Greg Owens

Longdon racing driver Greg Owens endured a torrid start to his 2016 campaign in the 4Two Cup at Silverstone after engine problems held him back throughout the weekend.

Enjoying new backing for 2016 by Midland Karting in Fradley, hopes were high with Owens hoping to build on a promising debut season.

But it would prove to be a tough weekend from the moment the car first took to the track.

Greg Owens
Greg Owens

“Qualifying started badly with a set-up problem which made the car very nervous to drive,” he said. “This left me starting at the back and way off pace.

“At the first race, I made a great start but it was immediately apparent that the engine was down on power and by turn one I’d already started to lose ground. Thankfully we’d been able to resolve the handling problems after qualifying, which allowed me to take some risks in the braking and corners to try and stay with the pack.

“Sadly, I got too bold and spun on lap four which dropped me way back.To add insult to injury, the ECU then started to misbehave costing me even more tim. It was pretty disastrous.”

The second race did not provide much relief. With continued power problems, another strong start led to a brief battle for third place.

But with the engine overheating, Owens had to settle for a fourth place finish.

He said: “I always try to remain positive about my races, so at least it was a lovely sunny day and it was good to catch up with the other competitors after the off-season!

“It’s only four weeks until the next round at Rockingham. Even if we can’t fix this weekend’s power issues, there are many more corners at Rockingham so I have a better chance of compensating for any power deficit.”

Founder of Lichfield Live and editor of the site.