Cambridge schoolboy Josh Cooke comes out on top at Rotax World Championship in Italy

Cambridge schoolboy Josh Cooke has capped a year to remember by being crowned a racing world champion.

Having scooped the British Open title in March, the 10-year-old went on to take top spot in the RMC International Trophy in Le Mans.

Victory in the latter saw Cooke secure himself a place on the grid at the prestigious Rotax World Championship, where he lined up as part of Team UK against 35 other young champions from across the globe in the Micro Max class for drivers aged eight to 11.

The opposition included the son of 2007 F1 world champion Kimi Raikkonen, yet it was the St John’s College School pupil that prevailed in Sarno-Salerno, Italy.

Dad Oli Cooke, who is his son’s mechanic, said: “We’re so incredibly proud of Josh. He was pitted against the world’s best and he’s come out on top.

“He set his sights on qualifying for the World Championship 12 months ago and he showed what he can do by winning the International Trophy.

“That showed he could more than compete against the best young drivers in the world, but I think we still went into it more in hope than expectation.

“It’s an amazing success. There are not many sports that you can do as lad and dad – and that makes it even more special.

“I’m not the best mechanic – I’ve had to learn it all – and we’re not a racing family with a racing background. Some kids on the grid have professional mechanics to eke out every bit of performance they can get, but we’ve learned and made such progress.

“And Josh has been great. Even at the age of 10 he’s able to understand what changes need to be made to maximise performance.”

While Cooke had to show plenty of skill from behind the wheel to seal victory, his ability to deal with setbacks was equally as crucial in the success.

Issues with the kart early on left Cooke having to accept the very real possibility that he may have to withdraw from the event, and although that did not come to pass, he still encountered a number of other issues throughout qualifying and in the races.

Oli added: “He’s got so much mental composure and he has a couple of things to help him with his mindset when he’s out there racing.

“He used to get angry when things didn’t go his way out there and he got bumped, but he’s learned he can’t control that sort of thing and he now uses those disappointments to drive him forward.

“This is something he had set his heart on racing in for a year and then to have to accept that he may have to pull out, that showed great maturity and we were proud of him for that. He coped with everything amazingly well.”

Cooke is set to move up in class in 2025 – a switch that will see him race against children up to the age of 13.