Champagne moment for King

After defying persistent tyre-warming woes to snatch the runner-up spoils in the Hockenheim curtain-raiser, King travelled to the Nürburgring eyeing further rostrums.

Recording the fastest time in Friday’s practice sessions, the Stoneleigh-based driver was unable to translate his pace into pole position on the grid, with electrical problems hampering him in qualifying.

As it was, King wound up fourth on the grid for race one - albeit still comfortably top Brit - and a lowly 12th for race two in his Manor MP Motorsport machine.

“I knew we had the speed to make progress, so I was hoping for a solid podium finish in race one,” said King. “I got a great start to move immediately up to third and then a few laps in, I overtook the driver ahead in second.

“Unfortunately, our electrical problems later reared their head again and slowed me down considerably.

“I worked out that if I stayed away from the kerbs and didn’t brake too hard, I could control the situation, and by doing that I managed to hold onto my position.

“But without the electrical issue, I’m convinced I could have fought for the win.”

The next day, King set about salvaging a respectable result from his lower-than-expected grid slot.

However, the Princethorpe College student’s charge up the field was stalled by an accident which forced a temporary halt to the race and later yellow flags.

After lapping as fast as the race winner, the 18-year-old was convinced he had enough pace to secure a second successive podium but for the breaks in racing.

But a final position of fifth was still enough to vault him from fourth to third in the drivers’ standings, a single marker shy of second.

And, as he prepares to return to Germany for the next NEC outing at Oschersleben, the Hugo Boss brand ambassador confessed the target has to be to maintain his consistent run and, hopefully, enjoy a trouble-free weekend at last.

“I was pleased with our speed at the Nürburgring and we left with some good points,” he said.

“But I was annoyed that the car’s problems prevented us from displaying our true potential.

“At Oschersleben, I hope we can have a faultless weekend, with the focus on more points and podiums, as at the end of the day, that is what will win the championship.”