Evans Secures Second Place in Australian Formula Ford Championship

Young Auckland race driver, Mitchell Evans, completed a very successful first season of racing in Austtralia, when he won two of the races at the final round of the Australian Formula Ford Championship at Surfers Paradise, thus securing the runner-up position behind his much more experienced and older team-mate, Nick Percat. He  also took out the rookie of the year title and shared the trophy for the most pole positions with Percat (three each).

For Evans, who turned 15 during the championship, and had to have special dispensation to compete in it because of his age, the results exceeded the expectation of Mitch and his well-known father, Owen, who had as their goal for the season to finish in the top five and win the rookie title.

Evans thus became the championship’s  youngest-ever competitor and round winner.

For Mitch, everything was new – the team, the car, and especially the tracks. At every meeting he had to learn the circuit and how best to set up his car, competing against over 20 Australian drivers with much more experience, which makes his three pole positions all the more remarkable.

In the final round through the concrete-lined barrier walls of the Surfers Paradise street circuit, Mitch got caught out by the bumps during practice and ended up in the wall. The car was repaired but Mitch was encouraged to go to the hospital to check his sore wrist. To have done so would have meant the youngster would have had to miss qualifying, so he refused to leave the circuit and with the help of some painkillers, went out and put his car on pole. He then comfortably won the first two races, but in the third race he duelled with fellow Kiwi Richie Stanaway and Aussie Ash Walsh until Mitch spun on some white paint when a light shower made the track very slippery. Later, it was discovered that his car had a cracked front ball-joint which upset the car’s handling. This allowed Percat and Scott Pye to challenge Walsh and Stanaway in a close battle for the lead, Stanaway and Pye clashing to give Walsh the win.

Championship points (final): N Percat 371, M Evans 297, S Pye 270, C Mostert 225, R Simpson 168, R Stanaway 164, G Uhrhane 143.

Rookie of the year: Evans. Champion team: Sonic racing (Percat and Evans). IMA Pole Award: Percat and Evans (tied on three each).

Mitch Evans’ foray into the Australian Formula Ford Championship has been majorly sponsored by Banklink, the Giltrap Family and Evans European Paint and Panel.

Source: www.nzracer.com