Blake Haigh headed down the east coast over the weekend and took on the Karting Australia New South Wales Kart Championships! Haigh has had a break out season in 2022, coming home 3rd in the SP Tools Australian Kart Championship and having many high-quality results across his season.
Blake was looking to take out his maiden state championship at the Newcastle Kart Club. Haigh utilised Friday practice and was looking one of the favourites for the all-important pole position. The HRE backed entry moved quickly into the top 5 and was setting great speed and was in the zone on track. Blake went to the top of the times and was in a battle for pole position with some of the country’s best young drivers. Haigh stopped the clock with a time fast enough for pole position, which put him off position 1 for the opening 2 heats!
The opening heat of the weekend was under tough wet conditions and Blake was in for a tough start being the first down to turn one. The Project X Racing team driver settled into 2nd spot at the end of the opening lap but was straight into the battle for lead. Haigh swapped positions in the early stages but dropped back to 6th position in the middle stages of the race. Blake put in a stellar fightback in the last few laps to move his way back inside the top 5 and cross the line in position 4 overall!
Heat 2 was back under dry conditions and Blake was looking to try and rebound from his opening heat. Haigh got a clean start and stayed in the lead of the race and was able to show excellent pace in the early stages. Blake’s Tecno kart was working well and the young driver was driving away from the rest of the field in a dominate display! Haigh was able to cross the line and take his 1st victory of the weekend by a massive margin of 7 seconds!
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The final heat of Saturday brought back the wet and wild weather and Haigh was looking to finish the race and grab points. Unfortunately, the slippery conditions caught the young driver and many other competitors out and Blake was out of the race on just the 2nd lap. The rain had cleared over night and Blake was back out on circuit for his 4th and final heat on Sunday morning. The Eni Oils Australia backed entry got a clean get away and slotted into 4th spot and was trying to get back up into the lead position. Haigh tried his heart out over the race and was in an intense battle at the front of the field with 3 other drivers. Blake managed to come home in position 3 in the final heat and this had him off the front row of the grid for the championship deciding final.
The nerves were high going into the championship decider and Blake was off the front row and knew the start would be crucial. The Project X Racing driver got a brilliant start and lead out of the opening lap and the first half of the race. Haigh was in a battle for the New South Wales Championship when he was unfortunately tagged and sent to the back of the top 10 in a heart-breaking moment. Blake got his head down and fought his way back inside the top 5 by the chequered flag.
Blake’s parents spoke post weekend on their young son’s pace and disappointment of the final. “We were happy with our pace all weekend from the first practice throughout the weekend. In trying changing conditions Blake adapted well to both wet and dry showing good speed and we were very pleased with been top qualifier. Just a few small mistakes in final after leading for bulk of the race put us back in results. We learnt lots and we’re looking forward to using the lessons to come back stronger. Congratulations to Carter Lamperd on his victory”.
Haigh will have one final meeting at the Ipswich Kart Club in Cadet 9 before making the move to the Cadet 12 ranks!
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