Alex Fores came through technical issues to claim victory and a lap record in the Formula Ford championship at Donnington Park.

The Marlow teenager came into the race on the back foot as his car needed repairs which involved a last minute dash to north Wales for spare parts.

Ultimately, the delay ensured Fores failed to compete a single practice lap on the Thursday and went into qualifying with limited knowledge of the track.

It mattered little though and some excellent driving from the 16-year-old saw him come in 0.6 seconds ahead of his closest challenger to qualify in pole.

A strong start from Fores’ closest challenger resulted in him slipping to second early in the race but he had retaken the lead within a lap.

It didn’t take long for Fores to put a five second gap between himself and the chasing pack but a spin at 120mph once again threw his race into jeopardy.

The incident put Fores three seconds behind the new leader, but did little to deter him, and some fearless driving took him back to the front of field with a fine passing move.

Fores now had two laps to hold on for the win and set about establishing daylight between himself and the chasing pack.

He looked set for a comfortable win, but a near miss involving some of the race back makers saw his lead cut to 0.5 seconds heading into the final stages.

It was too little too late for Fores’ rivals though and he held on to claim a hugely impressive win.