Fresh from confirming his reputation as a Formula Renault 2.0 North European Cup title contender after scoring a podium at the series opener at Hockenheim two weeks previously, King was in good form as he arrived in Spain.

The 18-year-old set the third fastest time during practice, behind the highly though or Daniil Kvyat and Stoffel Vandoorne. King backed up his pace by setting the fifth fastest times in each of his two qualifying sessions, but that was where the good news ended as ill fortune struck the Warwickshire single-seater ace.

What was described as a ‘mass pile-up’ on the opening lap of race one took out Oscar Tunjo (Tech 1 Racing), Nick Cassidy (Fortec Motorsports) Johan Jokinen (Manor MP Motorsport), Pieter Schothorst (Josef Kaufmann Racing), Yu Kanamaru (KTR) ) and King (Manor MP Motorsport), giving the track marshals a huge clear up operation. The incident put six cars out on the spot, including King, and he went on to suffer more bad luck during race two on Sunday as he only completed one lap before his double retirement was confirmed.

It was an extremely unfortunate and unfair ending to a weekend for King, where his undoubted pace deserved a much a greater reward.

The Hugo Boss-Ambassador has the opportunity to bounce back in early June when the series visits the legendary Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium. He’ll then compete at Nurburgring two weeks in-a-row when both the NEC and Eurocup race in the Eifel Mountains on successive weekends.

The official Jordan King website will keep you up to date on the young British star throughout the 2012 season.

With no official pre-season running and having not been to Hockenheim since his maiden test there towards the end of 2011, Jordan returned to the famous German Grand Prix venue not quite knowing where he would shake out in the pecking-order. Right from the outset, he would be a leading protagonist.

“It’s an enjoyable circuit to drive, with some tricky corners and several overtaking opportunities,” revealed the talented young Warwickshire single-seater ace. “That makes it fun to race around, and it didn’t take particularly long to settle back into it in practice. The field was massive, and the top ten were all extremely fast – most of the European front-runners were there, so it was never going to be easy.”

Be that as it may, Jordan mastered the wet-but-drying track surface during qualifying to seal a superb third spot on the 39-strong starting grid for race one – both top Brit and comfortably best-placed of the six Manor MP Motorsport entrants – with the only two drivers ahead of him benefitting from better conditions right at the very end of the session.

“We struggled all weekend to get the tyres up to temperature sufficiently quickly, so I wasn’t able to pressurise the top two for the first few laps,” recalled the highly-rated Stoneleigh-based speed demon of the opening encounter. “After the car came on, I moved up into second but then it began to rain and the race was stopped because quite a few drivers crashed.

“We had the same scenario again with the tyres at the re-start, which meant I was unable to make any impression on the leader. I was happy to get a podium finish and good points to start the season, but just a little disappointed we weren’t able to push as early as we needed to.”

With the combination of slick tyres and a wet track surface invariably highlighting which drivers possess the best car control, Jordan excelled, revelling in the unique challenge and lapping less than a tenth of a second adrift of the outright benchmark. Sadly, from seventh on the grid in race two, his tyre troubles would return to haunt him.

“I made up two positions at the start into fifth, but then as I went for a move on the driver in fourth, it looked like he was going to turn in on me, so I was a little bit hesitant and that caused me to run wide, costing me a couple of places,” recounted the 18-year-old British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star and MSA Academy member. “I got one of them back when somebody ahead spun, before the safety car came out because there were a number of people off in the barriers.

“At the re-start, we then had the same problem again with the tyres, and although I was gaining on the guys in front by the end, it was too late. Fifth place represented more good points, but we had the pace for another podium.”

A succession of ultra-competitive lap times ably bore that conviction out, and Jordan would go on to begin the final race of the weekend from fifth place.

“I held position initially, and then passed two drivers in one corner as they were fighting,” related the Princethorpe College student. “They were both sticking tight to the inside line, so I outsmarted them around the outside to move up to third. Unfortunately, it then began raining quite heavily and I spun 100 metres before the safety car appeared.

