LICHFIELD’S Finlay Lines added another top five finish to his collection at the Whilton February Special event.
Competing against 29 other competitors in the X30 Junior class, the Premium Karting driver was back on UK turf after his adventure in the IAME Winter Cup in Spain.
Working alongside spanner man Jem Kordal, Finlay adapted to the damp conditions during testing and practice, finding the sweet spot ahead of the all-important qualifying session.
He looked to have taken pole position with his original lap, but this was deleted due to exceeding track limits leaving Lines with a front row spot on the grid for both of the heat races on Sunday.
Lines got a good start in heat one, but by the end of the opening lap, he’d dropped to fifth place and was looking to move back to the front.
The city youngster finished the first heat in fourth, but was later demoted to seventh after suffering a nosecone penalty due to contact from another driver on the first lap.
Undeterred, Lines picked himself up and went for it again in heat two. After a race-long battle with Riley Cranham, Lines stayed ahead and claimed second place.
Thanks to the points scored in both heat outings, he secured a third place grid spot for the final but dropped back to sixth on the opening lap after being held up at the start.
Lines went on to fight back and claim fifth place.