Gurney: “Happy With How I’ve Bounced Back”

by Australian Kart Championship

Faced with the tough decision of whether to stay in Cadet 12 or step up to KA3 Junior for the 2026 Penrite Australian Kart Championship season, the Gurney family rolled the dice on staying in Cadets knowing that they would only have four rounds to make a championship bid.

However, a rare error in qualifying at the opening round at Coffs Harbour led to a spin that left Alana stranded trackside, and the painful realisation that her championship bid had just received a major setback.

“It was heartbreaking,” she admits. “To be sitting there in the tyre barriers knowing that I’d just ruined my year with one mistake. I think there was nearly 60 karts in Cadet 12 that weekend so I was at the back of the field and passed about 60 karts in the heats to qualify 9th for the final. Then there was that huge crash in turn two that took out a heap of drivers and I was one of them,” she laments.

“After Coffs I just had to reset and reevaluate my expectations for the year. I’m really happy with how I’ve bounced back, getting 4th at Ipswich and 3rd at Townsville, and now I have just one more AKC Cadet 12 race at Pucka, so to be sitting 4th in the championship after such a tough start is actually really good.”

“In one way it’s disappointing because I was quickest in both the finals at Coffs and Ipswich and second-quickest at Townsville, so I’ve got the pace, and it shows I can still pass karts and manage tyres at the same time which is a big confidence boost. The goal now is to get as many points as possible at Pucka in my last Cadet race to hopefully finish in the top three in the championship.”

While Alana may regret the unfortunate timing of her birthday in relation to the AKC calendar and the Golden Power Series that she currently leads, this September she will spend her birthday racing in the FIA Arrive and Drive Asia-Pacific Championship at Macau for her first ever junior event.

“It’s a big financial jump to KA3 junior and we’ve just bought our first ever brand-new motor, so I’m looking forward to getting used to the extra horsepower and getting back from Macau to race at the Junior Sprint Classic at Pucka, the Victorian State Cup Black Plate and my first AKC event in Juniors at Bolivar.”

To watch Alana’s swansong in her Cadet journey, 7+ will once again host the live coverage of the championship on Saturday September 5 from 12:30pm and 11:30am on Sunday September 6.

The Eastern Lions Kart Club’s Hume International Raceway is 20 minutes west of Seymour on Seymour Tooborac Road and 10 minutes south of Puckapunyal and offers free entry for spectators along with excellent amenities, and refreshments available for purchase.