“I had backed right off because of the change in conditions, but I must have just ever-so-slightly touched the kerb and it turned me round. Although I recovered it pretty quickly, I still lost three positions and when the racing resumed, it was difficult to overtake because there was only one dry line. I regained one place on the last lap when the driver in front of me made a mistake, but it could so easily have been another podium…”

Lapping second-quickest – impressively, more than six tenths faster than the winner – the end result might not have been what Jordan had been hoping for, but it has left him fourth in the title standings heading next to legendary Belgian Grand Prix circuit Spa-Francorchamps, and well in the hunt. What’s more, there were all manner of positives for the Hugo Boss brand ambassador to take away from Germany, not least his eye-catching pace and racecraft around a circuit at which he had never previously competed.

“I was disappointed that we couldn’t get the best out of the car, and our tyre issues hindered us quite a bit,” he mused in conclusion. “It was frustrating from that point-of-view, but when the car was on-song, our lap times were really encouraging. Spa is a circuit that I love and one where I have raced before, so we shouldn’t be on the back foot there – and this time, the goal has to be to win!”

Jordan King kicked off his 2012 Formula Renault 2.0 NEC campaign in impressive style by claiming a second place in the opening round of the season at Hockenheim, Germany.

The 18-year-old then backed up his pace in the ultra competitive 39-car field, by scoring two fifth places in the remaining two races on Sunday. King’s results at the opening event of the season underline his potential as a possible championship contender, which again belies his young age and relative inexperience.

Starting the opening race from third on the grid, King was embroiled in an incredible three-way scrap for victory. The battle for second eventually came down to a straight fight between Jordan and his compatriot Jake Dennis, who had surged from eighth on the grid into second by the mid-distance stage.

King remained patient and eyed his opportunity when Dennis made a small mistake on lap eight. With the door left slightly open, King wasted no time in nipping through into second, a position that he maintained with some comfort until the finish.

His performances during Sunday’s races at the Grand Prix venue were no less eye catching however, as he came from seventh on the grid to claim fifth in the morning contest, before going on to match that result in the final race of the weekend.

Dennis, King and Frenchman Pizzitola Andrea were the only drivers to finish inside the top five in each of the three races, which means Jordan is already in the thick of the championship hunt ahead of the next round at the Nurburgring in June.

Details on the Championship standings along with a full report on Jordan’s weekend will be published here on his official website on Monday. Jordan’s next event is the opening round of the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup at Aragon, Spain, on the 5/6 May.

The series has attracted a staggering 39 drivers from around the world, including the latest crop of European talent, plus the best young racers from the likes of Japan, Brazil and USA.

Unfazed by the competitiveness of the series, King began his season in some style in what turned out to be treacherous and changing weather conditions throughout the day. Having run as high as fifth during morning practice, conditions worsened ahead of qualifying, which was briefly halted due to hail crashing down on to the circuit.

The young Manor MP Motorsport driver was completely undeterred by the situation however, and set a blistering pace on his seventh qualifying lap, which was good enough for third on the grid and just 0.119s from a front-row start.

The mayhem continued in the second qualifying session, which immediately followed the opening period, as the circuit began to dry. With track position being paramount in such conditions, it was Belgian Stoffel Vandoorne who times it right to claim an impressive double pole position, whilst Jordan had to be content with a fourth row start for race two.

Incredibly, Jordan’s compatriot and old adversary Josh Hill will line-up alongside him. The former Formula Renault UK team-mates often proved inseparable on the track in 2011, and despite them both starting a new adventure in Europe this year, it seems the healthy rivalry is set to continue.

“I am pretty pleased with how that went,” said Jordan. “There was so much going on out there and lots of penalties being given to drivers. Thankfully none of them were for us and it was just a case of waiting to see where we ended up. I have to be happy with the second row for sure, considering the numbers and level of opposition, plus of course the conditions today.”

The first of three races at the Grand Prix venue commences at 12:20 tomorrow (local time), before races two and three takes place on Sunday. The official Jordan King website will keep you up to date with his progress throughout the weekend.

During his maiden campaign of car racing competition off the back of a highly successful karting career, Jordan drove for Manor Competition in the 2011 Formula Renault UK Championship – cruelly being denied what would have been a brilliant breakthrough victory at Snetterton by a rival’s clumsy passing attempt – and MP Motorsport in Formula Renault NEC, tallying four podium finishes and sensationally storming to pole position around legendary Italian Grand Prix venue Monza.

