Kiern Jewiss will kick start his sports car career this weekend when he travels to Brands Hatch for the opening round of the Ginetta Junior Championship, broadcast live on ITV4.
Just a week after announcing his move from karts to cars, Jewiss will now begin his climb up the motorsport ladder – with the Ginetta Junior Championship offering the perfect first step. Ahead of his debut race weekend at the Brands Hatch Indy Circuit, Kiern shared his thoughts on the weekend and beyond…

Why have you moved to cars now?

I have really enjoyed my time in karting and had a successful career but my team and I just feel like this is the right time to make the step up. Stepping into the 2017 Ginetta Junior Championship brings a number of new challenges but a fresh start with my new main sponsor, FM Conway, ensures this is the right time to leave karts behind and jump into cars instead.

How have you found the transition to cars so far?

We haven’t had that much time to prepare in all honesty but it’s been quite enjoyable as it is a new start with new things to learn. What makes a nice change though is that expectations are fairly low as we head into the first round, as we’ve had limited time to prepare and to test. I know that I have a lot to learn this year but I’m hoping to surprise a few people and put my know-how and experience in karting to good effect.

What have you found to be the main differences?

There’s obviously quite a few differences. The main one I have found is that obviously suspension now is a factor along with having gears! It sounds stupid but obviously everything is a lot bigger now and you have to pay greater attention to the wider picture and everything that is around you.

Despite limited testing opportunities, what are you hoping for from your Ginetta debut?

I’ve got to ensure that I enjoy it. I know this is a big moment, stepping into cars finally, so I want to come out of it smiling. Working with Douglas Motorsport ensures that we are going to have a competitive package so I just have to concentrate on initially moving forward week-by-week.

What about the season as a whole, what are you aiming for?

With the help of Douglas Motorsport and the team around me, I want to keep developing my driving throughout the year and therefore results on the track should keep improving as well.

Why did you choose to go with Douglas Motorsport?

They have an excellent reputation in the series and had a great result last year. It’s important that you have a good relationship with your team and I’ve really enjoyed working with Wayne Douglas and everyone else so far.