Lings crew delighted by title win

Lings enjoyed a hat-trick of wins on home surf at Lowestoft in July

The crew of the Lings powerboat team have spoken of their delight at winning the 225hp class of the Honda Formula 4-Stroke championship.

Driver David Cowley and navigators Paul Barkshire and Chris Jary secured the title in Douglas Bay on Sunday.

Cowley admitted to BBC Radio Norfolk that it could have been different.

He said: "We've had a fantastic season, a bit of mixed emotion because the weekend didn't go according to plan, but the result is fantastic."

The Lings team, which is run from Lowestoft in Suffolk, had to withdraw from the first of the weekend's three races in the Isle Of Man after a pre-race collision caused a failure in their throttle linkage.

They recovered to secure second and fourth in the remaining races, winning the championship by a single point from Liverpool-based Team Williams.

Barkshire paid tribute to the whole team for their individual contributions to such a successful season.

He said: "We had a battle on our hands. It was almost a disaster but I'm just so thrilled that we got a result there and tied up the championship.

"I'm overwhelmed and it hasn't quite sunk in yet."

The success means Lings have become the first team in 10 years of the series to have won both 225hp and 150hp classes, having taken the junior title in their first full season of racing in 2007.