King Carl reigns supreme at Shenington

Carl Stirling clinched the prestigious British Super 1 KF3-class title yesterday (5 October) with a double podium in the season finale.

The 15-year old had gone into the final round leading the points table, but expected to be hard-pressed by his season-long rival and fellow 100cc PR stable-mate, Mackenzie Taylor.

Carl got things underway with a solid 3rd fastest lap in timed qualifying, whilst Mackenzie found himself down in 28th place after rain fell during his session.

“This relaxed me more, knowing that he would not be breathing down my neck in the heats,” said Carl.

Starting from pole position in his first race, Carl opted for ‘safety-first’ and took 4th place. However, a technical infringement saw the initial winner, Ashley Sutton demoted two places - moving Carl into 2nd place.

In the following race, Carl brought his kart home in 3rd place, knowing that it would secure him a good position on the grid for the first of the day’s two points scoring finals.

“I started from 3rd place on the grid and in the first corner, moved into 2nd place. I sat behind (the leader) Patryk Szczerbinski for another lap, and then passed him on the start/finish line. From there, I drove as hard as I could, but with five laps to go had to defend from Patryk and Ashley (Sutton). I held them to the flag and was delighted to win. It was a major confidence booster and actually secured the Championship for me – although I wasn’t sure that I’d done it at this point.”

With Mackenzie in 5th, Carl had indeed put the Championship beyond his rival’s reach - but the Millennium Motorsport pilot was keen to end his final race of the 2008 season on a high.

“I was leading the 2nd final, but made a mistake on the 4th lap, allowing Sutton and Szczerbinski through. On the same lap, at the hairpin at the top of the circuit I was hit from behind and my engine cut out. This caused a pile-up behind me, but I was able to re-start my engine and continue in 4th place. I re-took 3rd and I was able to hold off Sam Snell to the flag”.

With Mackenzie watching from the sidelines after being caught up in the earlier collision, Carl now knew he’d wrapped up the Championship and was obviously delighted.

“I went into the last corner smiling so hard it hurt my face! All the hard work every single person in the team has put into me this year, paid off. I’m over the moon. I’d also like to thank my mum and dad, who have supported me all year and deserved as much as I have. And my two brothers, Adam and Craig.”

The British Super 1 series is one of British motorsport’s longest-running series and has in the past seen F1 stars past and present become champions. Lewis Hamilton (McLaren), Jenson Button (Honda) David Coulthard (Red Bull) and Alan McNish (formerly at Toyota) are all drivers who forged their reputations in karting.

Carl - who adds the Super 1 to the British Open title he won earlier in the year - says “I think this (victory) lays down a marker that I didn’t have at the beginning of the year. When I won the Open title, people were asking ‘Who’s Carl Stirling?’ – now they know. I also hope that my success has created a better name for Northern Irish drivers. People will see us with more respect and won’t underestimate our talent.”

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