Adam Shepherd tops interrupted TCR UK qualifying at Thruxton
Area Motorsport’s Adam Shepherd claimed pole position for the opening race of the TCR UK weekend at Thruxton despite a continuation of a refuelling issue with his Cupra León from the previous round at Silverstone.
Shepherd set a best time of 1m22.500 in a session that was interrupted with two minutes remaining due to Stewart Lines coming to a halt on track with a mechanical problem.
The session restarted but a further yellow flag at the chicane ensured nobody was able to set a final lap-time, leaving Shepherd on pole.
“We have got a bit of a fuelling issue with the car that we picked up at Silverstone and we’re not really sure what it is or how to fix it,” said Shepherd post-session.
“It’s been there since the Silverstone, where we got a whack in the rear so we just put 100 litres of fuel in the car at the start of the session.
“I’m a bit worried to be honest; it’s good to get pole but we still need to fix it.”
Early morning drizzle made conditions particularly challenging for the drivers as the track was drying but not enough to make the switch to slick tyres.
Callum Newsham was the first to set a representative time in his Hyundai i30 N TCR, going quickest on a 1m22.663 which proved good enough to secure second on the grid given the late red flag stoppage.
Those banker laps early in the session were, indeed, crucial, with reigning champion Carl Boardley improving on his second real attempt to go third quickest.
Behind, it was a battle of the Laidlaws as Steve Laidlaw was fourth ahead of Sam, while Brad Hutchison ended up sixth on the grid in his Cupra.
Lines brought out the red flag with just over two minutes remaining in the session, as his Hyundai came to a stop. This forced everyone back into the pits, affecting Boardley in particular having just fitted a new set of wet tyres.
As it turned out, the entire field would be affected in the end, as a further yellow flag for an Audi stopped at the chicane meant none of the cars could make it back round to start a final lap, thus confirming the grid.
Darron Lewis will start seventh in his Hyundai, ahead of Will Beech and Lines, with Rick Kerry completing the top 10.
Race one is scheduled to take place later on today at 13:35 BST (14:35 CEST), with conditions set to improve significantly.
