Laura Tillett has been back behind the wheel of a racing car in recent months and she enjoyed every minute of her opportunity.

The young racing driver from West Malling was taking part in the MRF Challenge in Bahrain and once she got used to single seater cars, she was right back in her stride.

Speaking about how the opportunity came about Laura said: “After being out of a car for a year but with the MRF Championship on the rise and the first round supporting the Indian GP race, a sponsor had come to me only two weeks prior with this amazing opportunity that I would never have expected to happen. At first I didn’t believe it was real as deals like this doesn’t come along often.

“Once the reality had set in that I was able to race again and my first race back would be the biggest race of my life so far, I was able to enjoy the experience. It was by far the best thing I have ever done and an experience that I will never be able to top, something I had dreamt of all my life was actually happening.”

Laura suffered some mixed results in the early rounds of the challenge but she soon found that her results improved race by race.

She added: “My results have been a little up and down but I think it is expected with the limited experience I have in cars. I am very happy with my improvement throughout the championship.

“I also feel that being pushed in the deep end, competing in this very competitive class against drivers who are regularly racing and doing laps after laps in F3, GP3 and GP2, it is pushing me hard to achieve a good firm result and prove my talent.

“The MRF challenge is a great championship to compete in, I feel that the MRF series has really given me some great opportunities that I couldn’t have got anywhere else at my level.

“I have been able to race at some great tracks, compete against some big up and coming drivers, able to progress from where I left off in 2012 and with the great car set up it has allowed me to feel confident in the car.

“The last race at Bahrain was my best car race to date. I was competitive and had really felt an improvement which is a great feeling. I would love to come back next year to compete in the MRF Challenge again, I love the car and because of its winter dates it always attracts big grids.”

We asked Laura whether there was one race that stood out for her in the challenge and whether she got the buzz back for racing.

“I think it was the race where I finished eighth as I was competing for sixth place so my adrenalin was rushing and I have never wanted it more. Unfortunately due to a small out braking mistake I lost a few places but it was great to have finished eighth. Now I won’t settle for anything less.

“I really missed that rush you get with racing and the pre-race nerves, it was a great feeling to have back after a year out, and my addiction has been refuelled.”

With the season now over we also asked Laura whether she has any plans for racing in 2014 when the new campaigns get underway.

She said: “Recently I have been focusing on the MRF Challenge as I am hoping that a good result there will open more doors for me.

“At the moment I don’t have racing plans for 2014 as it is very difficult to find the budget and like many drivers it is becoming more a more difficult as the seat prices are extremely expensive but I am always pushing for a future drive as I know how painful it is not racing.”