TOCA support championships serve up Thruxton thriller

The ultra-fast sweeping corners of Thruxton Circuit proved to be a fitting challenge for the TOCA support package this past weekend (May 18/19) as four championships served up a feast of entertainment.

In what was a slightly different look to the supporting cast of the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship in Hampshire, a bumper crowd lined the spectator bankings to witness the latest chapter of each category unfold.

As expected, the Michelin Ginetta Junior Championship served up a breathless two races with Will Martin and James Hedley taking a win apiece. Martin was the teenager to beat in race one as he survived an early challenge from a raft of drivers to break clear of the pack and power towards a commanding victory.

With two wins to his name already, Hedley added to his tally in a back-and-forth second race as he scrapped with impressive rookie Zak O’Sullivan, ultimately getting the better of him to take the chequered flag by a mere three tenths of a second.

The Protyre Motorsport Ginetta GT5 Challenge made the first of its two appearances on the TOCA package and didn’t disappoint. Geri Nicosia continued his love affair with the ultra-fast Hampshire venue as he enjoyed further success.

Storming to the front of the field after starting seventh, Nicosia powered on to his third win in five races at Thruxton – heading the duelling duo of Scott McKenna and Ruben del Sarte.

Last year’s Ginetta Junior champion Adam Smalley offered up a reminder of what can do behind the wheel on the TOCA package in race two as he clinched his third win of the season to round out the weekend’s action.

Taking centre stage over the course of the weekend was the Mini Se7en Racing Club, which wowed crowds across all four races on its guest appearance. Providing exhilarating door-to-door thrills at every opportunity, the iconic tin tops of yesteryear rolled back the years in sensational style.

In the Dunlop Mini Se7en Challenge supported by Mini Spares, Darren Thomas claimed victory in the opening encounter ahead of Joe Thompson and Dom Burger. Thomas made it two from two in the second race of the weekend live on ITV4, narrowly pipping Burger and Andrew Deviny.

The faster Dunlop Mini Miglia Challenge supported by Mini Spares also had fans on the edge of their seats with Chris Morgan pipping Kane Astin and Aaron Smith to overall honours in race one.

Having just missed out on the podium in race one, Nick Padmore bounced back in the second encounter to top the podium as he led Morgan and Lee Deegan across the line.

Capping off the weekend’s action was a trio of races from the F4 British Championship certified by FIA – Powered by Ford EcoBoost with the spoils shared between Luke Browning and Zane Maloney, the latter winning twice.

For the full classification of results from all sessions, click here.

The TOCA support package will return to full strength on June 15/16 as the Millers Oils Ginetta GT4 Supercup, Renault UK Clio Cup and Porsche Carrera Cup GB are all back in action alongside the Michelin Ginetta Junior Championship and F4 British Championship certified by FIA – Powered by Ford EcoBoost at Croft.

Tickets for the fourth event of the season, held in North Yorkshire, are available to purchase online from http://croftcircuit.co.uk/racing/btcc.