| 3DR Triumph at Shenington! |
| Monday, 21 April 2008 22:33 |
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A damp, dreary day greeted the team as they arrived at Shenington on Saturday 19th April for round 4 of the club championship. Although Shenington boasts strong competition, with both Danny and Dominic racing in Senior Rotax, expectations were high.
Despite changeable conditions, a test programme was carried out on the Saturday, aimed at continuing Dominic’s progression into senior racing, and using Danny to try some balance changes on the kart. Danny emerged fastest after the Saturday, with Dominic around 2 tenths off but clearly inside the top 5. Another murky start to Sunday saw a wet practice and 1st heat. For the 1st heat, the balance of the karts was good, allowing Danny to finish 2nd and Dominic 4th. When the track finally dried for the 2nd heat, the team felt positive about their chances. ‘We have covered a lot of miles in testing at Shenington, and know exactly how to achieve a perfect balance with the Kosmic chassis’. The engines are all working well, and yesterday in unofficial practice both of the lads were fast. I expect two impressive performances throughout the rest of the day,’ commented Team Manager, Tom Smith. Starting from 19th in heat 2, and 17th in heat 3, a 5th and 6th place respectively put Dominic in contention for the final. Had it not been for a slight incident in heat 2, he could have been on pole, but consistently steady drives put Dominic in contention come the final. Danny managed 10th from 26th in heat 2, but was unlucky to not finish in heat 3 after being black flagged for something that was ultimately proven to be not his fault. No action was taken against him, and he was re-instated, al be it in 26th place in the heat. Due to this, he would grid 9th for the final. From 4th on the grid in the final, Dominic had a good start, and was in a 4 way battle for the lead with leading drivers Karl Haxton, Daniel Payne, and Richard Hughes. By lap 6 the final had closed up, and the race for the top 4 was joined by Danny Russell, who had made a professional job of his comeback charge. Danny slid up the inside of his less experienced team mate, only to pass Hughes and Payne seemingly as easily. One lap later, Danny had gone past Haxton and set about destroying the whole field with what can only be described as blistering pace. Status Quo remained, with Danny winning from Haxton, Payne, and Dominic managing to pass the experienced Hughes 4 laps from the end. ‘If it wasn’t for bad luck in heat 3, i would have been on the front row, but we have worked hard to put a kart underneath me that is so fast, and i can only thank the team for giving me the kit to win on,’ commented Danny. ‘Both Dominic and Danny have driven extremely well this weekend. The team has worked hard, and once again produced the goods. Dominic is coming on in leaps and bounds, racing well with 3 drivers that have over 13 years of senior racing experience between them in the final today, and Danny continues to show the kind of form that could see him mount a successful campaign in the European championship next season. ‘ Team Principle The team are at Whilton this coming weekend, with the 2 senior drivers, and Will Blackwell-Chambers, a junior driver that is young in his career. The team will be assessing his ability and skill level, to allow him to move forward with his racing. |
