Sam Tordoff delighted with qualifying performance

Triple Eight’s Sam Tordoff says he surprised himself with his qualifying performance at Knockhill, and is confident of turning his pole position into at least a podium on race day.

Tordoff produced a brilliant lap to take second on the grid, and although he couldn’t match the speed of West Surrey Racing’s Colin Turkington, the championship leader’s grid penalty from Snetterton promoted him to the top.

Tordoff will also collect the point for pole position, as this is awarded to the car which starts the first race from pole, rather than the car which qualifies first.

Tordoff told TouringCarTimes that his performance exceeded his own expectations for the session.

He said: “I just went out there and did the best job I could. I knew it would be tight up at the front, as the Honda is a very good car around here. Arguably with a shorter wheelbase, this track suits them more, and traditionally we have struggled.

“I’d have settled for a top six before the start of the session. This weekend’s just gone really well. I had a good feeling in the car this morning, and we’ve built that momentum throught FP2.

“Wet or dry, we’ve been there or thereabouts. I knew if we pieced it all together we had a chance of being in the mix. The lap I pulled out there, I’m not really sure where it came from. But I’ll take it!”

Looking ahead to Sunday, Tordoff will now start alongside another rear-wheel drive machine in Rob Austin’s Audi A4.

He said: “Rob may or may not get past us on the start, but it’s a difficult place to overtake. You give yourself a chance by being up at the front – it’s much better getting around the first lap in P2 than it is P8.

“I’m confident we have got race pace and can at least get on the podium, or even take the win.”