Accidents and incidents in Jack Sears Trophy fight

Consistency will be key to the battle for Jack Sears Trophy honours this season if a slightly chaotic Donington Park weekend is anything to go by.

The battle for the Super 2000 cars looked for all the world to be dominated by James Kaye in the AmD Tuning Volkswagen Golf, but as at Brands Hatch, fate intervened.

After dominating race one, a startline crash with David Nye’s Welch Motorsport Ford Focus put the pair out of race two, and the high levels of attrition meant Lea Wood won the race by being the only finisher in the class, in his JWT Performance Vauxhall Vectra.

And a third winner in three races came in the shape of Joe Girling, who took the flag in his Finesse Motorsport Chevrolet Cruze, after Kaye ran into trouble in his patched-up Golf.

“We have not had much luck over the weekend so to come out in race three, start at the back and get some silverware is a great reward for the guys who put the car together,” Girling told TouringCarTimes.

“I think if you look at the timing screens, every lap we have been getting quicker and quicker. It’s coming steadily, but I would rather build it steadily than risk throwing the car off.

“It is completely different from what I am used to. Nothing can prepare you for this. It is a high level, professional motorsport and I’m really enjoying it.”

Wily campaigner Kaye took his bad luck in his stride.

Speaking about his second race crash, he said: “It is very disappointing. The accident started when Liam Griffin’s engine cut out, and at the same time one of the Audis ran into the side of David Nye, who ran into the side of me.

“All the stars came together at once. There was nobody to blame. It is a shame because the car is good. But that’s motor racing!”