Sunday at the La Conca International Circuit dawned bright with a cool, crisp feeling in the air. Everywhere around the paddock the low murmur of voices were heard as the teams quietly set about the day’s preparations. One could easily sense the energy of what was about to take place, for this was the most serious of days at the 2008 Rotax Max Grand Finals

After winning all three of his heat races, the United Kingdom’s Ben Cooper had the pole position for the max Pre-Final. The 18-year-old from Kent was
looking to pull a “Ouellette” and win all of his races on the way to a world championship. By the end of the Max Pre-Final he certainly looked on his way as he led unchallenged for all 16 laps. Just over three seconds behind Cooper were Holland’s Hannes van Asseldonk and Chris Lock of the UK.

This is the third trip to the Grand Finals for Gravesend, Kent UK’s Ben Cooper. The 18-year-old driver has been racing for 10 years and is currently working on
a Master’s degree in Motorsports Engineering at Oxford University, having already received a national Diploma in the same subject. When asked about his future, Ben said he’s always looking forward to the next challenge, but like many races he’s hamstrung by the lack of proper funds.
There’s no doubt he has the talent to go far in racing having just become the
2008 Rotax Max World Champion. We are hoping that this result will gain him
some extra credit back at Oxford!

Text from www.maxchallenge-rotax.com