Harry King (racing driver)

Harry King (born 20 January 2001) is a British racing driver, who currently competes in the Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain for Team Parker Racing. King has previously competed in full seasons of the Ginetta Junior Championship and the Ginetta GT4 Supercup, winning the series championship in the latter, in 2019. In 2020, King won twelve out of sixteen races in the Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain, to take the series title with a round to spare.

Harry King
King in 2017
Nationality	British
Born	20 January 2001[1]
Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain career
Debut season	2020
Current team	Team Parker Racing
Car number	19
Starts	16
Wins	12
Podiums	13
Poles	7
Fastest laps	13
Best finish	1st in 2020
Previous series
2018–2019 2018 2016–2017 2015–2016	Ginetta GT4 Supercup Ginetta G40 Cup Ginetta Junior Championship Ginetta Junior Winter Series
Championship titles
2020 2019 2015	Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain Ginetta GT4 Supercup Ginetta Junior Winter Series Rookie Cup
Awards
2020	Autosport National Driver of the Year

Career

Karting

King made his début in karting in 2012, winning two championships,[2][3] before competing in the Cadets class of the Super 1 National Kart Championships in 2013.[1] The following season, King won both the National Open – giving him the "O" plate in recognition – and overall championship titles in the F6 Cadets class.[1] In his final season of karting, King competed in the Minimax Rotax Series, and finished second in the Minimax class of the Whilton Mill Kart Club Championships.[4]

Ginetta Junior Championship

Having finished third in the Ginetta Junior scholarship, King made his car racing début in the 2015 Ginetta Junior Winter Series, competing in the four-race series at Snetterton for Elite Motorsport.[5] He recorded finishes of fourth, sixth, ninth and eleventh – taking three rookie class victories – as he finished in ninth place in the series standings, winning the Rookie Cup in the process.[6][7]

For the 2016 season, King moved into the main Ginetta Junior Championship, remaining with Elite Motorsport.[8] In the first half of the season, King recorded a fastest lap in the first race at Thruxton, with his best finish to that point – fourth – coming in the second Thruxton race.[9] He recorded two victories during the second half of the season, winning the final race of the Snetterton and Rockingham meetings,[10][11] ending the season on a run of eight consecutive top-six finishes as he finished eighth in the overall championship and third in the Rookie Cup.[12] He finished sixth in the following Winter Series, recording two fastest laps in the four-race Brands Hatch meeting.

Remaining with Elite Motorsport into the 2017 season,[13] King started the season with a second-place finish in the opening race at Brands Hatch.[14] Over the next seven meetings, King finished on the podium twice – a third-place finish at Thruxton, before his only win of the season at Knockhill[15] – but his form improved as he finished the season with six consecutive podiums at Silverstone and Brands Hatch, as he improved to sixth in the final championship standings.

Ginetta GT4 Supercup

Although still eligible to continue in the Junior championship, King graduated into the Ginetta GT4 Supercup for the 2018 season, while also continuing his partnership with Elite Motorsport – their first season in the GT4 Supercup.[16] King recorded two third-place finishes at the opening round at Brands Hatch, and recorded his first pole position, fastest lap and victory in the championship over the course of the following meeting at Donington Park.[17] He added three further victories during the season – two at Snetterton,[18] and one at Rockingham[19] – and finished no lower than sixth during the final four meetings, as he finished third in the Pro championship, behind Charlie Ladell and Carl Boardley. King also made a one-off appearance in the Ginetta G40 Cup as a guest driver, where he won all three races at Brands Hatch.[20]

King remained in the series for a second season in 2019, again with Elite Motorsport.[21] King won at least one race at each of the season's eight meetings, as he won eleven races in total – more than double the tally of the next most successful drivers – en route to the championship title by thirteen points ahead of Will Burns.[22]

Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain

In November 2019, King was announced as the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Junior driver for the 2020 and 2021 seasons,[23] and he signed a contract with Team Parker Racing in February 2020.[24] The championship start was delayed from the end of March to the start of August due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom; at the season-opening meeting at Donington Park, King took pole position by two tenths of a second, and was leading the opening race of the weekend before clipping a tyre wall at the final chicane. The resulting damage from this hit slowed King's car, and as a result, he lost the race lead to teammate Josh Webster, but maintained second place until the end of the race. In the second race – with a partially-reversed grid – King started third but led by the end of the first lap, and ultimately went on to claim his first win in the series.[25] King swept the races at Brands Hatch and Oulton Park, before his five-race win streak was ended at Knockhill, after he was forced to retire with a coolant leak. In the second race, King started from tenth on the grid but made his way through the order, passing erstwhile race leader Scott McKenna on the final lap to take the victory.[26] King retired from the lead in both races at Thruxton due to punctures,[27] but then won the last six races of the season – wrapping up the championship title with a round to spare.

