Photo: CIK-FIA/KSP
Two-time German Kart champion Harry Thompson has split with the Red Bull Junior Team and Ricky Flynn Motorsports, which ran Lando Norris to World championship success.
The 15-year-old Briton has been a member of RFM and Red Bull’s junior line-up since 2017, the year in which he won multiple international and British titles in the OK Junior class of kart machinery.
Last year he moved up to the senior class, winning the German title and finishing second in the European championship. He added a second German title to his resume in 2019, as well as third place in the World championship behind Lorenzo Travisanutto and Nico Rosberg protege Taylor Barnard.
“Ricky Flynn Motorsports and Red Bull – it?s been a blast,” Thompson said in his departure announcement.
“Hugely thankful for the support Red Bull Racing and RFM have given me over the years, sadly this journey has come to an end. Wishing both every success in the future!”
For 2020, Thompson will switch to the 125cc two-stroke KZ class of karts with Kart Republic, which supports 2016 Formula 1 world champion Rosberg’s team, as well as the official Sauber Junior Team.
Kart Republic was created by Dino Chiesa in late 2017. The karting veteran ran the ?Mercedes-Benz McLaren? MBM team in the early 2000s, which fielded Lewis Hamilton and Rosberg.
Thompson made his Kart Republic debut last weekend at Adria in the WSK Final Cup, finishing third in the KZ2 competition.
Sauber’s newly created karting arm started the year with Scottish teenager Dexter Patterson and Swiss driver Joshua Dufek in the OK category. Patterson won the WSK Super Master Series, while Dufek was ninth in the WSK Euro Series.
William MacIntyre was signed in the summer after he won the Italian title in the 60 Mini category and was second in the WSK Euro Series, and has since stepped up to X30 Junior karts.
Last month, Singapore national Christian Ho was signed in a full-time capacity, unlike MacIntyre’s deal. Ho was runner-up in this year’s CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy, as well as finishing ninth in the South Garda Winter Cup and 11th in the World championship in OKJ karts.