Finlay shows front running pace at Whilton Mill Special February event

Finlay Lines returned to Whilton for the “February Special” event, where he took a hard-fought top-five finish, showing front running pace during the weekend.

Competing against a field of 29 other competitors in the X30 Junior class, the Premium Karting driver was back on UK turf after his exciting adventure in the IAME Winter Cup in Spain.

Working alongside spanner man Jem Kordal, Finlay adapted to the damp conditions during testing and practice, finding the sweet spot ahead of the all-important qualifying session on Saturday.

Setting pole position with his original lap, this was deleted due to exceeding track limits, leaving Lines with a front row spot on the grid for both of the heat races on Sunday.

Finlay got a good start in heat one on Sunday morning, but by the end of the opening lap, he’d dropped to 5th place and was looking to move back to the front.

Lines finished the first heat in fourth place but was later demoted to seventh place after suffering a nosecone penalty due to contact from another driver on the first lap.

Undeterred, Finlay picked himself up and went for it again in heat two. After a race-long battle with Riley Cranham, Lines stayed ahead and claimed second place in the second heat race.

Thanks to the points scored in both heat races, Finlay lines up in 3rd place on the grid for the Final. Delayed at the start, he dropped back to sixth place on the opening lap, where he consolidated his position.

Lines went on to fight back and claim fifth place at the checkered flag.

Finlay sends his thanks to Jem Kordal for his hard work across the weekend and to Micky Higham and the team at Premium Karting for all their support and guidance during the event.