Photo: PSP Images

Tom Ingram ends 2017 as top qualifier

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Tom Ingram has praised his Speedworks Motorsport team after ending the 2017 BTCC season with the best qualifying record on the grid.

Although he didn’t manage to qualify on pole all season, Ingram’s consistency saw him end the year with the best average starting position (based on qualifying sessions only) of 5.7, putting him just ahead of Honda’s Matt Neal.

Ingram’s best qualifying result during the season would be second on the grid at both Brands Hatch Indy and Silverstone, with his worst performance being at Croft where he was 15th in the session shortened by the accident that would rule Jeff Smith and Luke Davenport out of the remainder of the season.

“It’s really cool to end the year as the best qualifier,” Ingram said. “Apart from at Brands Hatch back in April, we’ve carried weight into every meeting so it shows that we can be quick even when we’ve had ballast onboard.

“That’s something that is a credit to the team for the work they’ve done on the Toyota, and I think we can be proud to have such a strong record.”

Neal ended the year with two pole positions to his name and could well have ended the year on top of the qualifying averages had it not been for his below-par 21st on the grid at Knockhill, with Colin Turkington topping the averages going into the final weekend only to slip to third as a result of his 17th place on the grid for the season finale.

Eurotech’s Jack Goff – with a season high three pole positions – was fourth best qualifier ahead of title hopeful Ash Sutton and the outgoing champion Gordon Shedden.

The top six drivers were the only full season drivers to have an average lower than ten.

Jeff Smith had been course to also match them with an average starting position of 9.0 before the Croft incident.

At the other end of the scale, Motorbase driver Martin Depper would end the campaign with the highest qualifying average amongst those drivers to compete in all ten rounds, with a best of 23rd at Silverstone and a worst of 32nd at Oulton Park leaving him with an average of 28.00.