CHRISTOPHER ‘CHIPPY’ WESEMAEL

Christopher ‘Chippy’ Wesemael stunned on his car-racing debut, immediately taking pole in the high-quality RGB Sports 1000 Championship’s 2018 season opener at Donington Park. He couldn’t capitalise, as the meeting got snowed off, but it heralded a strong first part of the year in which he was always fast and bagged several poles, although could not convert them into victory.

Poor reliability was part of the problem, particularly fuel issues that took time to resolve. But Mittell MC-53 driver Wesemael admits “rookie mistakes” also cost him, such as stalling on the grid at Croft because he wasn’t familiar with the starting procedure.

Yet with accumulated experience, as he adapted from karting, his pace eventually paid off, first with a crushing Silverstone win, then a double victory in Snetterton’s finale. It allowed him to pinch second in the table – “Something that seemed mathematically impossible, wasn’t,” he concludes. He’s now plotting a 2019 title challenge.