A PAIR of ninth places in the final two rounds of this year’s BARC Junior Saloon Car Championship ensured that 16-year old Leeds racing driver Moh Ritson ended his first full season of motorsport on a high.

The two races at Oulton Park on Saturday saw the teenager battling hard but leaving his car without a scratch, no mean feat following such exceptionally close racing.

Ritson qualified in 12th and 11th positions respectively for the afternoon’s two races. He made a quick getaway in race one and claimed two positions by the end of the second lap.

He proceeded to post a series of consistent times and his pace and performance pushed him up to ninth by the chequered flag.

A frantic start to race two, the season finale, saw Ritson squeezed out at turn one but just as he began to make headway, the red flags came out due to a collision elsewhere on lap four.

The race restarted with only time for two more laps. Ritson pulled alongside the car ahead of him in the final corner of the race and he just pipped his rival in a sprint finish to come ninth again.

The Leeds youngster said: “This was an exciting way to end the season. The racing was close and fair with no contact.

“It’s been a fantastic day and I have loved driving this circuit. The variety of corners together with the elevations and compressions give it so much character.

“As this was my first full season, there were always going to be ups and downs and I’ve put the lower moments down to experience and learnt from them.

"But the highs have definitely outnumbered the lows. So much so, I would say it's been the most enjoyable year of my life. I can’t wait to see what happens in 2019.”