Nine-year-old karting prodigy Jaxon Na’ama – who was born at 27 weeks and given little chance of survival – has become the first ever winner of Hull’s Grid Series championship.
Nine-year-old Jaxon Na’ama after his win at the Hull Grid Series Championship on Monday(Image: Roxanne Cooper)
A nine-year-old karting driver has stepped up to the podium to become Hull’s first ever Grid Series Champion.
And given Jaxon Na’ama’s start to life, his achievement is all the more remarkable. Jaxon was born at just 27 weeks gestation, weighing 2lb 3oz. He was in NICU for four months and it wasn’t certain whether he would survive. His mum, Roxanne Cooper, says that makes her all the more proud of her eldest son, who has been F1 obsessed from an early age.
Roxanne, who lives in Hessle and owns Streetstars Dance Studio in Hull City Centre, said: “It’s ridiculous how proud I am.”
Jaxon began karting on his 8th birthday at Teamsport Go Karting on Freightliner Road. Just over a year later, at age nine, he triumphed in six months of stage races of the Hull Grid Series. He stepped up to the podium on Monday to be the first winner of the inaugural competition.
Jaxon, who attends Priory Primary School in Hull, has been F1-crazy since he was four or five years old. Roxanne said: “He just has a photographic memory and could reel off every single F1 driver and all their information. For his 8th birthday I booked him into Teamsport Karting’s indoor track. He never left the place; it’s our second home now!”
But Roxanne and Jaxon’s dad, Michael, remember a time not too long ago when they were told to prepare for the possibility that Jaxon would not be able to take part in hobbies such as karting. After complications in pregnancy, Jaxon was delivered at just 27 weeks. Their tiny baby was in an incubator for months, and his parents were told he would never become an Olympian or a professional athlete, but he might enjoy some quality of life.
“Luckily I was already in hospital, but I remember a doctor coming to check me over and it was like what you see in the films: he slammed this emergency button, everyone came rushing in, and he said Jaxon’s not going to survive the night if we don’t do something now. They put me under and I was completely out of it. When I woke up I didn’t know if he’d survived,” said Roxanne, who is also mum to Bruxley, 2.
“Every day was horrendous, we nearly lost him so many times. It seemed like we were never going to come home with him at one point, I’d prepared myself for that, but he turned a corner. He was so poorly and so fragile, but he’s just gone from strength to strength. People who are going through the same thing say it’s so inspiring to see a positive outcome.”
Fast forward nine years and Jaxon aspires to one day become a professional racing driver.
“At first I thought it would be a little hobby, but then I realised he was amazing at it – it’s a full-time commitment,” Roxanne said. “He’s there two or three nights a week. Outdoor karting is the next step and the next progression. It has just taken up our full life. Two Christmases ago I got him a simulator and he has the full set up in his bedroom. It’s the first thing I hear in the morning and the last thing at night – the kid is obsessed.”
He has picked up a sponsorship deal with Benmarks Motors and is being trained by Teamsport to take part in bigger and better competitions in the future.
His next goal is to take part in a national competition in Warrington. He is already back on the tack, trying to get his qualifying times and beat his personal best. His goal now is to try to make it all the way to Warrington at the end of the year.
“The woman who trains him, Zizi, says he has this natural thing about him,” Roxanne said. “He’s like a sponge. He’s so dedicated and takes it seriously. It’s a borderline obsession he’s just so committed. He wants to get his racing line right, he always wants to beat his personal best. The age that he is, you wouldn’t expect it – these things are usually achieved later down the line. Everyone else he’s been racing against is 11 or 12 years old. It’s a natural thing he has got, he’s just so good at.”
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