Phoenix FM-sponsored kart driver Lochlan Bearman is the new Whilton Mill MiniMax Champion for 2014.
12-year-old Lochlan went into last weekend’s Championship decider at Whilton Mill with a lead of 71 points. However, although the maximum a driver can score is 60 points per meeting, Championship rules state that competitors can drop their lowest two scores from the 11 meetings. As Lochlan has scored well all year he would have to drop 100 points whereas his nearest rival Kieran Wragg would only drop 26. This mean Lochlan had to beat Wragg by 4 positions (4 points in the final to be Champion).
The entry for this round was a massive 41 drivers and this required there to be A and B finals. With a field full of the top teams and national drivers it proved to be a challenging weekend.
Heat 1 was in extremely wet conditions and Lochlan started 17th. He made a good start as the field, slithering around the first lap finding the limits, and made his way up to 12th. The kart looked fast and Lochlan had his sights on a top six finish. However, on lap 2 his chain snapped and he coasted into retirement. This meant he was already facing the prospect of being in the B final where only the top 4 finishers would get through to the A Final. His rival Kieran Wragg managed to finish 10th so things were not looking good.
In Heat 2 he started 22nd and, needing to get a good result, put everything he had into the first few laps. He was quickly up to 19th, then 17th, 15th and then 14th in subsequent laps, but then was punted into a spin which dropped him back down to 20th place. He recovered from that and made his way back up the field making up 1 place per lap to finish in 16th position despite being punted into another spin by the same competitor without losing a place but dropping back on the circuit. Whilst that competitor received a warning it did not help Lochlan who had lost substantial ground on the front running group. Unbelievably Wragg suffered a broken chain in this heat which put them both at risk of having to compete in the B final, but negating the disadvantage Lochlan took from Heat 1.
For Heat 3 Lochlan had a 4th place start on the grid and with the kart working well he had high hopes of a good finish and securing a place in the A final. Again he had to stage a recovery drive having been knocked off at the start of lap 2, at the first corner he saw the field stream past. With things looking to be all but over he got going again however, ahead of him at the very next corner there was another melee and this time Wragg was caught up in it which allowed Lochlan to close up. He worked his way methodically back up the field taking 1 position per lap and finishing in 7th place as the chequered flag came out.
These results were enough to put him 23rd on the grid for the A final with Wragg ahead in 17th. At the end of the first lap the youngster from Essex was up to 17th with Wragg just 2 places ahead in 15th. Both Championship contenders were now in the midfield battle trying to pass other karts and race each other. On 3 Wragg was 13th with Lochlan on his bumper in 14th. With Lochlan catching Wragg and putting him under pressure Wragg made a mistake pushing too hard and spun off allowing Lochlan through. Lochlan pulled away but ran out of time to catch those in front and finished in 12th place with Wragg 13th.
Once the dust had settled and the scores were in, the low score in this final round mean that Lochlan dropped fewer points and wins the Championship by 3 points.
“It’s just the best feeling”, said the 12-year-old. “At the start of the season I would have just been happy to be competitive as it is my first year in this category but to get my third Championship in three years feels so good.”
Lochlan’s father John added, “I’m really proud of him. We didn’t expect to be so competitive so soon and we’ve never raced at Whilton before this year. I think he’s been awesome all year – we’ve had to learn an awful lot about this type of kart and engine and Lochlan has improved with every race. He’s also handled some massive disappointments and unfair penalties remarkably well. In fact, had we not received an unfair penalty at Kimbolton he would have won that Championship as well, although he still can finish as high as 4th. I could not have expected any more of him.”
The Bearmans are now looking to 2015 with a number of decisions to be made. Bearman senior added, “Depending on costs we may continue in Minimax and do a few races in Europe in Junior Max, the next category up. We’d love to do a televised series but that would only happen if a sponsor came on board. All we can do without that financial support is keep getting the results we have been and hope that someone recognises his ability and helps him to move forward in pursuit of a career as a professional racing driver.”
Despite the setbacks his year has been very successful. Lochlan’s record in 2014:
Champion – Stars at Whilton Mill Championship
2nd – London Cup
3rd – East Anglian Trophy Meeting
TBA – Hunts Kart Racing Club Championship (but 4th possible)
Team Bearman would like to thank Phoenix FM, CooperMotorsport, Grice Racing Engines and Concept Fitness Essex for their support throughout the year and of course the Guardian Series for following us.
The final round at Kimbolton is on Sunday 14th December.
