Lucas Oils Team Geriatric driver Tony Lynch was able to secure the MSA British SuperNationalRallycross Championship lead during the unique double header event held at Pembrey in Wales over the May Bank Holiday weekend.
“It was a bit of a weird weekend at Pembrey with both finals being red-flagged as they were, and while it’s a shame that we missed out on a possible win as a result, it’s fantastic to hit the half way point of the season leading the championship standings,” said Lynch.
The Wigan racer was looking to improve on the impressive second place that he scored at the previous round at Lydden Hill in Kent as he learns to find the full potential of his new car for 2016, the Ford Ka. Lynch began well in the difficult conditions that account for round three which was held in the reverse direction of the circuit. Lynch was able to qualify third quickest after the heats and then went on to secure victory in his semi-final, which secured him a spot in the final. Issues with visibility in the KA saw him slip back to fourth place before the race was red-flagged, with officials instead taking the result from the last completed lap, which meant that the Team Geriatric driver would be classified in third place.
Round four saw conditions improve across the day and Lynch also looked to improve on his podium position from the previous days action. The Wigan racer ended the three Qualifying rounds in fourth place which gave him a spot in the Semi-Final where he took victory to secure a spot in the SuperNational Final. However in the Final itself, Lynch elected to take his joker after lap one, but the Final itself witnessed a stoppage which meant on countback he would be classified in second place.
“The boys did a great job as usual to prepare the car for Monday and having put myself in a good position for the final, I was able to break away at the front and had built a big lead so I decided to take the joker lap early. Unfortunately, when they then stopped the race and took the result back to the end of the first lap, it meant I dropped behind someone who hadn’t taken the joker, so what looked like being the right strategy call actually worked against me,” Lynch explained.
“I can’t be too disappointed however given that I’m now leading the championship, which is a real reward for the guys who have put in so much work on the car so far this season, and also great for the sponsors who have once again shown us fantastic support.”