Fresh from being crowned the 2026 Fiesta Junior Rookie Cup Champion, Barnaby Brewer headed to Snetterton last weekend (24-25 October), making his competitive debut in the Ginetta Junior Winter Series with MK Racing.
The Ginetta Junior Winter Series gives young drivers the opportunity to gain further competitive experience at the end of the main season, while providing an opportunity for drivers like Barnaby to gain some initial experience in the category. The event features four races in the Ginetta G40 Junior Evo, a rear-wheel-drive car that presents a different challenge to the front-wheel-drive Fiesta Barnaby raced throughout 2026.
With his long-term ambition of progressing towards GT Racing in the UK and Europe, the Winter Series offered Barnaby a valuable opportunity to continue developing his skills and adapting to a new car and category.
Joining MK Racing for the Snetterton event, Barnaby had to adapt quickly to the Ginetta G40 Junior Evo. After qualifying tenth for his first race, he found himself in the thick of the action from the opening lap. He crossed the line tenth on the road, but a five-second penalty for track limits dropped him to 12th in the final classification.
Saturday’s second race brought a very different challenge. Heavy rain created difficult conditions, with Barnaby taking on his first full-wet weather race in a new car. He made an excellent start, climbing from tenth to seventh on the opening lap, before the challenging conditions saw him slip back through the field to finish 11th. For a driver still learning the characteristics of a new car, it was another valuable experience.
Sunday brought further disruption as a storm affecting much of the UK caused a power outage at the circuit, delaying qualifying. Brewer eventually secured 11th on the grid and made progress in the third race, climbing as high as eighth before a series of close battles. He fought back within the field, eventually crossing the line in tenth.
The fourth and final race of the weekend gave Barnaby one last opportunity to put the experience gained across the event into practice. Starting from 12th on the grid, he continued to build confidence in the Ginetta, recording one of his fastest laps of the weekend. He ultimately crossed the line in 12th in the closely contested field with improving pace and valuable experience to build on for the future.
Reflecting on his debut, Barnaby said: “It’s been a huge learning curve, but I’m really pleased with the progress I made across the weekend. The weather brought an additional challenge alongside the move into a new car, but we chipped away and improved the lap times each time out, which was the main goal!”
With the Fiesta Junior Rookie Cup title secured and his first Ginetta Junior races under his belt, Barnaby now turns his focus to the 2027 season, with the aim of continuing his progression in a Ginetta championship.
Photos by Jakob Ebrey Photography