Points for both Ford drivers in Slovakia

For the second weekend running, both Arena Motorsport Ford drivers scored points in the World Touring Car Championship despite a difficult race meeting for the British team.

Tom Chilton missed out on most of the free practice sessions due to various issues, whilst team-mate James Nash was quick to adapt to the circuit, finishing in the top four in every session in the newly updated Ford Focus S2000 TC.

The Ford was carrying new suspension components this weekend after running with non-homologated parts for the first three rounds of the Championship, which saw them also carry a 30kg weight penalty set by the FIA Touring Car Committee.

Nash qualified in fourth place, but it was discovered in scrutineering that the front bumper had slipped by a few millimetres on the left hand side which meant the car failed the ride height check. Nash was given a ten place drop for the infraction, whilst Tom Chilton qualified 11th, now 10th after the penalty, after only sampling the track in anger for the first time all weekend in the qualifying session.

In race one, both drivers were eliminated on the opening lap in separate incidents, with Nash’s car severely damaged, whilst Chilton was able to retake his grid position and rescue the team a top ten finish.

Nash’s fourth place in qualifying also picked the 26-year-old up two points in the Championship standings with the new points structure this season.

“Every time we’ve been on the track we’ve been in the top four, so I’ve done everything I can,” said Nash to TouringCarTimes.

“We did have the technical infringement which gave us a ten slot grid penalty which puts you in the pack in the melee, which we shouldn’t be in. We had a bit of a tangle with Monteiro, and we both ended up in the gravel.”

“Unfortunately as I was going through the gravel it ripped both of my brake pipes off, I didn’t know that till the next corner, I got up to fourth gear and tried the brakes and there was nothing there.”

Tom Chilton’s weekend was a little better, at least being able to take part in race two as the team were able to repair the car without having to break parc fermé and allow him to take his tenth spot on the grid in the second race.

“Unfortunately I had a few problems with simple 30p sensors breaking and that cost me practice one and practice two, and that put me back a long way from all the other drivers,” Chilton told TouringCarTimes.

“The first race was bad luck, I got a great start, slipstreamed (Alain) Menu, got past Menu and was alongside Huffy. He’s then obviously looking on his inside mirror ‘cos he thought most of the other cars would try and dive up the inside… he then got hit, forced him left but I was already on the left…it’s just one of those things.”

“(In race two) once I got past (Tom) Boardman it was a bit of a boring race for me, but once I got past Boardman my lap times were averaging the fourth fastest car on track and that’s good for literally a brand new car this weekend.”

With the team running their revised suspension this weekend they lost the 30kg penalty and were able to run at a minimum weight (if possible) of 1,130kg, though in the case of Chilton that wasn’t possible due to the difference in weight of the drivers.

“My car was only 1,150kg,” said Chilton. “I couldn’t get down to James (Nash’s car’s) weight of 1,130 because I’m 20 kilos heavier as a driver, so I had to grin and bear that this weekend.”

The team will repair Nash’s car and test at the Slovakiaring before moving on to Budapest this weekend for the fifth meeting of the season.