POCKET rocket James Walker followed in the tyre tracks of ex-Formula One world champion David Coulthard last year as he plotted a course towards the British Karting Championships.

The 11-year-old racer will make his debut in the national Motor Sport Association SuperOne series, which is televised around the world on Motors TV, next month after sweeping the board of regional cadet karting titles in 2015.

James, of Lostock, who is a pupil at Lord's School in Chorley Old Road, was crowned champion of the Northern Karting Federation in the Honda Cadet Class, for under-14s, and also won a string of Cumbria Kart Racing Club (CKRC) titles.

He claimed the CKRC Championships, the Lakeland Trophy and was named CKRC Champion of Champions – a title given to the club's best young rider across all classes, which Coulthard won in 1989.

"James's success has taken us all by surprise," said mum Tracy.

"He literally won every race he entered and I don't think anyone expected that.

"It is a big step to enter the British championships, but there was really nowhere left for him to go."

James has driven to success as part of the HTR team, which is run by Derrick Hardy and based in the North East.

But he has still relied on help from his dad Philip, a surgeon by trade but doubles up as James's mechanic on race days, and his granddad Les Duncan, whose firm Resource Plant has acted as main sponsor.

"Motor racing does run in the family as my dad (Les) used to race cars when he was much younger," added Tracy.

"It is obviously a very expensive sport, and Les has helped pay for his engines and chassis, but many of the racers in the British championships, even at cadet level, have big companies as their sponsors.

"You need about three engines to be competitive and they can cost up to £5,000 each.

"We haven't paid out anything like that, we couldn't afford it, so James will find it tough to enjoy the same level of success on the national stage, but that won't stop him trying."

James was bitten by the motor racing bug aged seven, after attending a children's birthday party at the indoor Daytona track in Manchester.

"He really enjoyed it, so we took him back and one thing led to another," said Tracy.

"He got quite a bit of publicity on local radio and in The Bolton News because he went on to break all the lap record times at Daytona."

James progressed to outdoor racing, starting off at the Three Sisters track, in Wigan, and Hooton, near Liverpool, before graduating to Rowrah, near Workington, the home of CKRC.

He also now spends a lot of his time practising and testing at Trent Valley, near Nottingham, which is where all the best young karters in the country are based.

"As you can imagine it takes up a lot of his spare time," added Tracy.

"James is naturally very sporty and loves to play football and tennis, but he can't be a member of a team because he spends more than 10 months of the year in competition or practising.

"His school have been really good, helping him to fit his education around the racing.

"It is hard, but he is so dedicated, and it is great to see him enjoying something so much and excelling at it as well.

"I can't lie, as a mum and a doctor, I find it hard to watch. It is a dangerous sport, but as long as he continues to enjoy it, we will continue to support him."