Turney scoops three titles in quick succession

Joe Turney cemented his place in karting history by adding three championship titles to his racing resume in as many weeks after travelling through Europe to for the season finales.
Joe TurneyJoe Turney
Joe Turney

Rounding up a year filled with highs and lows, which saw Turney, 17, lose out on the European Championship title due to a £10 spark plug failure and become a Kartmasters Champion for the first time, he went on the take the titles of British, Benelux and World Champion all in a matter of weeks as his resilience and determination was duly rewarded.

Turney and his Milton Keynes based team KR Sport ventured to Grantham, UK, for the final round of the British Championship where only three points were needed to secure the title. A weekend of nail-biting racing saw Turney take the crown of British Champion for the second time in his racing career, this time in the Senior X30 class against huge karting names and professional drivers.

However, one British Championship title was not enough for the weekend as unbeatable Turney stormed through the Senior Rotax class to become the British Vice Champion and winner of the final round, having been robbed of valuable points when he was driven over in June.

Days later, Turney arrived in Genk, Belgium, for the final round of the Benelux Championship where he led throughout the weekend and took the final win by almost six seconds – achieving maximum points for the meeting, fastest lap and the Benelux Championship title for the second time in his career. As if two championship titles in two weeks was not enough, Turney travelled straight from Genk to Le Mans, France, for the Iame International Finals for a shot at becoming World Champion – the highest title available.

The week-long invite-only event against the best drivers in the karting world tested not only Turney’s driving ability but his personal strength. After qualifying tenth out of 144 drivers, having been held up on his flying lap, Turney’s heat results varied with multiple wins contrasting results as bad as 14th and 21st due to unfortunate luck on track.

Nonetheless, an extraordinary drive in the pre-final from 14th position to 6th set Turney up for the winner-takes-all finale, demonstrating his prowess to the rest of the field. An enthralling final race, packed with numerous changes for the lead and world-class overtakes, saw Turney cross the line victorious by one-hundredth of a second claiming the title of World Champion.

KR Sport, alongside Turney, celebrates multiple championship titles as the season draws to a close. The support of his team allowed Turney to race where otherwise would have been near impossible; the financial restraints of karting are inescapable to those on a tight budget.

As Joe moves onto the next stage in his racing career, all support for this local racer is greatly received and any messages of support or contributions to this incredible success story can be sent directly to [email protected] or via MK Community Foundation.