Freddie Slater has title glory in his sights as the Michelin Ginetta Junior Championship 2023 makes a long-awaited return to Cadwell Park this weekend.
The Juniors last competed at the Lincolnshire circuit in 2008, with eventual champion Dino Zamparelli taking a double win. That was back when the series was running the G20 model. This weekend marks the first time ever a grid of the current G40’s will have tackled the ‘mini-Nürburgring’.
Slater (R Racing) heads into the meeting with a mathematical chance of securing the title. He’s has a phenomenal season to date. A perfect hat-trick of victories at Snetterton prior to the summer break means he has now sensationally won 14 of the 18 races contested this year.
That extraordinary run of results means Slater has now recorded more Junior victories than any other driver in the illustrious 15-year history of the championship. He also impressively led at least two laps in every single race so far this season.
To win the title this weekend with six races to spare, Slater will need to heavily outscore the chasing pack. They are led by Hugo Schwarze (Elite Motorsport), who is hugely impressing in his first-ever season of car-racing with an overall victory at Donington Park and eight further podium finishes.
Mikey Porter (R Racing) lies third in the standings following a great recent run of results. He has been firmly knocking on the door of a maiden race victory. He remarkably finished second to his team-mate Slater in five of the last ten races.
Joining them in fighting at the front for R Racing, who are closing in on a third consecutive drivers’ title this season, have been Reza Seewooruthun and Luca Hopkinson. A double rostrum last time out at Snetterton has moved Seewooruthun to three podiums for the year, one more than Hopkinson.
One of the in-form drivers heading into this weekend is Ginetta Junior scholar Chase Fernandez. Chase scored two wins during the G Fest event at Silverstone last month. Finn Harrison, who has switched to Elite Motorsport, has also been mixing it at the front of the field with four podium finishes.
Fellow Elite racer Alisha Palmowski is determined to put a tough recent run of races behind her. She will fight for race wins again, having scored a trio of second place finishes in the early rounds. Team-mate Charlie Hart is another victory contender, with a couple of second places to his name too.
Mckenzie Douglass (Fox Motorsport) will be aiming to return to the podium this weekend, while there is a group of drivers targeting their first piece of silverware. They are led by Henry Joslyn (Preptech UK), who has been a regular presence in the top six battles.
Edu Robinson (R Racing) goes to Cadwell Park in high spirits. This follows a seasons’ best fifth place finish last time out. Felix Livesey (Xentek Motorsport) has shown some great speed recently too. Fox Motorsport duo Harry Moss and Holly Miall are targeting breakthrough top ten finishes.
Follow the action across the weekend on social media, @GinettaCars.
Ginetta Junior Championship 2023 Weekend Timetable:
Saturday 22 July: Warm Up 10:10; Qualifying 12:12; Race One 14:56
Sunday 23 July: Warm Up 09:00; Race Two 11:50; Race Three 14:34
All three races will be streamed live on Ginetta’s YouTube channel. Live timing and results will be available here: www.tsl-timing.com/event/232921
