Sam Tordoff upbeat despite failed MG tyre gamble

A confident Sam Tordoff says he is sure he will pick up his maiden win in the second half of the season, after an impressive campaign to date for Triple Eight MG.

The Yorkshireman was upbeat despite a failed tyre gamble by the team in the second race at Croft, where both he and team-mate Jason Plato bolted on wet tyres, as they were expecting more rain.

The pair flew to the front on the damp track in the opening laps, but quickly fell back once the rain had stopped.

“We gambled, because we were quite confident it was going to rain. And for the first two laps, we were one and two, and it was all plain sailing,” said Tordoff to TouringCarTimes.

“Then the rain stopped and the sun came out. We gambled, and it didn’t work.”

The two MGs then charged through from the back to finish sixth and seventh in the fully wet final race, a result which satisfied Tordoff after a tough weekend.

He said: “We have good a very good car in the wet, and if it had rained all day I think we would have had a fantastic weekend.

“I was very surprised just how quick we were in that third race. I think that bodes well for the future, and I have learned a great deal about driving in the wet.

“We had problems in FP1, didn’t do FP2, so we went into qualifying under-prepared, and have been on the back foot ever since.

“All in all, it was a good learning experience, and we have collected some good points at the same time.”

Looking at his performance over the first half of the season, Tordoff said: “I think we have got to be thrilled. We came into it not really knowing what to expect, with a big learning curve ahead, having only raced in the support packages before.

“You never really know how you’re going to get on until you throw yourself in at the deep end. We have performed way beyond my predictions – we are in a good position in the championship, we have had a few podiums already, and the win has got to be on the cards in the second half of the season.

“We will be testing to analyse where we can improve. We have a good bit of time to sit down and think about where we can improve in the second half of the year. I strongly believe I will get my first win.”