Caterham Motorsport crowned its first champion of the season at Oulton Park
last week. John Gaw maintained his record-breaking 100% victory record in the
First National evo Caterham Academy to take the title.
Forty-year-old Gaw, from Thatcham, Berkshire, won the Oulton race in style to
add to the race win he scored at Snetterton last month, his Harewood hillclimb
victory and five sprint-event wins at Aintree, Anglesey, Castle Combe,
Curborough and Dunkeswell.
It's the first time that any driver has made a clean sweep of all eight
Academy events, and Gaw was justifiably proud: "At the beginning of the
season I had no expectation of things turning out as they have done, I would
have been pleased to end anywhere in the top 10. As the events progressed, I was
maybe thinking about the top five. To achieve the clean sweep is something else
"It has been a great experience all round, but I have enjoyed the
circuit races above all. As to the future, I am now going out to secure
sponsorship so I can continue Caterham racing next year."
Gaw lined up in pole position at Oulton for what was the competition's first
wet race. He didn't put a wheel wrong in a flag-to-flag win, finishing almost 17
seconds ahead of the field.
Manchester's Matt Rimmer, 40, claimed the championship runner-up spot. Rimmer
finished second to Gaw on six events, including the Oulton race.
The Caterham Academy is open only to drivers who have never previously held a
racing licence and each year introduces 50 newcomers to the various track
disciplines. Gaw and his 24 fellow competitors were taking part in the
early-season section of the Academy; a further 25 have just embarked on their
season and will undertake their first race next month at Brands Hatch.
