Puncture fails to deter Newsham
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DAVE Newsham recovered from an unfortunate puncture in race one to record two top 10 finishes in the latest rounds of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.
After picking up much-needed points last time out at Oulton Park, Inverness-based driver Newsham went into rounds 13, 14 and 15 at Croft, near Darlington, encouraged by that performance.
His chances, however, nearly came to an end in practice as heavy rain meant he slid off the track, but without doing any notable damage.
The first session was a write-off for Newsham, although he quickly regrouped and showed his pace in session two, finishing eighth fastest.
It was a dry track that greeted the drivers for qualifying and Newsham quickly found himself 10th overall before switching to a new set of slick tyres.
Unfortunately for him, the rain began to come down again and this dropped the 43-year-old back to 14th, although there was the consolation that this was Newsham’s highest qualifying position so far this season.
Opting for slick tyres at the front and wet at the back, Newsham went into race one looking to make his way through the field, but vibrations coming from his car were not an encouraging sign.
Debris on the track had resulted in his car picking up a puncture and being forced into having to make an early trip to the pits, Newsham finished last of all, relegating him down to 19th for race two.
Determined to make up for his misfortune, Newsham made an unbelievable start to race two, passing seven cars on the opening lap.
Two more places were quickly gained as Newsham bravely thundered through the puddles on the track far quicker than some others who were remaining slightly cautious.
His courage was rewarded by moving up to seventh place and he quickly set his sights on closing the nine-second gap on the pack of cars in front of him.
Newsham managed to claw them back, but he had also been caught by Nick Foster, who on the penultimate corner managed to overtake Newsham and push him back into eighth
“I really enjoyed that race,” said Newsham. “We had good pace, setting the fourth fastest time when the tyres were good and being one of the quickest at the end of the race too. I was struggling for grip, but obviously less so than the guys ahead of me.
“It’s just a pity Nick got me on the final corner, as I would have had pole position for race three.
“However, I was proud of my drive. I think I proved to people that I will be a force to be reckoned with given a little more time.’’
Changes were made to Newsham’s car for the third race in order to try and give him some extra speed, but an indifferent start saw him pushed back down the grid.
Newsham did not seem to be getting the benefits of the supposed improvements, yet he battled away gamely to finish in 10th.
The four points achieved at Croft leave Newsham 17th overall in the standings on nine points as he prepares for a break before the next event at Snetterton on Sunday 7th August.