Having duly served his single-seater apprenticeship, the highly-rated Stoneleigh-based speed demon and BRDC Rising Star admits he was ‘tempted’ by flattering offers from teams eager to run him further up the ladder in GP3 and Formula 3 this year, but evincing the very wise head he keeps on such young shoulders, Jordan resolved that in only his second season out of karts, the best approach would be to remain in Formula Renault, albeit this time raising the bar with a full-scale assault on both the Northern European Cup and the fiercely-contested Eurocup.

There, the Princethorpe College A-Level student will pit himself directly against no fewer than 33 international adversaries of the very highest calibre – the F1 stars of tomorrow, in other words – around circuits including Paul Ricard, Hungaroring, Catalunya and the legendary Nürburging and Spa-Francorchamps, some of which will be uncharted territory. With Manor Competition and MP Motorsport having joined forces, however, he will at least be in familiar surroundings right from the ‘off’ – and he is palpably excited about the challenge that lies ahead.

“I’m really looking forward to it all,” Jordan enthused. “Having been to some of the tracks before – and having been quick around them – is a massive confidence boost, and I know all the Manor guys well, of course, and also got to know the MP Motorsport boys during the few races I did with them last year. There’s no need to build new relationships, and both crews are a great bunch of lads.

“Going to Europe is definitely the best way to advance my career. There’s no question in my mind that it’s the right move now – the logical next step. You need to be constantly pushing yourself beyond your comfort zone – that’s what it’s all about.

“By the same token, I’m under absolutely no illusions about what I’m going into – the competition is going to be massive! There will be a huge number of cars on the grid, and quite a few of the circuits will be new to me again, so I’m facing another learning curve. All-told, it’s probably going to be the toughest year I’ve had in my racing career so far, but I want it to be another successful one and to make progress again.

“I’m feeling pretty confident, and I’m excited about the prospect of racing on some real F1 circuits. When I first began racing, I watched F1 and that was where I wanted to be – so to now be driving around some of the same tracks is a little bit surreal! I’ve got to where I dreamt I might one day be, and racing around the same places as my heroes. I can’t wait to get started!”

With only official championship testing permitted before the seasons rev into life at Hockenheim in Germany in April (NEC) and Motorland Aragón in Spain in May (Eurocup), Jordan’s recent competitive experience in the New Zealand-based Toyota Racing Series could ultimately transpire to be valuable indeed – but either way, Manor MP Motorsport team manager Tony Shaw is convinced that the 18-year-old Hugo Boss brand ambassador is well-placed to make the most of his new opportunity by featuring up at the sharp end right from the start.

“Jordan’s progress in 2011 was excellent considering the fact that he was pretty much the fastest driver in the team,” reflected the man whose Nottinghamshire-based outfit still retains links and shares a livery with Marussia F1, formerly Virgin Racing. “That meant that in his first year he didn’t have anyone to push him on when his experience was a little short. However, he made some fantastic leaps forward and as ever with quality drivers, it was at the grippier tracks in warmer conditions that we saw his ability shine through.

“Jordan has learnt so much about where the limit is and how to push to it but not over it and he is an incredibly smooth driver, very accurate and with excellent feedback. Confidence-boosting results were on the cards very early on, and by mid-season he was leading a race comfortably only to be knocked out a lap from home.

“The races abroad went exceptionally well against the cream of the Eurocup, and I think having more cars on the grid and perhaps a happier atmosphere in the paddock helped Jordan to really make the difference. As for this season, well, we are a superstitious lot in racing so I wouldn’t want to make a prediction as such, but saying that, we aim to challenge at every event – and with Jordan, we’ve certainly got the driver we want in that regard!”

Jordan travelled to the fifth and final outing of the fiercely-contested, New Zealand-based TRS at Manfeild locked in a tight tussle for third spot in the title standings – and fired-up to sign off in style.

“After having such a disastrous first round, we were on the back foot for the remainder of the championship,” he confessed. “We clawed our way back, but we still had it all to do at Manfeild. We knew we needed a strong weekend and to come away with a really good result from there.”

Rapidly becoming a fan of the short, bumpy North Island circuit and showing particularly well in wet conditions during practice, the highly-rated Stoneleigh-based speed demon subsequently found himself plagued by a lack of mechanical grip that neither he nor his team, M2 Competition, were able to fully conquer.

