Even kids on the pace can have this problem, it is not nessasarily symtomatic of fear but more likely lack of experience.
I was in this situation with my eldest, then 9, where we had a huge amount of training but not much race experience. With only timed qualifying he would often start from pole and then work his way backwards through the course of the weekend. He could sit on the back of anyone all day but not find a way past and if somebody got past him he would just stay there.
It took 6 months of racing every other weekend, very frustrating, but worth it. Because one day he just seemed to get it and from then on he won virtually every weekend. He even had some storming drives to win from the back of the grid after mechanical problems.
On the other hand, my youngest at 7 & 8 was fast enough to win races, even setting fastest time at the French championships, but could never overtake. He was always terrified, literally shaking in the kart on the pregrid. He made the decision to stop racing. However now aged 10 he is asking to have another try.
One thing you should be thankful for in the UK is the novice licence system and mixed grid qualifying. It breeds racers rather than just good qualifyers.
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