Daryl DeLeon scored his first Jack Sears Trophy round victory on what was a hard-fought day of racing for WSR in the British Touring Car Championship at the series’ fastest circuit, Thruxton.
The Cambridgeshire 19-year-old, who took a maiden overall race win at Brands Hatch in May, was on strong raceday form at the Hampshire speedbowl. He secured his best Thruxton BTCC finish with 10th spot in Race One and bettered it with ninth in Race Two.
Forced to drive his BMW 330i M Sport off-track at the Complex to avoid his WSR stablemate Charles Rainford being rammed by another driver, he lost ground but did recover to finish 14th.
He also recorded three second-place finishes in the Jack Sears Trophy (JST), giving him the event win and an increased 19-point advantage in the category standings over Charles.
Charles’ raceday was one of constant recovery after he was spun at Race One’s opening corner by a rival and fell to the back of the order.
The Horsham racer recovered to 17th by the chequered flag and continued his progress to take 11th in Race Two. His contact at the hands of another driver in Race Three required a pitstop and resulted in a frustrating 19th-place finish.
His LKQ team-mate Aiden Moffat drove to three points finishes as the Edinburgh racer fought hard in the midfield.
Aiden’s recovery from 20th to 14th made him the biggest gainer in Race One and he added 12th and 13th spots in the races that followed.
Reigning champion Jake Hill was similarly frustrated as he battled to sixth and fifth-place finishes in Races One and Two.
Taking the lead in the finale from the second row of the partially-reversed grid, he was denied a strong result when contact from another car pushed him off the track and caused an unplanned pitstop to remove debris from his BMW’s radiator.
He is fifth in the Drivers’ Championship as the series prepares to head to Oulton Park – the scene of one of Jake’s finest victories last year – in a fortnight.
Daryl DeLeon, WSR, said: “I’m really happy to have won the Jack Sears Trophy here – the first time I’ve done it over a full weekend. I took a different approach here, have learnt loads and really progressed myself as a driver. I’ve had a 10th, a ninth and a 14th. Unfortunately, I had to go off to avoid an incident in the last race. I can’t wait for Oulton Park.”
Jake Hill, Laser Tools Racing with WSR, said: “We’ve been all aboard the struggle bus this weekend; all four of us. The BMW was okay in all three races, but it’s been hard to race against some of the other cars due to the straightline speed deficit we have to them. The chassis felt good in the high-speed sections, but on the straights it was tough. I can’t wait for Oulton Park.”
Charles Rainford, LKQ Euro Car Parts with WSR, said: “Unfortunately we’ve been really unlucky today. I was taken out at the start of Race One so started last for Race Two, fought my way back to 11th – which is where I qualified – and then got taken out of Race Three as well, so to say that I’m deflated is an understatement. We were looking forward to here and had some good pace in the dry on Saturday. Bring on Oulton Park – a place I love.”
Aiden Moffat, LKQ Euro Car Parts with WSR, said: “Thruxton’s all about taking risks and we sure took one today. Anything could have happened, especially bouncing over the kerbs through Church. Straightline speed was an issue all weekend. The BMW felt good over one lap but getting the set-up right to protect the rear tyres wasn’t easy. I’m not sorry to see the back of this place for another year.”
Dick Bennetts, Team Principal, said: “It’s been a big challenge today at a track where we knew the speed difference between ourselves and some of the other cars would show up. All four BMW drivers have had to dig deep and most of them have been victims of rivals’ driving. Daryl’s Jack Sears Trophy win has been the high point and it’s very satisfying that both he and Charles now have a round win to their name this year.”
