FOUR weeks on from the annual Welsh Championships, Llandow Kart Club reached the halfway point of its club series as July’s meeting slotted nicely between the summer showers.

Although the start of the school holidays dented numbers slightly, eight classes were still on show in South Wales, with the club’s regular paramedic, Martyn Sullivan, generously sponsoring the month’s trophies.

Bucking the general trend, Bambino entries enjoying a spike with the class’ best turn-out for some months. All drivers improved their lap times throughout the day, with current MSA Bambino Championship leader Chance Bennett showing the field how it should be done by remaining untouched at the top of the charts.

LKC regular Nathan Browning was around a second behind the pace-setter, with novices Caleb McDuff and Ryan Smith showing continued improvement in third and fourth. Smith made the biggest gains on the day by picking up over four seconds between heat one and the final.

All drivers received trophies for their efforts and certificates recording their best times.

Honda Cadet produced a three-way tussle between drivers not usually featured right at the top of the timesheets, as Austin Maddocks, Axel Laflamme and Ben Watson duelled over the silverware.

Maddocks claimed the first two heats before LKC’s resident American, Laflamme, took over in race three. The pair then went head-to-head in the final, with Laflamme coming out on top by a couple of seconds, as Watson completed the podium. Three novices featured amongst the field, with former Bambino Ella Stevens making her class debut.

With no IAME or MiniMax on track this month, Junior Honda was next up and, again, there was a change at the top of the timesheets as Alex Wilkins unseated regular pacesetter Ben Cutler. There had been signs over previous meetings, but Wilkins came out on top in three of the four races this time around, as rookie Finley Green kept the top two honest.

David Spiller took full advantage of a depleted Junior Rotax field to claim maximum points, but had to run with the Junior TKM field throughout the day, crossing the line third on the road in the combined final.

TKM honours also never appeared in doubt as Louis Beaven claimed victory in all four races. Lucas Sullivan did all he could to provide a challenge, finishing second in all bar heat one, while novice Adam Crofts-Davies completed the class podium in the final after Joe Phillips and Sam Johns had done so in the heats.

There was little wrong with Senior Honda numbers, or Kristian Prosser’s performance, as the reigning Welsh and Celtic champion took three wins from four. Prosser only missed out on the opening heat, where fellow Junior graduate Patrick Hill triumphed, and, from then on, it was a question of who would finish second.

Having given best to veteran Paul Saunders and Monty Gorringe by the narrowest of margins in the third heat, Hill was back in P2 for the main event, with Saunders completing the podium.

Callum Johns joined the Senior Rotax grid as the lone TKM Extreme runner as, without any guest series to steal the limelight, the blue riband class was restored to its usual position as the weekend’s show-stopper.

Sam Morgan responded by moving up a couple of steps from his Welsh Championship podium to claim victory, having taken outs heats one and two. Morgan gave best to Rob Ellis in race three before returning to the top of the pile, and Ellis duly claimed the runners-up spot, with Scott Rose completing the leading trio.

Round seven of the Llandow Kart Club championship will take place on Sunday, August 16, when the club will introduce standing starts for all able classes.

Results:

BAMBINO

1. Chance Bennett (Wright)

2. Nathan Browning (Synergy)

3. Caleb McDuff (Zip)

4. Ryan Smith (Topkart)

CADET HONDA

1. Axel Laflamme (Zip)

2. Austin Maddocks (Project One)

3. Ben Watson (Project One)

JUNIOR HONDA

1. Alex Wilkins (7Kart)

2. Ben Cutler (7Kart)

3. Finley Green (Biz)

JUNIOR TKM

1. Louis Beaven (Tonykart)

2. Lucas Sullivan (Tonykart)

3. Adam Crofts-Davies

JUNIOR ROTAX

1. David Spiller (Alonso)

SENIOR HONDA

1. Kristian Prosser (7Kart)

2. Patrick Hill (Wright)

3. Paul Saunders (7Kart)

SENIOR ROTAX

1. Sam Morgan (CRG)

2. Rob Ellis (Kosmic)

3. Scott Rose

TKM EXTREME

1. Callum Johns (Tonykart)

Best novice: Jenson Davis (Cadet Honda)

Driver of the day: Adam Crofts-Davies (Junior TKM)