R Racing Conclude Record-Breaking Season With Finale Victories

R Racing have brought their record-breaking 2026 Ginetta Junior Championship powered by Sunoco Race Fuels season to a close with another brilliant pair of race victories across the final round of the season at Brands Hatch (26-27 September).

The Norfolk team’s relentless pursuit of success through the 2026 season has culminated in them increasing the championship’s all-time record for the most podium finishes in a single season, with a total of 45 podiums from 25 races this year breaking their previous benchmark from 2025.

In the process, they have now taken the record as the team with the most podium finishes ever in Ginetta Junior racing, with 280 to their name. Remarkably, they are currently on a run of 76 consecutive races in which at least one of their drivers has finished inside the overall top three.

In a season that saw the team become the first ever to reach 100 Ginetta Junior wins, they’ve now secured 116 victories in total – 35 more than the next closest team. 2026 has seen them enjoy incredible strength in depth across their driver line-up too, as for the first time they’ve had six drivers finish inside the top ten of the championship.

The team headed into the final round with the pressure off, after successfully retaining their Teams’, Overall Drivers’ and Rookie Drivers’ titles during the penultimate event at Donington Park. Newly-crowned champion Lewis Goff therefore headed to Kent for a victory lap.

With the #1 adorning the side of his Ginetta G40, Goff produced another fantastic weekend of performances. After fighting his way to third in the opener and narrowly missing out on another trophy in race two, he signed off the season perfectly with victory in the final race of the season.

In the process, he became only the eighth driver in the 21-year history of the Ginetta Junior Championship to win ten or more races in a single season. He’s the third R Racing driver in four seasons to achieve the feat, following in the footsteps of fellow champions Freddie Slater and Rocco Coronel.

Riley Cranham was one of the in-form drivers on the grid going into the finale. Statistically the best performer in qualifying across the 2026 season, his best race performance in Kent came in the second outing as he superbly charged forward from tenth on the grid to his third win of the season.

Jesse Phillips started the weekend with a brilliant maiden pole position, a result that means R Racing topped six of the nine qualifying sessions this year. The reigning Winter Series champion put in three battling drives from there, with a great pair of second place finishes meaning he ends the campaign with nine podiums to his name.

Melvin Kalousdian grabbed a second-place finish of his own in the opening race to help secure a top three championship finish. The Red Bull Junior Team driver ended up scoring more points than anyone else over the final three rounds of the campaign as he charged up the standings.

After heading into the final round off the back of a great run of three podium finishes in the previous five races, it sadly proved to be a tougher end to the season than hoped for Sebastien Leusch. The youngster showed good resilience across the weekend though as he scored a best result of seventh.

Max Murray was another driver caught right in the middle of the typically frenetic Ginetta Junior midfield action at Brands Hatch. The Scotsman, who picked up two podiums this season, ended on a high note though as he superbly charged from 21st on the grid to a top ten finish in race three.

Brands Hatch marked the end of a strong three-event cameo for rookie Louis Radcliffe meanwhile. Gaining crucial experience in the championship as he builds towards a full campaign in 2027, he battled well through the three races and came away with a deserved top ten finish.

Jamie Ross – R Racing Team Principal: “It’s been an incredible season for our whole Ginetta Junior team and we’re immensely proud of everyone’s achievements. To confirm ourselves as the team with the most wins, podiums and titles in championship history is a special feeling.

“Lewis was keen to still race this weekend despite wrapping up the title and he gave it everything to finish off with some top results. Getting up to ten wins is a nice achievement for him and puts him up there with some of the most successful Junior champions ever.

“It’s a good accolade for Riley to end the year as the quickest driver in qualifying across the season. He set the pace across the races this weekend too and to come from tenth on the grid to a race victory is a really nice way to round out a successful year.

“This was probably Jesse’s most successful weekend all round, getting his first pole position and two second place finishes. He was gutted he didn’t quite get that maiden win, but there is so much for him to be proud of this season.

“Melvin has been one of the quickest drivers across the second half of the season and he was fighting for podiums again at Brands. He was right in the thick of the action and scored the points he needed to secure a richly-deserved top three championship finish.

“It wasn’t the weekend Seb wanted unfortunately, but he’s had some real highs this year and we’re glad he was able to get the top ten championship finish. Similarly, Max had a tough weekend but showed his class coming from the back to ninth in race three, and he’s achieved some great results this season.

“This was the latest chapter in Louis’ learning curve and he did a good job, fighting forward and showing some really positive signs going into next season.”

While the main Ginetta Junior Championship powered by Sunoco Race Fuels season is complete, one event still remains this year with the annual Winter Series coming up next month at R Racing’s home circuit of Snetterton (24/25 October).