Andy Neate left on the sidelines after half a lap

Andy Neate said he couldn’t put his disappointment into words after being forced out of the Rockingham meeting after just half a racing lap.

IP Tech Race team owner Neate was driving in his second meeting in his new Chevrolet Cruze, after Clio Cup regular Mike Bushell impressed in the NGTC machine at Knockhill.

Neate was optimistic ahead of the weekend, with the team running a comparable level of turbo boost to their rivals.

But electrical gremlins in qualifying limited Neate to 22nd on the grid, and he was out of the race at Gracelands after clouting the stationary Proton Persona of Dan Welch head-on.

Unsighted by the Vauxhall Insignia of Howard Fuller, Neate couldn’t avoid Welch’s car when Fuller suddenly swerved to avoid the stricken Proton.

The damage was too great to be repaired at the circuit, leaving the team with no option but to withdraw from the remaining two races.

Neate said: “That’s one of those weekends where I really don’t know what to say. Heading to Rockingham we were really confident about what we could achieve and with the increased boost, we were keen to show people what the car is capable of on a level playing field.

“The electrical issue on Saturday put us on the back foot but I got away well when race one started and made up a few places before Deene.

“Someone then hit me meaning I lost those places again and then when I got to Gracelands, it all kicked off in front of me.

“I had nowhere to go and I can’t put into words how disappointing it is after everything the team has put into repairing the car after the damage we sustained at Knockhill. We’ll go away and regroup ahead of Silverstone.”