The new Karting Show at Autosport International hosted an array of launches and a plethora of stars, from Big Chris from Roary the Racing Car® to Formula One stars Jenson Button and Mark Webber, at the NEC, Birmingham, hailing the official start to the karting season.
The Karting Stage formed an integral part of the new Karting Show, attracting an impressive line up of drivers allowing the next generation of karters to rub shoulders with motorsport legends. Not only did Red Bull Racing’s Mark Webber make a surprise visit, but Honda Racing F1 team’s Jenson Button chatted freely with host Alan Hyde on Saturday.
As well as talking about the year past and season ahead, Button shared his karting experiences with the audience and imparted his expert advice for aspiring champions, while Mark Webber’s top karting tip was to make sure every young driver thanked their parents after each race meeting. Vodafone McLaren Mercedes test driver Gary Paffett, American Le Mans Champion Allan McNish, ITVF1’s Mark Blundell, BTCC title holder Fabrizio Giovanardi, and sports car racers David Brabham and Johnny Mowlem also headlined and helped to encourage more people, young and old, into karting.
BRDC Stars of Tomorrow sponsor Martin Plowman exclusively revealed his new signing with RC Motorsport powered by Volkswagen for the Euro F3 Series. Other visiting karting graduates included Formula Renault racers Scott Jenkins and Adam Christodoulou, British GT Champion Bradley Ellis, plus a healthy scattering of karting champions including British Formula A and Kart Masters Champion Chris Rogers, and European KF3 victor and official Birel Motorsport driver Jack Harvey, to name a few.
with Kartlink