Albeit only a few tenths of a second shy of the benchmark, that was enough to relegate Jordan to 14^th in qualifying for race one amongst the 20 competitors. Impressively undeterred, a ‘mega’ getaway saw the 17-year-old immediately vault up into eighth, and thereafter he produced a commendably gritty performance to retain that position all the way to the chequered flag, crossing the line as the best-placed of the five M2 Competition drivers.

After losing out in a first corner mêlée in race two – leaving him a frustrated ninth – Jordan nonetheless remained firmly in contention for P3 in the championship hunt heading into race three. What’s more, up until lap ten, that is precisely what he looked to be on-course to achieve. He takes up the story.

“We started eighth, and I progressed to sixth pretty quickly,” recalls the BRDC Rising Star. “Our speed was really good and I made a move on the driver ahead in fifth into the first corner, but on the exit, he tagged the rear of my car. That sent me into a spin, the engine stalled and unfortunately, I couldn’t get it going again.

“Given that my two main rivals later crashed out, if I had just finished inside the top seven, it would have been enough to take third in the championship, so that was really disappointing. I don’t think anyone in the team said anything for half-an-hour after the race – we were all just sat there in silence.”

Convinced that his pace had been more than sufficient to get the job done – “We were fast enough to be up at the front season-long,” he underlines – the frustration did not take the sheen off an otherwise overwhelmingly positive TRS experience for the Princethorpe College A-Level student, yielding fifth position in the final points table.

With plenty of track time and extra-curricular activities of the ilk of mountain-biking, sky-diving, bungee-jumping, parasailing and white-water rafting – “The whole outdoor adventure side of things is completely up my street,” he admits – it was manna from heaven for this all-action hero, and even more importantly still, enabled Jordan to keep his hand in during the traditional winter ‘off’ season. And that, he hopes, will pay dividends when he embarks upon his principal 2012 campaign in the forthcoming weeks.

“I loved New Zealand!” enthused the Hugo Boss brand ambassador in conclusion. “The M2 Competition guys are a really good bunch of lads, and I’d love to work with them again one day. There’s a brilliant atmosphere inside the team, and they’re really professional and always gave me a great car. Overall, it honestly couldn’t have gone much better. I learned a lot, improved my starts and honed my racecraft – and I definitely feel a stronger driver for it all now.”

Despite being way down in 18^th following the opening round at Teretonga on the 15^th January, King has spent the remaining four weekends of the series carving his way through the championship order, which also included a sensational victory at Taupo two weeks ago.

Front-running pace proved hard to come by for King at Manfeild however, as the Giles Motorsport team dominated during qualifying by claiming the top six positions.

Two solid top ten finishes in the opening races of the weekend consolidated King’s position in the standings before a non-finish in the New Zealand GP left him waiting on other results. When the chequered flag fell in the 35-lap season finale, King’s fifth place in the championship was confirmed and also the highest placed driver from the M2 Competition squad.

A full report on Jordan’s weekend will be published here on his official website over the coming days. The talented young Briton now returns home to the UK ahead of an announcement confirming his plans for the 2012 European season, details of which will follow.

In optimistic mood, Jordan headed north to New Zealand’s newest circuit, whose undulating, bumpy and demanding 2.6km layout is characterised by constant elevation changes, blind, cambered corners and steep, tightening drops – presenting a stern challenge to the Toyota Racing Series’ 19 competitors.

After settling himself in during practice, in a tremendously close qualifying session, the talented young Stoneleigh-based single-seater ace produced a lap time good enough for sixth on the starting grid for race one. He proceeded to take the chequered flag in the same position, right in the wheeltracks of his Ferrari-backed M2 Competition team-mate Raffaele Marciello.

“That left me on pole position for race two,” Jordan recalled, “but unfortunately, I had a bad start and lost a place and then there was a re-start, at which I got out-dragged into Turn One. I wound up third in the end, which was still a good result and good points for the championship.”

That it indubitably was, as the 17-year-old BRDC Rising Star flashed across the line less than half-a-second shy of the runner-up, in so doing cementing his fourth rostrum finish of the campaign. He would again feature right up at the sharp end in the weekend’s third and final outing, the 20-lap New Zealand Motor Cup.

“I got another bad start,” he recounted, “which we later deduced was due to my not releasing the clutch right and there being more grip on the track than expected. I was then hit from behind and dropped down to 12^th place, but subsequently made two really good re-starts after safety car periods to regain a couple of positions. I made a few more back before the end of the race, and I was pretty pleased with that as the track is tight and twisty and as such, not massively conducive to overtaking.”