During the sixteen-race 2020 season, King took seven pole positions from eight qualifying sessions, twelve wins, twelve fastest laps and thirteen podium finishes.[1] For his performances, King was recognised as the National Driver of the Year by Autosport magazine in December 2020, the first time a Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain driver had won the honour.[28]

Racing record

Following the conclusion of the 2020 season, King has won 33 of the 124 races that he has entered, since making his racing début in 2015.[29]

Career summary

Season	Series	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	FLaps	Podiums	Points	Position
2015	Ginetta Junior Winter Series	Elite Motorsport	4	0	0	0	0	62	9th
2016	Ginetta Junior Championship	Elite Motorsport	25	2	0	1	5	374	8th
	Ginetta Junior Winter Series		4	0	0	2	0	60	6th
2017	Ginetta Junior Championship	Elite Motorsport	26	1	1	2	9	508	6th
2018	Ginetta GT4 Supercup – Pro	Elite Motorsport	23	4	2	3	13	518	3rd
	Ginetta G40 Cup		3	3	1	3	3	N/A	NC†
2019	Ginetta GT4 Supercup – Pro	Elite Motorsport	23	11	4	9	16	627	1st
2020	Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain – Pro	Team Parker Racing	16	12	7	12	13	167	1st

^† As King was a guest driver, he was ineligible for points.

References

1. "Harry King". BRDC.co.uk. British Racing Drivers' Club. Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
2. Miles, Paul (13 November 2012). "Go-kart racing star, 11, set for bright future". Maidenhead Advertiser. Baylis Media Limited. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
3. Meechan, Simon (23 April 2014). "Holyport's go-kart king Harry hoping for big year". Slough and Windsor Express. Cambridge Newspapers. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
4. "Riley is Whilton Mill 2015 Minimax champion". Riley Phillips Racing. Weebly. 22 November 2015. Retrieved 15 December 2020. Not only did Vision win the Minimax championship, it was a 1-2 with Harry King Vice Champion.
5. Paice, Simon (3 November 2015). "2015 Ginetta Junior Winter Series Preview". TheCheckeredFlag.co.uk. The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 15 December 2020. Priaulx finished second in last week's Ginetta Junior Scholarship, and third-placed Harry King and fellow finalist Max Bird will also be making their Ginetta racing debuts with Elite Motorsport and Xentek Motorsport respectively.
6. "KICK Start Energy Ginetta Junior Winter Series" (PDF). TSL Timing. Timing Solutions Ltd. pp. 11, 22, 40, 51. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
7. Paice, Simon (8 November 2015). "Monger Wins Snetterton Closer To Finish Vice-Champion". TheCheckeredFlag.co.uk. The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 15 December 2020. It wasn't enough to deny Harry King the Rookie title for the series though [...]
8. "Harry King Joins 2016 Simpson Ginetta Junior Championship". Ginetta.com. Ginetta Cars Ltd. 1 March 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
9. "Double rookie podium for impressive King at Thruxton". Ginetta.com. Ginetta Cars Ltd. 10 May 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
10. "Breakthrough success for Harry King at Snetterton". Ginetta.com. Ginetta Cars Ltd. 2 August 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
11. Paice, Simon (29 August 2016). "King Praises Elite Squad After "Special" Rockingham Victory". TheCheckeredFlag.co.uk. The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
12. "Double rookie win caps fine season for Harry King". Ginetta.com. Ginetta Cars Ltd. 4 October 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
13. "Harry King and Elite Motorsport Return To Juniors For 2017". Ginetta.com. Ginetta Cars Ltd. 1 December 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
14. King, Harry [@HarryKingRacing] (2 April 2017). "Consistent performance displayed at Brands Hatch this weekend with a P2 & P4. Now sitting Third in the championship on to Donington" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020 – via Twitter.
15. "Harry King takes first win of the 2017 Ginetta Junior Championship". Elite Motorsport. Elite Motorsport Ltd. 14 August 2017. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
16. Paice, Simon (14 February 2018). "King And Elite Step Up To GT4 Supercup". TheCheckeredFlag.co.uk. The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
17. Harrison-Davies, Ruth (29 April 2018). "Three SuperCup Winners In As Many Races At Donington". Ginetta.com. Ginetta Cars Ltd. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
18. Paice, Simon (31 July 2018). "King Storms To Snetterton Double As Ladell Extends Supercup Lead". TheCheckeredFlag.co.uk. The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
19. Harrison-Davies, Ruth (12 August 2018). "Boardley, King and Roche share Rockingham SuperCup Spoils". Ginetta.com. Ginetta Cars Ltd. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
20. "Harry King takes two more G40 Cup wins at Brands". Elite Motorsport. Elite Motorsport Ltd. 5 August 2018. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
21. Pettit, Vince (19 March 2019). "King Returns For Ginetta GT4 Supercup Title Challenge". TheCheckeredFlag.co.uk. The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
22. Paulson, Mark (13 October 2019). "Harry King clinches 2019 Ginetta GT4 Supercup title". Autosport. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
23. Lickorish, Stephen (10 November 2019). "Ginetta GT4 champion Harry King wins Porsche GB Junior shootout". Autosport. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
24. Pettit, Vince (12 February 2020). "King chooses Team Parker Racing for 2020 Porsche Carrera Cup GB campaign". TheCheckeredFlag.co.uk. The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
25. "Debut win for Harry King in Porsche Carrera Cup GB". Racecar. Racecar New Media Services Ltd. 6 August 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
26. Darlington, Daniel (5 September 2020). "King gets back on track after mechanical to claim sixth race win of season in Porsche Carrera Cup". Slough and Windsor Express. Cambridge Newspapers. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
27. Browne, Joshua (23 September 2020). "Stunning pace unrewarded for Holyport's Harry King at Thruxton". Slough and Windsor Express. Cambridge Newspapers. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
28. "Harry King named Autosport's National Driver of the Year". Autosport. Motorsport Network. 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
29. "Harry King". Driver Database. DriverDB AB. Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.

External links

• Harry King career summary at DriverDB.com