A sweet and sour TCR UK event at Croft for Adam Shepherd
The TCR UK event at Croft was another sweet and sour one for Adam Shepherd who won two races – first and third – from the pole position but missed the full sweep when he was excluded from Race 2.
The whole weekend was about the fight between Shepherd and Steven Laidlaw who duelled for the lead in all the races. Laidlaw began badly, spinning out from the lead in Race 1, then he was sent off by Shepherd in Race 2 – which resulted in his rival’s exclusion – and finally crashed while he was leading Race 3.
On top of this, they both collected penalty points: twelve Shepherd and six Laidlaw.
Shepherd has retained the lead in the standings, but Callum Newsham, who inherited the win in Race 2 and finished second in the other two races, has reduced the gap to 19 points.
Race 1 – For the third time this season Shepherd had set the pole, and he started well leading from Newsham and Steven Laidlaw, while Bradley Hutchison passed Sam Laidlaw for P4. During the first lap, Steven Laidlaw spun at the chicane, then went wide on the grass and finally pitted for a tyre change. In lap 3, Alex Jones hit a tyre stack, and the safety car was deployed to put it back into place. Racing resumed in lap 6, and Shepherd built a small gap, while Hutchison and Sam Laidlaw were fighting for P3. Finn Leslie benefited from the duel, joined the pair and overtook Laidlaw on the last lap.
Up front, Newsham closed in on Shepherd who won by only six tenths; behind them Hutchison completed the podium.
Race 2 – Steven Laidlaw’s misfortune in Race 1 resulted in the pole position on the top ten reversed grid, with Harry Bloor alongside him. Laidlaw took the lead at the start; behind him, Newsham and Shepherd advanced to second and third. In lap 3, Shepherd overtook Newsham and began to chase the leader. In lap 6, Shepherd punted Laidlaw into a spin and Laidlaw rejoined at the back, while Shepherd moved into the lead and pulled away from Newsham. Will Beech was running third but fell under pressure from Leslie, who eventually overtook him in lap 9; one lap later Beech lost another place to Sam Laidlaw.
After the race, Shepherd was excluded for the incident with Laidlaw, and Newsham inherited the win.
Race 3 – Shepherd was on pole again thanks to his second-best lap in qualifying, Steven Laidlaw sat in P2. Laidlaw started better and led from Shepherd, Newsham, Sam Laidlaw and Hutchison. During the second lap, Laidlaw lost control and crashed heavily into the tyre wall. The race was red-flagged also to recover Alex Jones’ Volkswagen Golf that had crashed in a separate incident.
At the restart, Leslie’s car was pushed out of the grid due to a technical issue, while Shepherd led from Newsham, Sam Laidlaw and Hutchison. On lap 5, Bloor and Gregory Saunders collided while fighting for P5, with their cars stranded on the gravel the safety car was deployed. Racing resumed on lap 8; Shepherd pulled away towards another win, while Newsham kept Sam Laidlaw at bay to finish second.
The championship’s next event will be at Oulton Park on 4/5 July.
Race 1
- Adam Shepherd (Capture Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 13 laps
- Callum Newsham (JH Racing, Hyundai i30 N), 0.658
- Bradley Hutchison (MPH Racing, CUPRA Leon Competición), 8.087
Race 2
- Callum Newsham (JH Racing, Hyundai i30 N), 15 laps
- Finn Leslie (Power Maxed Racing, Hyundai i30 N), 6.309
- Sam Laidlaw (Area Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 7.898
Race 3
- Adam Shepherd (Capture Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 12 laps
- Callum Newsham (JH Racing, Hyundai i30 N), 2.392
- Sam Laidlaw (Area Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 2.898
Championship points
- A. Shepherd, 347 pts; 2. C. Newsham, 328; 3. Sa. Laidlaw, 299
Picture: TCR UK/Jakob Ebrey
