Super One Series-Clay Pigeon

JH43 & Karting Mum
7 days ago
4 min read

Rounds 5&6 | Clay Pigeon

After the highs of Glan-y-Gors and my first Super One podium, it was time for another new challenge as we headed to Clay Pigeon Raceway for Rounds 5 and 6 of the 2026 Super One Series.

I'd never raced at Clay Pigeon before, so this weekend was always going to be about learning a new circuit, building confidence and continuing my development in the Rotax Micro Max championship.

Friday Practice

Friday gave us six practice sessions to learn the track and begin preparing for the race weekend.

The day started with a brief rain shower during the first session, but the weather quickly improved and the rest of the day was warm and sunny. We didn't have a transponder fitted during practice, but after speaking to some of the other drivers, it looked like I was running in the top ten on pace.

Most of the day was spent learning the circuit and understanding where I could improve. We didn't make any major setup changes to the kart, mainly experimenting with tyre pressures and gathering as much information as possible ahead of qualifying.

By the end of the day, I was feeling confident and excited for the racing to begin.

Round 5

Saturday started brilliantly.

I put together a strong qualifying session and secured P5, which gave us confidence that we had the pace to fight near the front.

Unfortunately, the weather changed significantly after qualifying. Conditions became wetter, windier and much more difficult, making it hard to maintain the pace we had shown earlier in the day.

Several false starts, incidents and getting caught behind slower starters made it difficult to move forward. As the conditions changed, we also struggled to generate enough heat in the tyres, leaving me short of grip throughout the heats and final.

Despite the challenges, every lap provided valuable experience around a circuit I had never raced before.

Results

• Qualifying – P5

• Heat 1 – P9

• Heat 2 – P10

• Final – P13

While the results weren't what we hoped for after such a strong qualifying performance, there were still positives to take away and plenty of lessons learned heading into Sunday.

Round 6

Sunday brought dry conditions, although the wind remained.

We had good pace in qualifying, but after getting caught in traffic and struggling to put together a clean lap, I found myself starting much further back than we deserved.

For Heat 1, we made a few changes to the kart and immediately felt an improvement. Unfortunately, my race almost ended before it had really begun when I was spun around on the opening lap and dropped all the way to the back of the field.

Instead of giving up, I put my head down and focused on fighting back. The kart felt much stronger and I worked my way back through the field to finish P15.

That comeback was probably one of the moments I'm most proud of from the entire weekend. It required determination, patience and maturity to keep pushing after such a disappointing start.

Heat 2 was even more encouraging. The kart felt excellent and I gained eight positions to finish P8, giving us confidence heading into the final.

The final started perfectly. I quickly made progress through the field and had worked my way into the top five before the race was red flagged following an earlier incident.

Unfortunately, when the race restarted, drivers were returned to their original starting positions. Despite pushing hard, we couldn't generate the same momentum after the restart and eventually crossed the line in P10.

Although it was frustrating to lose the positions I had gained before the red flag, there was still a fantastic reward waiting at the end of the day.

I was delighted to receive the Top Rookie Trophy for Round 6, making all the hard work worthwhile and giving us another special moment to celebrate.

Results

• Qualifying – P16

• Heat 1 – P15

• Heat 2 – P8

• Final – P10

🏆 Top Rookie

Looking Back

Clay Pigeon was a weekend full of ups and downs.

The results didn't always reflect the pace we showed, but the experience gained from racing at another new circuit will be invaluable for the future.

The biggest positives were the pace we demonstrated throughout the weekend, the comeback drive in Heat 1 after being spun to the back of the field, and finishing the weekend with a Top Rookie trophy.

Most importantly, we leave Clay Pigeon sitting 5th in the Super One Rotax Micro Max Championship, which keeps us firmly in the fight as we head into the second half of the season.

Thank You

A huge thank you to my driver coach, Jack Burgess, for all of his help, support and encouragement throughout the weekend. Jack continues to give 100% to helping me improve while also preparing for his own racing commitments in the City Car Cup.

Thank you as well to Ian Burgess for all of his hard work as my mechanic. Having confidence in the kart every time I head out on track makes a huge difference.

Thank you to XKart, Aurum, my family, supporters and everyone who continues to help me on this journey.