The young racing ace and multiple British Champion from Werrington had a strong showing in the latest round of the Formula Renault UK Championships, at the Yorkshire circuit of Croft, gaining strong TV coverage during the race. But he now faces an even tougher race against time, as he fights to raise the budget he needs to finish the Championship, owing to sponsorship difficulties.



James, who has received more ‘Driver of the Day’ awards in the Renault series than any of his 35 rivals, finished 15th and 11th respectively, in the ultra competitive Formula Renault class, now recognised as a “feeder” for Formula 1. This year was always planned as a learning year for James, but his lap times and results have brought him to the attention of many of the seasoned drivers, teams and just as importantly, Renaultsport UK.

“It was a bit unfortunate in the first race,” said James, “as I was fairly quickly up to the top 10 from a grid start of 20. Unfortunately Joey Foster got a bit too close in the chicane, hit the rear of my car and spun me round. It was wet, as we had just had a shower whilst racing on slicks, which made it tricky! I was able to recover, but lost a few places, which was disappointing. Race 2 was a better result, albeit overtaking was difficult. We nevertheless made up places and had good race pace. I really feel confident in the car now, the team are more confident in set up, and I feel we can really start to push for some even better results”.

Sadly, James is facing a serious budget crisis and it is even uncertain just how many of the remaining rounds he will be able to compete in. “We are having a few budget problems, and we really do need some help. It’s such a shame to have come so far. I really feel some excellent results are literally round the corner at this stage. The Championship and environment has so much to offer sponsors in terms of media and TV exposure, corporate hospitality, and even business to business introductions.”

James needs an immediate £5,000 cash injection and a total of £25,000 to see the Championship out. It would be a criminal waste of talent if his year ended before it had really started.