Tom Ingram and Jake Hill are set to commence battle as the 2010 Ginetta Junior Championship heads to Brands Hatch this weekend for its eagerly anticipated season finale. Eighteen action packed, hard fought races haven't been able to split the youngsters, meaning the championship is set for two dramatic, nerve-racking races around the Indy Circuit to cap off a superb season for the series.
Ingram heads into the finale in the stronger position, holding a 42 point advantage at the top of the standings, thanks in part to a superb run of 4 consecutive wins at Silverstone and Knockhill. But as the series has continued to prove this year, anything can happen, meaning Hill is still in contention, thanks to a double win last time out at Donington. With 74 points to fight for over the weekend, it's all still to play for, with the Juniors title battle sure to be one of the highlights of the Brands weekend.
There is a third driver still mathematically in contention for the crown, but poor weekends at Knockhill and Donington have left Louise Richardson needing a miracle to become the series second consecutive female champion. With third place in the standings cemented, Richardson could still leapfrog Hill for second if the latter suffers a poor weekend, so she will come out fighting to the very end.
Louise Richardson has an outside chance of grabbing the title still.
Pushing Richardson for the honour of fastest female at Brands will be reigning champion Sarah Moore. After a frustrating season, the Eurotech Racing driver picked up her first podium finish of the season with a second place at Donington and will be hoping to go one better at Brands to end the season on a high. As well as losing her tag as highest placed female in the championship this year, Sarah has also seen herself lose her position as the fastest Moore in the series, with brother David winning the sibling rivalry thanks to a consistent season that has seen him pick up five podium finishes.
It won't just be the Moore's and Richardson looking to outshine the title contenders at the final meeting of the year, with a whole host of drivers looking to challenge for race wins and podiums at the season finale.
Heading the list will be 14 year old Seb Morris, who picked up his debut podium result last time out at Donington and is full of confidence heading into the weekend. At the time, many thought he had made history as the youngest podium finisher ever in the series, but a closer check of the record books has found Tom Howard still holds the record by a matter of days. Howard picked up that first ever podium at Brands back in 2009 and will be hoping to repeat the trick this weekend.
The star of the meeting at Brands earlier in the season was Jody Fannin, who picked up his first ever Junior win around the Grand Prix circuit in May. After a few quiet meetings, the TJ Motorsport star will be hoping to get his name back in the headlines at the end of his debut season.
With all the drivers, throughout the field, looking to end their season's well, fans can look forward to what are sure to be two of the best races the BTCC package will produce this season. The main focus will be at the front though, as the 2010 title battle comes to a conclusion. Will Ingram hold on and take the crown, or can Hill upset the odds?
