Silverstone stuns on Sunday in its first ever event
The Champions of the Future Academy Program UK Series has completed its opening round, with Silverstone delivering spectacular views, high speed racing, and plenty of unpredictability.
Mini 60 madness makes Hibbert a double winner
James Roots, Alfie Davidson, and Hiro Tse secured the top three positions in qualifying. Roots and Davidson remained closely matched throughout the heats, refusing to give each other any breathing room. Their racing was clean but intense, with both drivers trading victories. Roots produced a standout move on the final lap of the second heat to secure his win.
Despite their heat success, inconsistent results elsewhere meant neither driver started on the front row for the final. That honour went to Austin Oman and Bodhi Batch, both keen to make a statement with their UK experience.
Early drama involving Oman, Batch, Roots, and Davidson shuffled the order and opened the door for others. Mayson Hibbert and Chester Forkes seized the opportunity. The pair had been closely matched all day after qualifying P14 and P13, and once again found themselves battling at the front like on Saturday.
After holding position through most of the race, Forkes made his move in the closing stages to take victory, but a post race penalty made Hibbert a double final winner.
Pattison shows the field how it’s done
Sunday qualifying saw Saturday’s winner Louis Radcliffe take pole position, but his weekend quickly turned despite also claiming two heat wins. Starting from the front for the final, Radcliffe’s race unravelled and removed him from contention.
Ava Lawrence and Sukhmani Khera, both running the F1 Academy Discover Your Drive Initiative colours, impressed in qualifying with P2 and P3. Strong performances in the heats also came from Lucien Smith and Leo Livings, who steadily worked their way up the order.
The final took place in cold and wet conditions, adding another challenge. Colbe Pattison, starting from row two, took control early and drove away from the field to win by an impressive 9.3 seconds. At just 11 years old and new to Junior racing, Pattison delivered a standout performance and heads into the next round full of confidence.
Whitticombe dominates
Senior class action brought experience to the forefront, with Harrison Whitticombe dominating Sunday’s running. He topped qualifying ahead of Mentier and Emma Rose Dowling, with just 0.3 of a second covering the top five.
Whitticombe carried that pace into the heats, including a commanding victory in one race by over 20 seconds.
In wet final conditions, Mentier, Large, and Barham battled closely behind, but none could challenge Whitticombe. The driver from Pembrokeshire controlled the race and secured victory by an incredible 26 second margin.
A historic weekend for the Champions of the Future Academy Program completes the first ever event held at Kart Silverstone and marks the opening round of the UK Series.
With Round 1 complete, attention now turns north to the next event at Paul Fletcher International.