They stick together like glue
February 2012
As the stand-in journalist for this race, I felt a little bit like the new kid at school when I drove into the car park at Whilton Mill to a sea of unfamiliar faces. Strolling around the paddock area before practice and peering into some of the cadet garages attempting to get an understanding of what was going on, I got my first taste of the professionalism behind the Easykart championship. The intensity during the morning preparation would be equally matched by the on-track tension that would unfold over the course of the day.
Qualifying saw pre-race favourites Sam Faulkner and Jenson Murchison line up on the front row of the grid for the first heat. Jake Severs was not far behind in third and this would prove to be the story of the day. The impressive newcomer Adam Sparrow was next up in fourth with Ethan Hawkey, Shayne Harrison, Jason Gavagan, Andrew Dutton, Ryan Jones and another newcomer Benjamin Harby rounding out the top 10.
The first heat was a two-way dice for the lead between Faulkner and Murchison who pulled out a 10 second gap over the chasing pack. Aside from a few position changes further down the field, the running order remained the same throughout.
The battle at the front resumed for the pre-final with Faulkner again making the best use of his pole position. As he had been during the first heat, Murchison was stuck to his rear bumper but couldn’t find a way past. Despite the obvious frustration, he kept applying the pressure in the hope that he would force a mistake from his rival. There were of course other people in this race and behind the dominant duo, Ethan Hawkey and Jake Severs were battling for third. Rookie Adam Sparrow was doing a great job and well up in the top 5.
At the flag, however, it was once again Faulkner and Murchison who were the first to cross the line, some 15 seconds clear of Severs, who won his personal battle with Hawkey. Bailey Campbell rounded out the top 5.
With the running order from the pre-final making the grid for the main final, it left no doubt who would be at the front. Sure enough as the field got away cleanly off the line it was Faulkner once again leading from his shadow Murchison. Severs once again followed through in third but was bumped down to sixth behind Ethan Hawkey, Adam Sparrow and Andrew Dutton. The ensuing battle between this quartet would leave the two leaders clear to pull away at the front.
Bailey Campbell became an early race casualty but back near the sharp end, Severs nailed his combatants to slot back into his habitual third place. He could do nothing about the leading duo, however, as they continued to pull away from the chasing pack. Despite appearing to have more pace – particularly up the hill towards Christmas Corner - Murchison could do nothing about the wide kart driven by Faulkner who was showing a maturity well beyond his years and soaking up the intense pressure being applied by his rival. After a race-long duel, Faulkner eventually took the spoils, less than a second ahead of an obviously frustrated Jenson Murchison. Jake Severs took the final spot on the podium.
With a win in the heat and both finals, Faulkner took the cadet E Plate honours. Murchison was obviously frustrated with second but he drove superbly all day and took home a well deserved second place overall ahead of Jake Severs.
Sam Faulkner was happy with victory but gave credit to his main rival after the race.
“Jenson chased me hard all day but I tried to stay focussed and not get distracted. It feels good to beat him but I think it’s going to be a hard fight between us this year.”
Jenson Murchison was obviously frustrated after the event having spent the whole day staring at the back of Faulkner’s race suit but was gracious in defeat.
“I tried to put him under pressure as much as I could but it just didn’t work out. I think I was quicker than him but he defended well and there was nothing I could do.”
If this race is anything to go by, it would seem that this year’s cadet championship will be between these two but it is clear there’s a lot of talent in this class throughout the whole field. With the first race next month at the kart dependent Teesside, we’ll see who comes out on top.
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