Wild sets new lap record at the Track

Wild smashed the Senior Max lap record as Guernsey held the distinct honour of staging the British Isles’ first – and so far only, it is believed – motorsport race event of 2021.

A planned early start enabled GK&MC to complete the first round of their karting championship before the unexpected lockdown.

While just the day before, ice had delayed the start of the first practice session of the year, participants were grateful to find a damp but ice-free circuit on arrival.

The Senior Max class, last in the running order of a programme also featuring numerous juniors, always produces an exhilarating show for the spectators.

The entry ran slightly lower than usual, mainly influenced by a number of karters awaiting the arrival of their renewed race licences for 2021.

But Lewis Wild made a significant entry to the class by taking victory in all four of his races.

Wild did even better by breaking the lap record for this class twice during this race event, firstly in heat three by slicing 0.03sec. off the record that Sam Heathcote had set last October.

After indicating there was more to come, Wild led the field in the final and reduced that new record by a further 0.08sec.

The end result was a stunning time of 22.196sec.

While Wild has previously been a regular competitor in other classes, he took a year out to compete in the UK. However, Covid pandemic restrictions meant he had to put a hold on these plans.

Euan Robert did his utmost to challenge Wild for top spot but was unable to make this stick.

Robert did, however, take two second-place finishes from three heats and was able to take the second step on the podium for the final.

Reigning champion Heathcote didn’t have the success he has been able to enjoy of late and had numerous challenges with Robert for the duration of the event.

Heathcote was able to steal second place from Robert in the second heat following a challenge involving most, if not all, class competitors into the hairpin.

Heathcote did, however, have to settle for third in all of his other races.

Scott Wild did not have quite the same level of success as his son Lewis and will probably look to put his own day behind him.

Wild senior was the casualty of a number of racing incidents and was forced to retire from the second heat due to damage to his kart during the aforementioned clash in to the hairpin.

After some quick repairs supported by other mechanics in the pit area, Wild senior made it back on track for the third heat.

However, he may have regretted this as while trying to make up ground, a late brake and a wide entry into the hairpin caused his kart to unsettle and connect with the tyre safety barrier alongside the track.

The damage this incident caused to Wild senior’s Kart meant that he could not participate in the final.

Due to the current lockdown restrictions, round two is unlikely to take place as scheduled.

This means GK&MC are currently planning for the next round of the championship to be held on Sunday 28 March.