening race, he emerged from a tremendous battle in race two with his maiden victory in cars and then led from lights-to-flag in round three to make it a superb double success.

In MINI CHALLENGE, three competitors from the Academy got their season underway with partner team JWB Motorsport. Jack Mitchell arrived in at the deep end after signing an eleventh hour deal, but he impressed from the outset by qualifying second fastest.

Only missing a round one podium by 0.4 seconds, Mitchell confirmed his prowess after hardly any practice running in the MINI JCW and stormed to third place in both rounds two and three to end the event third in the points – a big early warning shot for the 2022 title contenders.

Jamie Osborne put together a brilliant debut weekend, qualifying sixth quickest – only 0.4 seconds shy of pole – and then taking ninth overall and second in the Rookie Cup in race one. Finishing ninth again in round two, Osborne – son of Motorbase team owner Pete – charged to his maiden Rookie Cup victory with a superb drive.

Although race three delivered an unfortunate non-finish, Osborne concluded the weekend second in the Rookie Cup standings. Like his older brother Sam, who races with Motorbase in the BTCC, Jamie is running as No.77 in MINI CHALLENGE in memory of late racing driver Tom Walker.

In the third JWB car, Scottish driver Ru Clark produced a strong weekend and was delighted to qualify fifth fastest. Although a stall at the start of race one dropped him to 16th place, Clark battled back to be in the fight for seventh before settling for 10th after a tyre issue.

His weekend best came in round two, moving up from 10th on the grid to finish in the top eight after Safety Car interventions limited the opportunity for more progress. In round three he finished in 12th position and departed Donington third in the Graduate Cup standings.

Driving the NAPA Racing UK liveried JTR-run car in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship, racing returnee Hugo Ellis qualified sixth fastest in the Pro-Am class and charged to a superb podium finish in his maiden outing, third in Pro-Am and 12th overall. In the second contest, Ellis was fourth in Pro-Am and 13th overall to end the weekend third in the Pro-Am standings.

One week earlier, across Easter weekend at Oulton Park International Circuit in Cheshire, Matthew Wilson started his season in the TCR UK Championship with JWB Motorsport. Putting together a consistent showing, only his third time at the wheel of the new Cupra Leon Competicion, Wilson achieved his aim of a top 10 finish in race two – having earlier finished 11th in round one.

In addition to the circuit racers who are part of the Motorbase Driver Academy, support is also being provided for two young rising stars in the karting world – 2021 Junior TKM British Karting Champion Alfie Garford and Daniel Ricciardo Series racer Bryn Calder

Garford made a strong start to his first season in the Junior X30 Championship, being named the ‘Wera Tools Driver of the Day’ during round one at Shenington Kart Club. Racing against some of the best karters in Europe, he was quick during practice – top four pace – but in qualifying he was stuck behind another driver on his hot laps and ended up a frustrating 27th overall from 48 competitors.

Racing to a 13th place finish in Heat One, from 18th on the grid, he battled for the top 10 in Heat Two until a debatable move from a rival on the last lap dropped him to 14th place. In the Final he stormed from 19th on the grid into the top 12 on the first lap alone and progressed into ninth. Into the latter stages, two rivals ahead collided and Garford had to take avoiding action – finishing 10th.

Calder got the opening round of the DRS100 championship underway this past weekend at Clay Pigeon Kart Circuit and the 14-year-old delivered strong pace. Lapping a superb second fastest in practice, a slow puncture in qualifying limited him to 11th in his session.

Rain arrived for raceday where Calder fought through to seventh in Heat One, before an incident dropped him to 10th place. Making great progress in the Pre-Final, he finished seventh and the combined points at that stage meant a 19th place start for the Grand Final. Producing pace a match for the front-runners, Calder raced impressively to end the encounter in 11th position.

Pete Osborne – Motorbase Performance Team Owner and Team Principal:
“What a start to the year for our Motorbase Driver Academy stars, each of them performed very impressively. Obviously, Harri absolutely starred in Juniors with two wins and Jack did a fantastic job in MINI. It was a very proud moment for me to see Jamie take his first Rookie class win in only the second MINI race, all three guys in MINI did a great job with Ru showing very strong pace as well.

“Hugo’s first outing in Porsche was impressive, taking a Pro-Am podium, and Matt showed there is much more to come from him after a consistently strong start to the TCR UK season. Alfie and Bryn are two very talented young kart racers and we’ve been delighted to extend some support to them as well. It all looks set to be a very strong first year for the Motorbase Driver Academy.”

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