Race report from Round 10 at Whilton Mill.
Lochlan Bearman the Essex based Karting Champion competed in Round 10 of the Whilton Mill Championship at the weekend looking to strengthen his hold on the Championship he won last year.
The 13 year old Pheonix FM-sponsored driver was hoping to secure the result that would mean he did not have to compete in the last round. This is because this particular championship has a rule where you have to drop the score from 2 rounds. As Bearman has scored well all year he was looking for a podium finish that would mean he could not turn up next month a drop a ‘zero’ score.
In Heat 1 he got boxed in at the start but was quickly up to fifth place and quicker than the 2 karts in front of him. Unfortunately the 4th placed Riley Philips spun out the 3rd placed Chris Lulham into the path of Bearman who hit Lulham full on and went over the top of him. Although he continued the kart was damaged and would not turn right. Bearman finally brining it home in 8th spot.
In Heat 2 Bearman drove well in an incident free race rising through the field to finish 4th. For Heat 3 he started at the back of the grid and made a great start, getting up the order and picking off two more positions to finish 5th. This pot him on 5th place on the grid for the final.
Making another good getaway Bearman was 3rd by the first corner and in an uneventful race with the field spread out he come home in 3rd.
Thinking this would be good enough for the title he was understandably very happy but then disaster struck in the form of a technical exclusion. At some point in the past 2 months during maintenance the ‘floats’ in his carburettor had been changed and a mistake had been made because they were not the same weight. The rules state that they must be the same. In fact if anything this has a detrimental effect on performance but as it infringed the regulations he was excluded from the race. This means he loses over 70 points and as he received an exclusion he cannot drop this round.
“I’m so disappointed”, said Bearman. “It’s an honest mistake but it has cost me the championship. All year I’ve led and now it’s been taken away. If it was performance enhancing then I could understand better, but this was probably costing me speed. All that hard work from the team and my dad has just gone. This is what motorsport can be like, one minute you are on a high and then the next massive disappointment.
“I am going to be moving out of this category at the end of the season and I really wanted to win both the championships I am contesting. I will go to the next round and give it my all but barring a similar misfortune hitting my closest rivals it looks like 3rd will be the best I can achieve.”
Bearman still leads the Kimbolton Championship and is in a stronger position to win that which he may be able to do at Round 11 on the 8th of November.
