Leyland Karting Championship - Round 5

20/20 vision at Streatham

It was the turn of the young guns to show the elder statesmen a thing or two as the scintillating Leyland Karting Championship rolled into London recently.

Twenty-year-olds Jason Mooney and James Benson romped home in first and second place consecutively to secure their places in the grand final of the competition in Birmingham on 12th September.

The duo were on top form throughout the event at Streatham Karting Raceway and rarely looked like they were going to allow anyone else a sniff of glory…youngsters, hey?

Tradesmen from as far as Bournemouth and Reading made the trip to see what all the fuss was about at the fifth heat of the first ever Leyland Karting Championship…and they weren’t disappointed!

Tina has already made quite a name for herself as the, err, bum of the Leyland Lovelies’ eye-catching 2009 calendar but nothing could have prepared her for the attention lavished on her by the throng of competitors. Fending them off with typical wit and charm, Tina posed for pictures with the lucky drivers and was on hand to provide the winners with their trophies and champagne at the end. Whether or not this was the reason for some record times on the tracks is yet to be confirmed, but we have our suspicions!

After tearing themselves away from the lures of Tina…and the buffet…the drivers donned their outfits and made their way to the track quicker than Usain Bolt.

Once there, the steely gazes and clenched fists were out in force and the real business got started.

The pace was relentless in the early stages as the drivers made their way round the huge track at speeds of up to 40mph…and with 28 heats to get through it was a good job!

One of the early pacesetters was Russell Crowe and after seeing what the State of Play was he showed his Beautiful Mind as he fought off his competitors with a Gladiator-like show of speed and skill which saw him finish the heats just two points behind the three leaders. Not quite the Master and Commander of the race track this time…

Jason and James were joined at the top of the pile at the end of the heats by James Christmas, and after his performance in the final it was obvious that Christmas had come too early. Starting in third place, he never got to grips with the pace of the final and dropped down the leader board to finish in tenth place.

Two drivers who had no issues adjusting to the fierce speed of the final were Jason and James, who were never threatened by the other eight finalists. Battled out over 10 pulsating laps, the final was full of twists and turns further down the field but the dominance of the top two was proof that the young ones had the key to success in Streatham.

Finishing just over a second ahead of James, it was Jason who claimed top spot and ensured his lengthy trip from Bournemouth was well worth it. The self-employed labourer said: “I’ve had a fantastic evening and would like to thank Leyland for putting on such a great event. I’m just really looking forward to going to Birmingham now for the final and I’ll be trying my hardest to win the prizes that are up for grabs!”

Electrician James, from Woking, added: “I pushed Jason all the way and really thought I’d catch him at the end, but he just had too much pace for me on the final lap. Don’t worry, I’ll get my revenge at Birmingham!” Jason and James will be joined by 14 other tradespeople at the national final where they will be competing for a string of amazing prizes. Along with scooping the Championship trophy, the champion will also walk away with a behind the scenes full hospitality package for two with Leyland’s sponsored team, Airwaves BMW, at the final race of the British Touring Car Championship at Brands Hatch. Two nights accommodation for two at a four star hotel is also included along with £250 spending money and an exclusive BTCC & Leyland goodie bag. All the runners up at the national final will get their hands on a driving day experience voucher, along with a host of other prizes. With only two heats left to enter you’d better be quick if you want to see why Leyland’s Karting Championship has been making waves across the country. What are you waiting for? GET ON WITH IT!