Alex takes title bid to the wire

PARTY TIME: Title hopeful Alex Walker celebrates on the podium at Brands Hatch.

PARTY TIME: Title hopeful Alex Walker celebrates on the podium at Brands Hatch.
Motor racing: OLDHAM’S Alex Walker gave his bid for the InterSteps Championship title a well-deserved boost by scoring three podiums in three races at Brands Hatch.

The 16-year-old Fortec Motorsport racer, who currently lies second in the standings, came home with two runners-up spots and a third-place finish in the penultimate meeting of the season.

It leaves him 30 points behind leader and team-mate Jake Dennis.

The final three races of the season take place at Croft, North Yorkshire on September 24 and 25.

Starting from third in race one, Walker immediately put himself in the lead on a wet track and controlled the race from the front in the opening stages.

However, he slotted himself back into second as his tyres started to go off but put in a solid drive to pull away from third and wasn't challenged for the remainder of the race.

Having qualified in fifth for race two, Walker got off the line well, holding position and keeping up with the leaders before being promoted to fourth when James Peace retired from the race, bringing out the safety car while his stricken vehicle was moved out of harm's way.

As the race got back under way Walker kept pressure on Patryk Szczerbinski for third and made a hard charge round the outside at Druids with a stunning move on the last lap, briefly taking the lead before being pushed down to second, but still claiming vital points.

Race three action saw Walker start in fifth and enjoy a battle with team-mate Ed Jones in the first few laps.

After getting past Jones, Walker went on the hunt for third and made his move on lap 14, where he stayed before the chequered flag was brought out, being the first of the three Fortec cars to cross the line in all three races.

Walker said: "It's been a really good weekend and we definitely needed these points to make sure we take the championship to Croft. It would have been nice to get at least one win, but I'm satisfied we did the best we could after not having an ideal qualifying.

"It was tough in all three races and there were a few moments, especially in the second race when we all charged into Druids on the last lap. I got in front of everyone but it just wasn't possible to hold on to the lead.

“Then in the last race, once I had got into third, I thought it was best to hold on to that, think of the points and not take any unnecessary risks by making a lunge for second.

"We have made some solid progress and, as always, Fortec Motorsport prepared a great car for me, so I'm more motivated than ever to give it everything I've got to push for the title in the last three races."