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Saving the best ‘til last
Strawberry set for Junior and Senior title showdowns at PFi
17th September 2009
This weekend sees the team bidding to clinch a unique treble, by adding the British Super 1 title to the Kart Masters and European crowns already in their possession.
Spearheading their challenge is Luke Varley, who is enjoying a stellar season. Luke has been in scintillating form at home and abroad and won his maiden Euro Max crown at Salbris, in France last weekend. Now he has his sights firmly set on clinching the senior Max championship but as team manager Warwick Ringham says, it will be a close-run thing.
“We will be fast at PFi but so will our rivals. We can’t afford to make any mistakes and in some ways, having to race at PFi is both an advantage and disadvantage. It’s our home circuit, so we have the set-ups for it but then, because it’s Britain’s premier circuit, everyone else races there and that cancels any advantage we might have. Also, with two hairpins straight after the start, it’s crucial to get through the heats intact and qualify up the front for the two finals”.
However, the team will be encouraged by the fact that the last time they raced at the Lincolnshire venue – at the Kart Masters event – Luke and his team-mate and European vice-Champion, Joseph Reilly – took a Strawberry one-two. Whilst Luke will be aiming to win overall, Joseph is looking to improve on his current tenth overall position in the championship. Fellow senior star, James Greenway would also like to improve on his present fourteenth spot, the result of mid-season blood poisoning which put paid to his hopes of challenging for a higher place in the table.
Like Luke, the team’s junior ace, Josh Webster sealed his maiden Euro Max title at the concluding round of the series and although his chances of lifting the Super 1 trophy are slim, he has a mathematical chance.
“Anything can happen,” says Warwick. “Josh has got a bit of a mountain to climb but, never say never. Until the last chequered flag of the weekend, we’ll push all the way and then get our calculators out.”
This weekend will be the swansong junior race for Essex-based Barrie Pullinger before he graduates to the senior category in 2010. At Shenington, the ever-improving youngster delighted Warwick when he recorded his first top-ten finishes. “Barrie isn’t as experienced as the other lads and this year’s Junior Max championship is packed with quality. To finish in seventh and sixth places shows how well he’s developing and I’ve set him a target of a repeat performance.”
Timed qualifying gets underway on Saturday afternoon and is followed by the first (of two) heats. The remaining heats will run on Sunday morning before the championship-deciding finals commence in the afternoon.
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