Chase Fernandez wins the final Ginetta Junior race of the 2023 season.
Fernandez came out on top of an eight car battle for the race lead to win by just 0.285s ahead of Reza Seewooruthun.
Fernandez was shuffled slightly backwards on the opening lap. While Alisha Palmoswki took the lead from pole sitter Seewooruthun, Fernandez came under attack from Hugo Schwarze and Mikey Porter. Both were able to get through, but small contact between Schwarze and Porter sent Schwarze wide and dropped him back down the order.
Fernandez was then running third when the safety car was called out at the end of lap one.
Further back, Luca Hopkinson had been sent into a spin. Tom Spragg directly behind stopped to avoid the stationary car but was hit from behind as the field was still bunched together. Hopkinson, Harry Moss, Felix Livesey and Henry Joslyn came into the pits while Spragg was left unable to get his car going.
The battle at the front of the order immediately resumed when the track turned green with nine minutes remaining. Seewooruthun and Fernandez were both able to get past Palmowski, but they couldn’t shake the Elite Motorsport driver. Soon, Porter joined them making it a four-car battle and dropping Palmowski to fourth.
Seewooruthun and Fernandez were side by side when a late lunge from Porter forced them both slightly wide and allowed four other cars to join the mix. Fernandez managed to get ahead, but he now had Porter, Seewooruthun, Edu Robinson, Schwarze, Charlie Hart and Palmowski all on his tail. The group ran multiple cars abreast on multiple occasions, but Fernandez managed to just hold on to take the victory.
Robinson passed Porter to take his first victory of the season, while the recovering Schwarze finished P5.
A wide moment on the final lap dropped Palmowski down to eighth, behind Hart and Hopkinson, who made quick work of climbing up through the field after his early trip to the pits.
Nickolas Ellis and Holly Miall completed the top 10.
Image credit: Ginetta/Jakob Ebrey Photography
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