MOTORSPORT: Kart king Nathan Freke stepped into the world of sprint competition at short notice to drive a Formula Ford to third in his class at Curborough at the weekend.

The Kidderminster teenager enjoyed a totally new experience on the Staffordshire course after replacing a driver who had to withdraw with a broken foot.

It involved driving a course as fast as possible against the clock without any other cars on the track.

Freke did not want to miss the chance to drive the car in competition though racing and sprint disciplines do not normally have any cross-over.

But 6ft 3ins Freke found he was cramped in a car designed for the 5ft 10ins owner as he took on two practice runs and two timed competitions.

The second practice was four seconds quicker than the first but then the rain poured, leaving the track extremely slippery for the opening sprint.

A fast time was difficult and Freke was left in last place but as the weather improved for the second event, he sped down the track to record a quick enough time for third position in his class.

He admitted: "This is very different to racing as you cannot recover a mistake in a single run and I enjoyed it immensely."

Freke will be racing in Pembrey, near Llanelli in Wales, at the weekend in the Long Circuit championship series first round.