Maximus Shields wins the closest race of the year in Junior Prokarts
Image © Stu Stretton/Foxy Red Photography
Another new class for the CKC this season is the Junior Pro Kart class, designed as a low cost route into Junior karting, Lydd sees the second time they have featured on the package. 5 drivers would take to the track, but they would go out and put on a real show!
In qualifying, the 5 drivers were separated by just 4 tenths of a second. Maximus Shields set the pace at 42.865, while Krystian Oblag and Sebastian Parreira lapping the circuit in the exact same time to the thousandth of a second, setting up a mega fight throughout the day.
The opening heat would see Shields hold the early lead from Oblag with Parreira close behind. After a few laps, Oblag made his move for the lead, setting up a 3 way fight for the lead. The top 3 started the final lap just half a second apart, Shields went for the move at the top end of the circuit, taking the lead and leaving Oblag out wide, allowing Parreira through to third and Frame through for 4th.
The second heat was even closer, with Oblag storming through to the front of the pack by the end of lap 5, with all 5 drivers separated by a second over the line. Oblag and Shields were nose to tail, pulling away at the front, while Frame had passed Parreira for 3rd. With the laps ticking by, Shields was applying the pressure, but he couldn’t get through. Oblag scored the win with Shields and Frame completing the top 3. McCarthy finished 4th after Parreira failed to finish.
The final heat saw Shields took the lead off the start, storming to a 1 second lead in the opening lap over Oblag, Frame & McCarthy. Just before half distance, Oblag took their turn at the front, setting the fastest lap of the race in the process. Then on the final lap, it all kicked off. The pair went side by side through the back hairpin but contact forced Oblag into the barriers, dropping him to last and handed Shields a 5 second penalty for the move. That handed McCarthy the win ahead of Parreira and Frame.
Those results put Shields and Parreira on the front row, Frame and Oblag on the 2nd with McCarthy on the back of the grid. When the lights went out, it was Shields and Frame who held the early lead, while Oblag dropped down to the back of the pack.
The whole field was exceptionally close, with them all being covered by less than 1.5 seconds by the half way point of the 18 lap final. But Oblag was starting to make moves. They first disposed of McCarthy, before flying past Parreira just a couple of laps later. With 7 laps to go, Oblag was up to 2nd and just a second behind Frame after a dive down the inside at the final corner.
Oblag set about charging after Shields, almost matching their pace in qualifying the day before as they set about catching Shields. Despite catching quickly, Oblag wouldn’t be able to do anything about Shields, who would hang on to take the victory. However, post race, Oblag would be excluded for a technical infringement, promoting Connor McCarthy to 2nd with Frame completing the top 3.
To find out more about the Junior Prokart class or to join the grid, head over to the CKC website or their facebook page to get on track. As with the other classes, the junior prokarts will be back at Fulbeck in July.
