Hawksworth in seventh heaven in Baltimore (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Hawksworth in seventh heaven in Baltimore

11:33am Friday 7th September 2012 in Sport

Bradford’s Jack Hawksworth has one hand on the 2012 Star Mazda Championship crown following his seventh victory of an exceptional maiden campaign in the United States.

Hawksworth headed to the Indy Grand Prix of Baltimore sitting 41 points clear of his nearest pursuer in the title standings.

With the grid for race one being determined by championship order, the Team Pelfrey single-seater ace found himself installed in what has become his customary slot of pole position.

He went on to win the race and see his nearest challenger Sage Karam crash out.

“With Sage being my closest championship rival, for him to DNF was an unexpected bonus,” said Hawksworth.

An early scare in race two the following day swiftly dispeled any notions he had of making it a victory double.

“Halfway round the first lap I made a small mistake, turned in a fraction too early into a left-hander and just clipped the inside retaining wall at turn seven. My car was slightly bent at the front after that and wasn’t handling the way it had been, which made it difficult to drive.”

Hawksworth still brought the car home second, behind winner Karam, for a decent haul of points.

“I think somebody must have been smiling down on me because I was very lucky to get away with it, but sometimes you need a little bit of luck,” said Hawksworth.

His tenth podium finish from 14 starts increased his championship lead to 61 points with only 93 left to play for.

That means he can seal the championship in the penultimate outing at Laguna Seca in California.