Aug 7, 20233 min read

‘Crashmasters’ at PFI

Updated: Aug 9, 2023

2023 Kartmasters Grandprix at PFI, England

Last weekend I raced x30jnr in the UK’s version of the Supernats - Kartmasters at PFI in Brandon, Lincolnshire.

It’s a winner takes all race, where the winner gets to carry the GP plate all year. People call it ‘Crash Masters’ and I was about to find out why. The race is a big deal in the UK.

Kartmasters is a three-day event, where day one and two are identical. Consisting of qualifying and two heats. Points from both days are added together to set Sundays prefinal grid, the results of which set Sundays Grandprix.

I had no expectations going into this weekend. We had done a club racing using the same tire and engine, but we hadn't done any set up work.

We got 5 minutes for qualifying, I managed to get in 4 laps, and my top 3 were averaged for my qualifying position. I qualified P12 in my group, P23 / 51, placing me in group B.

In Heat B-C I started P15. It was very wet. On the opening lap, I was punted off under braking, I spun and was then last. I raced back to P19 but was classified P17 out of 32.

After a 5 hour gap, I raced again in Heat A-B. This time the track was dry. I had a decent start, the first few laps were chaotic. I battled from P16 to finish P11, P7 after penalties.

Saturday at Kartmasters was wet. Very wet. My kart was really great during qualifying, we found some speed and my opening laps were fast, but I was impeded by a driver that wanted to race in qualifying, which destroyed my average lap time. I qualified P12 in group, P24 overall. I was in group C for the heats.

In my first heat, Heat B-C the track was so wet and I struggled to see. The race was fairly quiet, I wasn’t fast enough to move forward. I started P16, finished P14 on track, P12 after penalties.

In my final heat of the day, Heat A-C it was wet but the rain had finally stopped. I started P16, I had a good start and made my way to P13. I was classified P12 after penalties.

With two P12’s I ended the day in P17. When all the points are added together I started Sundays pre-final in P17.

Sunday was a pretty crazy day, but at least it was dry. The pre-final was brutal for me. I started P16 and fell back to finish P26. It wasn’t a great drive. In the first half I was shuffled back, every decision I made appeared to be the wrong one, but I held my own in the second and fought back. The racing was brutal, with lots of hits under breaking and being pushed off the track. The driving style takes a bit of getting used to.

In the final my kart felt great (thanks JP). I had a decent start and moved through the craziness, racing from P26 to P16. I would have been higher, but I was bumped pretty hard on the last lap and two people passed me. After penalties I was classified P13.

All in all, Kartmasters was an awesome experience. It’s the most intense racing I’ve ever done. The wet racing was really fun, but I need to find more time on this track with these tires. It would help to practice more in the UK with X30jnr and on the Komet tires. Outside of a club race and Thursday practice, I had little time to dial the kart in. JP did a fantastic job, and we unlocked lots of speed as we went through the weekend. My pace in Sunday's Grand Prix was my best.

Livestreams

Friday - https://www.youtube.com/live/_aQsmXIG0q8

Saturday - https://www.youtube.com/live/AmIFkApK9lk

Sunday - https://www.youtube.com/live/QMulU5OFYPs

Congrats to the winners! I'd like to come back and do it again!

Final Results

Friday

Qualifying: P23 (P12 in Group) - Group B

Heat B-C: P17 (W)

Heat A-B: P7 (D)

Friday Position: P18

Saturday