Last weekend saw 16 year old racing driver, Emily Linscott, from Basildon, Essex, fly back out to America to race in her second round of the Lucas Oil Formula Championship, this time at the National Corvette Museum (NCM) Motorsports Park circuit in Kentucky.
Following on from her brilliant first appearance in New Jersey just a few weeks earlier, the youngster had set her sights on getting back to the US to race the next round. She said, “I desperately wanted to race this round as I knew none of the championship contenders had tested or raced on this track before and because it’s not on any simulator either, meant that it would be more of a level playing field for us all so I felt confident I could compete for podium positions.”
With Indy500 driver, Pippa Mann, working her side of the pond to get the promising teen racer back to these races, things were starting to look promising. Miss Linscott herself also got involved in raising her own funds by running a competition for her personal watch and a jacket plus offering individuals the chance to have their names on her race car in exchange for a small donation. Between them they managed to secure enough money to get out and race, but it was touch and go with the target being reached just hours before the deadline! “So, I guess you could say I raced with fan power” she said chirpily.
As if to say thank you to her supporters, she rocked up at NCM, covered her race car with al of the names of the individuals that donated to her cause, and immediately posted front running lap times in the first three sessions on the Friday with a 3rd, 2nd and 3rd fastest times. On the Saturday morning she topped the chart setting the fastest lap, but her qualifying strategy didn’t go to plan and qualified 4th. Unphased by her lowest position of the two days so far, she went into race 1 feeling confident.
Her races went very well. Race 1 she finished 2nd and set the fastest lap of the race, meaning pole position for race 2. She finished race 2 in 2nd place just 2/1000’s off the fastest lap and fractions of a second between her and the winner. Race 3 was her most challenging, running in 4th most of the time, nose to tail with the other three cars ahead of her, when the car in third spun out almost collecting her car in the process. She took evasive action, missed the stricken car but lost two places (and gained one) in the process, so she finished in 5th overall. Her consolation, from a race she felt she could have won was setting a new circuit lap record. !I was right about everything being more of a level playing field when I get on track having had the same amount of seat time as the others. I was able to show my pace and race craft and race up front all weekend, so I’m very pleased everyone pulled together to get me here, I can’t thank all my supporters enough, I really was powered by fans,” remarked the excited teen.
She continues, “now I’m setting my sights on Road America, Wisconsin, in 4 weeks’ time and the final round at Sebring in Florida in early October as I’d love to continue learning how to handle these lively formula cars and see what I can get from the championship; I know I can’t win it but I’d love to take my first win since starting to race cars, it would be an awesome way to pay back my parents, my sponsors, Pippa and all my supporters for everything they’ve done for me this far. Let’s see shall we.”
