Tom Oliphant has brought the first half of his maiden Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship campaign to a close on a high as he secured a pair of points finishes at Croft at the weekend.
Tarporley racer Oliphant would enjoy his strongest overall race-day of the season so far in North Yorkshire, with a hat-trick of top sixteen finishes in front of the live ITV4 television cameras having included his fourth and fifth points scoring results of the campaign.
It could have been even better for Oliphant had he not been handed a 9.5 second penalty by stewards following the race having been deemed to have gained an unfair advantage during proceedings in the final race.
“While the penalty in the final race is immensely frustrating, it has otherwise been another really positive weekend, with our strongest trio of race results so far this season showing the continued progress we’re making in my first season in the series.
“We headed into the weekend knowing that our car was going to struggle up against the rear-wheel drive machinery, but we put together a strong package and I was able to work my way up the order over the course of the three races.
“I enjoyed some really good, clean battles out on track and it was great to be able to bring the car home in pristine condition after each race. Three more full races under my belt is crucial experience that will only serve me well heading into the second half of the year.
“I’ve really enjoyed the opening five meetings of the season; the whole BTCC experience has been awesome. The Ciceley Motorsport team have done a fantastic job, we’ve made big strides forward so far and I’m confident we can enjoy some real standout results after the summer.”
Following a five week summer break, the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship returns to action at Snetterton on July 28/29.
Delamere racer Andy Meyrick meanwhile had to endure a mixed weekend with his Bullitt Racing team at Misano in Italy.
After practice being predominantly rained-out, Meyrick put on a strong performance in Saturday’s qualifying, putting the Mercedes-AMG GT4 fourth on the grid for Saturday’s race.
Starting in fourth, Meyrick expertly navigated traffic and took the lead early on in his stint.
Shortly before the end of his stint, an incident for which Meyrick had no responsibility, pushed him back to sixth in class before handing over to team owner and co-driver, Stephen Pattrick.
Luck was not on the team’s side and a further on-track incident meant the race finished early for the team on lap 22.
“It wasn’t the weekend we were hoping for”, said Meyrick.
“We had moments that showed how far we’ve come this year with the Mercedes, but unfortunately we weren’t able to secure the results. I feel optimistic for Spa (next month) though. Hopefully the weather will cooperate, Stephen and I will get some practice time in and we’ll be on the podium.”
