A 22-year-old racing driver has broken a lap record time which stood for 13 years while currently sitting at the top of the Championship in his sport.

Rob Welham, who was born in Ipswich, is currently leading the 2024 F1000 Championship after an excellent start to the season which has seen him finish in the top two twice.

The 2022 champion, who is a former student of Claydon High School, began racing when he was 12 years old at Anglia Indoor Karting.

He has gone on to enjoy national success in both karting and single-seater racing, amassing nine Championship wins and two British titles.

Rob has been racing since he was 12Rob Welham has been racing since he was 12 (Image: Rob Welham)

Welham has so far raced in the season opener at Brands Hatch, which he won, and he continued that success at Oulton Park in early June.

He also went on to secure pole position on the International Circuit, which in the final lap, he beat a record which stood for 13-years for the fastest lap.

Welham said: "I have really enjoyed the racing and I am grateful to Jedi Racing Cars and my sponsors for keeping me on the track.

Rob in his F1000 carRob in his F1000 car (Image: Copyright (C)2022 Jonathan Elsey)

"I have worked closely with the team to maximise the performance of both the car and myself.

"I am really looking forward to racing at Cadwell in July, a high speed, challenging circuit with little room for error.

"We haven’t raced there since 2019 and the Jedi racing car held the outright lap record up until last year, so I’m looking forward to trying to bring the record home in this, the car’s 40th anniversary year."

Rob and his mechanic, Darren BoormanRob and his mechanic, Darren Boorman (Image: St James Racing)