MALMESBURY racer Louis Harvey finished 10th in the British O Plate event in Sunderland following a final-lap crash at Warden Law.

With Warden Law on this year’s British Karting championship calendar, Harvey felt a first experience of the track would stand him in good stead further down the line, however, his debut on the north east circuit ending up being a frustrating one.

The youngster’s weekend began with optimism as Harvey managed some top lap times in practice despite being on older tyres.

The Malmesbury teenager went into qualifying full of confidence and put in a respectful lap time that placed him ninth overall, and fifth in his qualifying group.

Starting in sixth for his first heat, Harvey focused on closing the gap to the leaders and moved up to fourth within the first few laps. With the gap to the top two too much to make up, Harvey settled for third following a retirement for the driver in second.

Starting the second heat in sixth once again, the Malmesbury teen battled to maintain his position and crossed the line in fifth.

The two heats’ combined result put Harvey in fourth for the pre-final, and his race was almost all about battling the kart directly in front. The Wiltshire racer made contact with his rival after the kart he was battling suffered a mechanical issue, but Harvey remained focused to nurse his machine over the line in third.

A topsy-turvy start saw Harvey drop to fifth for the majority of the main final. Heading into the last lap, Harvey made a move into fourth before contact was made with the kart he had just passed which forced him off the track. That incident left Harvey’s podium hopes in tatters as he crossed the line in 10th.