Seventh when the flag came down, the combination of results has moved Jordan up a spot into fifth in the championship table, a mere four points shy of countryman Josh Hill in the duel for the honour of finishing as the Toyota Racing Series’ top Brit. Even third place is mathematically within reach, meaning that with just one meeting remaining – the New Zealand Grand Prix at Manfeild – the battle is very much still on.

“It was another tough weekend, but good to score some more solid points,” mused the Princethorpe College A-Level student and Hugo Boss brand ambassador in conclusion. “You always want a bit more, but it was nice to come away with another trophy and make progress in the championship, and our speed was certainly right there again. Let’s see what we can do at Manfeild now!”

Having encountered ill-fortune in the Teretonga curtain-raiser but bounced back with a well-judged podium finish second time out at Timaru, Jordan travelled more than 500 miles from South Island to North Island to the state-of-the-art Taupo Motorsport Park – a technical and in parts fearsomely-fast circuit, with top speeds along the main straight approaching an eye-watering 145mph.

Bullish about his prospects, after keeping his powder dry during practice – albeit always lapping there or thereabouts in the 19-strong field – the highly-rated Stoneleigh-based single-seater star then unleashed his full potential in qualifying by storming his way to the top spot on the starting grid.

“It was a really tough session,” he affirmed. “Midway through, I was fastest, but then other drivers went quicker as we concentrated more on our race strategy, and I had to dig really deep. The times were incredibly close, but fortunately, I managed to find the last tenth of a second that I needed to secure pole.

“I made a great start in the first race – 0-60mph in 2.9 seconds – and then began to pull out a gap, setting a new fastest lap in the process that I later discovered was also a new lap record by more than a second. I built up an advantage of almost three seconds, and after that I chilled out a bit; it felt so good to be quick enough to be in a position to just relax and know that I still had more time in my pocket had I needed it. Crossing the line to win was absolutely mega, and my team M2 Competition were so happy.”

Jordan’s pace over the 15-lap showdown was impressive indeed, and he consolidated it with a brace of similarly eye-catching efforts that yielded fourth spot from sixth on the reverse-grid in race two, and a competitive third in race three, the 20-lap Denny Hulme Memorial Trophy in homage to the 1967 F1 World Champion. That combination of results saw the 17-year-old BRDC Rising Star conclude the weekend as the Toyota Racing Series’ top points-scorer – and vault up to sixth place in the championship points table for good measure.

“I had a terrible start in race two that dropped me down to ninth initially,” he recalled, “but then I fought back and overtook one driver after another as I closed the gap on the leaders. That was so much fun! I passed five cars in total over the 15 laps to finish fourth, and our speed was really good all the way through.

“The wind changed direction before race three, though, and that caused the track conditions to change, too. Our set-up that had been so fast in the first two races didn’t quite work with the lower downforce, which meant that although I was lapping at the same pace as the top two, I wasn’t able to catch them. It would have been nice to come away with a second win from the weekend, but in the circumstances, we were happy enough with third place.”

Justifiably so, and as he turns his attentions towards the final two meetings at Hampton Downs and Manfeild, the Princethorpe College A-Level student and Hugo Boss brand ambassador does so in the knowledge that he has now truly made his mark in the southern hemisphere – and given the local specialists more than a little to think about.

“The M2 boys all did a superb job again, and overall it was a fantastic weekend!” he reflected. “One of the races at Hampton Downs will be the New Zealand Motor Cup, which has been won by some of the most famous drivers in the history of the sport. It would be awesome to add my name to that trophy, too.”

The 17-year-old has already won races in the UK, Europe and India, and can now add New Zealand to his impressive CV of victories that belies his young age and relative inexperience.

King claimed pole position for race one at Taupo and never looked back, setting a new circuit lap record during his commanding lights-to-flag victory for the M2 Motorsport squad.

A fourth place followed in race two, before he went one better in the final race of the weekend. Starting from the second row of the reverse grid Denny Hulme Memorial race, King fought his was into third and set about attacking his old adversary Josh Hill – son of former World Champion Damon. 

A lurid moment left Jordan returning from a run on to the grass, but he had time in hand to maintain position and claim his second podium of an impressive weekend.

A full report on Jordan’s incredible weekend will follow over the coming days