Exam commitments kept him from testing at the Whilton Mill track in Northamptonshire on Friday, which hampered his qualifying performance.
The 14-year old - who historically won the British Open Championship in March, the first driver from Northern Ireland to do so in 16 years - said: "Testing went well, although I was two tenths (of a second) off the pace and was still learning the circuit when we went out for timed qualifying."
H Starting from the fourth row of the grid, Carl opened his account with a fine 2nd place in the first heat. In the second race, he survived a "hairy moment" – taking to the grass at high speed to avoid a crash in front of him – to finish 5th.
These two results were good enough to give Carl a front row start, alongside pole-sitter Macaulay Walsh.

"I dropped to third at the start and the two leaders quickly established a good lead. I managed to catch Alex Walker (in 2nd), passed him and then set about catching Macaulay, who was now about ten kart-lengths ahead."
In just one lap, Carl slashed Walsh's lead from seven tenths of a second to three. But as he inched closer, new third place man Jake Dennis arrowed in.
"After five laps I was on Macaulay's bumper, but Jake had caught me and made a move. He got past -but I did him back on the following lap."
Under braking for a corner, Carl scythed past Walsh to take the lead. Leaving Dennis, Walsh and the fast-approaching Lewis Hall scrapping over second place, Carl eked out a small advantage over his pursuers and held it to the chequered flag.
Afterwards, Carl couldn't contain his delight. "This is a fantastic win for me. I've never raced or even tested here before, and so to win is just brilliant."