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2016 John Miles Novice Driver Award – Winner Announced
Wed 23 Nov 2016
750 Motor Club racer Carl Shield has been announced as the winner of the 2016 John Miles Novice Driver Award, following his achievements in the Tegiwa M3 Cup over the course of the season. With six out of 10 races being finished on the podium in his inaugural year of circuit racing and a first victory taken at Snetterton in June, Carl’s performance soon caught the eye of the patron and former F1 driver. The award includes a generous £1000 cash prize from John himself, which is matched by the 750 Motor Club in credit against race entry fees for 2017.
A former childhood motocross star, Shield was forced to put racing to one side following injuries and for family reasons, before coming back to Speedway and making a few premier league appearances for Berwick, Sheffield and Edinburgh. The County Durham-based racer also showed huge promise in Supermoto and made a few appearances in F2 Stock Cars, but injuries once again put a stop to progress.
Speaking of the announcement, Carl said: “For someone of John’s experience to select me as his circuit racing novice of the year is a great honour. There has been some serious competition in the Club, so I see this as my greatest racing achievement to-date. I’d always wanted to race cars but I felt that it was always out of reach financially, until I found the M3 Cup. I feel I’ve improved every time out but still have more to come as I learn about setup.”
The award will be presented to Carl at the 750 Motor Club’s Annual Awards and Dinner Dance on January 21st 2017, and speaking of his selection, John said:
“After taking into account results, racecraft, wet weather driving and performances relative to the opposition, I found myself with a shortlist of three. Honourable mentions must go to runners-up Robert Fagg in Stock Hatch and Neal Martin in Roadsports; the former driver securing podium results against experienced competition, and the latter showing great promise but without straightforward comparison and hindered by misfortune. After much deliberation, I selected Carl as he took so naturally to the circuit. He required next to no time to be straight on the pace with experienced competitors such as Civic Cup champion Adam Shepherd and MX-5 champion Brian Chandler, and went on to take a victory in his first season.”
