Scott Barnes ended his season in style after clinching podium finishes at the Daytona KartWeek in Florida.

Despite getting off to a disastrous start to his weekend after he was forced to replace an engine in one of his karts, Barnes still managed to wrap up the event with podium places in each of the four races, claiming second and third-place finishes in the 125 KZ Shifter class, as well as a victory and a second place in the 125 Stock Honda Shifter class.

It capped a successful international campaign for Barnes, who won races at five of the six overseas events he competed in, including clinching a Skusa Winter Series Championship title, two victories in the Xtream Rock Island Grand Prix and finishing third overall at the prestigious Skusa SuperNationals in Las Vegas.

“Unfortunately in the KZ Shifter practice my engine blew up and stuck a hole in the piston which destroyed the motor,” said Barnes.

“We thought we were done in that class but thankfully we managed to borrow a motor from one of our competitors, which was incredibly nice of him. We worked all day on getting the motors switched out and thankfully got everything together.

“Overall, I’m pretty stoked with how the weekend went. I had four races and came away with four top-three finishes, including a win. To finish the weekend off with a victory was incredible.

“It was a great to finish off not only the Daytona event but also the 2022 season.

“I had six events this year and won races at five of them including winning the Skusa Winter Series Championship. I also won two races in the Rock Island Grand Prix and also got on the podium in the biggest national event in the United States, the Skusa National Championships in Las Vegas, which was just amazing.”

Despite another supreme season competing overseas, Barnes admits that for all his achievements, he has been left with a sense of disappointment after being overlooked for consideration among the national sports awards, with the Bermuda Karting Club not having national governing body status.

After submitting its application past the deadline, they will not be vetted until March 2023.

“Overall I’ve had a great season overseas but it’s frustrating that in Bermuda, the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Sport are not recognising the Bermuda Karting Club for their annual sports awards,” added Barnes.

“On a personal level, it’s frustrating to have a stellar season internationally, representing Bermuda when I come away and then to come back home and not be given the opportunity to be recognised by my own country’s sports awards.

“I’m trying to put Bermuda on the map when I compete internationally and then to come home and not be recognised by the government is frustrating but it is what it is.

“Hopefully next year they will start to recognise Bermuda Karting Club and I can have another good year on the international scene.”