Formula Kart Stars Debut for Sam Brabham
Sam Brabham made his Formula Kart Stars debut in the UK over the Easter weekend. Sam, the 16-year old son of David Brabham, Grandson to Sir Jack, and Matthew Brabham's cousin, was making his race debut at national karting level at the challenging Rowrah circuit.
Drving with the Project One team, it was an encouraging start for the young Brabham who was mixing it in the mid-field melee of the highly competitive Junior Max class.
Above: Sam Brabham in his Project One Jnr MAX kart
On his first visit to the undulating Cumbrian kart track, Sam soon got to grips with getting to know the circuit despite changeable weather conditions threatening to make for an even steeper learning curve on Saturday. Taking everything in his stride, Sam bounced back from initial misfortune in his Heats to work his way from the back of the bumper 25-kart grid to record a respectable finish in his first ever Final.
With valuable race distance, track, kart and engine set-up knowledge under his belt, round two on Sunday gave Sam the chance to show more of his potential. Strong performances in both of the Heats saw the 16 year-old begin to battle in the mid-field before his constantly improving form was reflected with a finish just outside the top 15 in the second round Final.
“I’ve really enjoyed my first Formula Kart Stars event,” said Sam. “I arrived at Rowrah with quite clear objectives in mind to learn as much as possible and keep getting quicker, which I did throughout the weekend despite a challenging day on Saturday.
“Rowrah is quite a tricky circuit with both tight turns and flowing corners, but I enjoy racing at those kinds of tracks. We struggled a little with getting the kart and engine set-up right, as this is quite a high altitude circuit, but we definitely got better as the weekend went on.
“The Project One team did a great job and as my confidence grew I was able to advise what set-up changes we needed to help me go quicker. We had quite a good package by the end of the weekend which showed not only in my round two Final race result but also in the improvement of my best lap time.
“My first Stars rounds have been a great experience and I’d like to thank my family and sponsors, Liberty and Grand Privé, for their valuable support in helping me get on the grid.”
Sam will be back on track for rounds three and four of the Formula Kart Stars series at Three Sisters, near Wigan, on May 21-22.
