Jack and Joel dominate Euro Max Juniors, whilst James Greenway takes 3rd in Seniors. Strawberry Racing took a significant step towards retaining the Junior Euro Max crown it won in 2009, after Jack Barlow and Joel Affolter locked out the top two steps of the podium in Austria last weekend (17/18 July)

The Speedworld circuit at Bruck, near Vienna hosted the penultimate round of the series and saw the English and Dutch drivers win four of the six heats. In the pre final, Jack came through from grid eight to finish second, with Joel opting for a strong points finish in 3rd.

World number one Ukyo Sasahara initially led the main final, but a superbly timed and taken manoeuvre by the Strawberry pair saw them seize the advantage. Showing great maturity, Affolter wisely gave Barlow room when the latter attacked for the lead and then followed him home. It was Jack’s first victory in Europe and has set up an exciting, if nerve wracking, finale at Genk in September…

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A mid season switch to reigning European and World title holders Strawberry Racing proved instantly fruitful for Jack Barlow last weekend (26/27 June). The British Super 1 championship reached its halfway point at the challenging Buckmore Park in Kent and saw the highly rated 15 year old deliver his best performance to date in the UK’s premier series.

Inspired by taking 3rd place in a club event at the same venue just a week beforehand, Jack built on this early promise with another fine performance during Saturday’s timed qualifying session by being fastest in his group and third-quickest overall. Despite enjoying pole position for the first of his two preliminary heats, he had to keep a cool head as a crash brought out the red flags and his engine temperature soared. I didn’t have a clue what was going on. We weren’t told where to stop on the circuit so we all just drove round slowly. Because the air was so warm and the low speed, I couldn’t cool the engine enough and the data logger showed that the temperature was over 60 degrees…

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Strawberry Racing’s Mini and Senior Max stars triumph in thrilling encounters at Whilton Mill. George Russell restored himself to the top of the Super 1 Championship’s Mini Max leaderboard with a pair of superbly taken wins at Whilton Mill, last Sunday.

As the action-packed main final neared its conclusion, there was still nothing in it between the main protagonists, as mistakes by each of the drivers were instantly punished. Through the penultimate corner it was heart in the mouth stuff as the karts bumped and bored for position, but in the dash to the line, just over a tenth of a second was enough to give George a superb victory – his fourth of the campaign…

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Strawberry Racing’s Tom Fawcett delivered a peerless performance at Rowrah (17/18 April) to seize the British Super 1 Max title initiative. He left his rivals trailing in his wake, scoring back to back victories in Sunday’s finals to open an 18-point lead in the championship table. Throughout the meeting it was Fawcett’s name topping the results sheets – from Timed Qualifying, through the heats and ultimately to the pre and main finals.

Behind him, Japanese star Ren Nagabuchi - demonstrating superbly that he is rapidly getting to grips with the cut and thrust of the British style of racing – had strong heat results and a top ten finish in the feature race. “Ren was really good! His first race (at the opening S1 round at PFi in March) left him a bit unsure of himself, but he’s now more comfortable with the tyres, the team and of course, the racing. He was top rookie and showed great character and that he can drive!”

Barrie Pullinger again drew praise from his team manager Warwick Ringham after another promising series of drives. Unfortunately, a crash in the pre-final saw him finish well done the order, necessitating a feisty drive back up the order in the main race, to an eventual 14th place at the finish -“Things are looking promising for Barrie. He’s another one who has much to learn, but with every race just keeps on getting better. By mid-season, I think he may start surprising a few people.”

Strawberry’s Winter Cup champion, James Greenway continued to feel the effects of recent surgery and was forced to withdraw from the event after his first heat. In the Junior class, Jack Marshall was again underlined his burgeoning talent with a brace of runner-up finishes that installed him at the top of the points table.

“Jack was really good all weekend,” said Ringham. “He’s come on loads and exceeded all my expectations. He’s beginning to look like championship-winning material – he’s quality.” The team’s latest signing, Shaun Pirie, enjoyed a solid start to his Strawberry career with a pair of top-15 finishes at the ‘business end’ of the day and impressed his new boss; “Shaun had a lot to deal with and get used to – coming into a new team, learning the characteristics of the Tony Kart EVR chassis, working with different personnel etc. He did really well. I think we have a good, solid platform to build from.”

In Mini Max, George Russell had a torrid time in the finals. He crashed in the first encounter, but fought back to 7th. In the main final, George was running as high as 2nd - but would eventually cross the line in 12th position. However, he had done sufficient to maintain his position as one of the title protagonists.

Rowrah is a tough place to make your debut, even if you’re an experienced racer, and so it proved for Canada’s Lance Stroll. Lance was also making his first appearance with Strawberry and found the experience a stiff challenge. Warwick observed, “We did throw him right in the deep-end, but fair play to him, Lance stuck to his guns, never complained and learned a hell of a lot. He’ll take a little while to get his head round our style of racing, but he comes very well recommended and I’m sure he’ll deliver.”

Despite a strong overall performance from the team, the day belonged to Fawcett. Ringham said, “Tom was the class of the field, all weekend. He didn’t put a foot wrong and it’s all looking very promising now. In fact, I’d say pretty stunning actually.”

Like cream, talent always rises to the top and after his 2009 season was blighted by a blood injury, James Greenway bounced back with a superb victory at the Rotax Winter Cup at Campillos (13/14 February). However, the week had not begun smoothly for James and the Strawberry Racing team, as they worked hard to cope with adverse weather conditions and technical problems. Having largely overcome them, James then made steady progress through timed qualifying and the heats to keep in touching distance of the initial pace-setters. 7th place in the pre-final gave him a good grid position for the final.

Taking just a handful of laps to work his way up to 2nd place, Greenway patiently waited for the opening he needed. It came on the penultimate tour and having seized the initiative, he brought his Tony Kart home nearly three seconds clear of the chasing pack.

Strawberry Team Manager, Warwick Ringham said: “After a very difficult week, where all our drivers experienced ups and downs, I was over the moon for James. It’s been a hard few years for him and he’s come close to a big win several times before. Now he’s got one under his belt, I’m sure it will give him the confidence to challenge for all the major honours in 2010.”

James’ team-mate and newcomer to the squad, Tom Fawcett joined him on the podium. As Warwick explains, “Due to exam commitments before the event, Tom had limited testing time. So, in his first race with us, he preformed exceptionally well. To be quickest in timed practice, third in the final and post the fastest lap is a great start to his season. I am sure he will have a great year with Strawberry, as he is a fantastic driver.”

Fellow recent signing, Dutch star Mats van den Brand qualified third fastest overall in timed practice and took a heat win but suffered from bad luck in the heats. From a lowly grid position in the pre-final, Mats recovered from another opening lap crash to carve his way from the back of the field to eighth place - the only non-English driver in the top twelve. Warwick observed: “Mats is already fitting in really well with the team. He’s really enthusiastic and wants to learn.”

Although he was unable to join his colleagues in the main final, Barrie Pullinger gave his boss plenty to be positive about. “Barrie’s learning and improving all the time. He secured his first top ten group qualification and a sixth-place finish in his first heat. He has come on so much in the last few months. If he can keep up the hard work and commitment he has shown over that time, he will only continue to get better.”

Strawberry’s sole representative in the junior category, Henry Hunter was making his European debut. After initially losing ground at the start of the main final, he managed to take sixth place and set the fastest lap. “Henry will have a good year in 2010. He’s keen to learn and is a great racer. We still have a few things to iron out but they will be sorted by the time we arrive at Salbris (24-28 March).”