The 2026 Sectus Technologies Barbados Karting Association (BKA) Championship held its third competitive round on Sunday, and the event made unforgettable history for the island nation’s karting community. Eleven-year-old Ava Mayers delivered a stunning performance in the Easykart 60cc Cadet class, claiming three race victories and securing the highest overall points total across all classes on raceday – a milestone never before achieved by a female karter in the BKA’s 40 years of organized competition.
While a small number of female drivers have claimed individual class victory at past BKA racedays – most notably Kayleigh Catwell, who topped her class twice in 2018 before finishing second overall in the 100cc championship behind Calem Maloney – no woman had ever climbed to the very top of the day’s overall standings before Mayers’ historic win.
Mayers set the tone for her historic day early, posting the fastest qualifying time out of the six competing Cadet drivers. She grabbed the lead early in the opening race and held off all challenges to cross the finish line more than two seconds ahead of championship leader Edward Norris, who put on an impressive comeback drive of his own after a qualifying first-lap breakdown left him starting at the back of the grid. Finn Cox crossed the line in third position to round out the opening race podium.
In the reverse-grid second race, Mayers again seized the advantage immediately after the green flag, with Norris and Cox replicating their opening race results to finish second and third respectively. The third race saw a shift in momentum, as Norris reclaimed his pace at the front of the pack. A first-lap collision between Mayers and Cox dropped Mayers to the back of the starting order, but the young driver fought her way through the field to reclaim a podium position. Cox received a penalty for the incident that pushed him from second place down to fourth, behind Mayers and Shamer Eversley.
Mayers sealed her perfect day with a third victory in the final race of the class, with Cox and Norris completing the overall podium for the round. Despite his solid second-place finish across the round, Norris retains his lead in both the 60cc class standings and the overall BKA championship.
The event also saw intense competition in the Easykart 125cc class, where Mayers’ older brother Jacob Mayers also put on a dominant performance to start the round. Jacob claimed pole position in qualifying and posted the first of three fastest laps on his way to a flag-to-flag victory in the opening race. Aaron Blackett finished second in the opening contest, while Aeden Bruce held off a hard challenge from Cody Mark to take third.
Blackett led every lap of the reverse-grid second race, while Jacob recovered from an early first-lap spin to cross the line third. That result was revised after the race, however, when Bruce received a 10-second penalty for starting outside the designated track lines, moving Jacob up to second.
Jacob’s luck turned for the worse at the start of the third 125cc race, when his kart’s starter failed, ending his day of competition early. Blackett claimed a narrow victory in the contest, beating Bruce to the line by just nine-tenths of a second after Bruce fought a tense late-race battle with Mark.
Jacob returned to form in the final 125cc race of the day, claiming a comfortable victory. Bruce put on a late charge to overtake Blackett for second place on the very last lap. Despite the late race loss of position, Blackett still managed to overhaul Jacob’s earlier points lead, taking the top spot in the 125cc class standings by just three points heading into future rounds.
In the Easykart 100cc class, pole sitter Jaydn Brathwaite turned his qualifying pace into an unprecedented clean sweep for the 2026 season, winning all four races held at the round and posting the fastest lap in every contest. Jordyn Hinkson and Jaylan Priddee matched their podium positions across every race of the round, finishing second and third overall respectively.