A SEVENTH birthday present to try out karting has led to a national ranking for 11-year-old Kanishk Rao, who now has his sights firmly on a professional Formula One motor racing career.

Kanishk, a student at Gordon’s School in West End, is seeded number 9 in the country following the British Kart Championships at the end of last year.

Competing against older, more experienced drivers, he finished seventh in the final and earned ninth place overall.

The young driver, who karts for Oliver Rowland Motorsport (ORM), based in Lincolnshire, recalled his introduction to the sport.

He said: “For my seventh birthday my dad said he would take me karting just for fun and I went to the track and went really fast - I liked it!”

His driving has seen him race across Europe in the Euro Championships, winning a Superheat, and, at the IAME World Finals at Le Mans International Circuit, finishing third in his heat and fourth in the pre-finals against racers from all over the world, eventually taking seventh place in the qualifiers.

“The best bit is the thrill of going really fast. The kart reaches about 65 miles per hour,” said Kanishk.

“It’s quite hard on your body. When you are steering it hurts your arms quite a lot and it’s quite bumpy so you get bruised.”

To ensure he is race-ready, every week day, Kanishk is working out with weights to strengthen his arms and practising his driving on a simulator. At the weekends he is either honing his skills in a kart or racing.

“My ultimate ambition is to get into F1,” says Kanishk who added: “My favourite course is Le Mans – it’s really fun and twisty!”