Jenson O’Neill-Going fends off Max Hart for race two win

Jenson O’Neill-Going held off race long pressure from Max Hart to score his maiden TCR UK win in the second race of the weekend at Brands Hatch.

The reverse grid race kicked off with Jeff Alden and Mark Smith sharing the front row of the grid, but with a number of quicker drivers starting towards the back after issues in race one – including the likes of Max Hall and defending champion Callum Newsham.

As in race one, the start was far from clean as Barry-John McHenry failed to get away but the rest of the field was able to avoid the Audi as he slowly crawled off the line.

Alden led the field off the line but on the run up to Paddock Hill Bend his Hyundai started to slow and was he overhauled by the field on the run up to Druids, with Mark Smith taking the lead.

However, on the exit of the corner, Smith was tipped into a spin by O’Neill-Going, who had taken advantage of the issues for McHenry on the line slowing others up to vault up the order despite having started back in eighth.

Further down the order, Carl Boardley suffered a spin that left him stuck on the edge of the circuit, with the safety car called out onto the the circuit.

Boardley was able to get his car moving and returned to the pits, alongside Alden, the safety car continuing to circulate due to fluid on the circuit.

When the action resumed, O’Neill-Going led the way from Rod McGovern and Hart, with Brad Hutchison fourth and Russell Joyce fifth – although he was quickly overhauled by Callum Newsham and race one winner Jac Constable at the restart.

Hart, Hutchison and Newsham wasted little time in getting ahead of McGovern before Constable also overhauled the man who he had battled with throughout race one to move up into fifth.

With the two Hondas at the front running on a similar pace, Hutchison and Newsham started to slowly reel in the leaders, with Newsham putting the Cupra ahead under pressure at Clark Curve, albeit without being able to find a way past.

The fight between the pair however gave some breathing space to the two cars ahead, leaving two separate battles for position and then a gap back to Constable in fifth as the field started to spread out.

Newsham eventually managed to get ahead into third on the 15th lap as Hart made his bid for the lead, trying to go around the outside of O’Neill-Going at Druids but put a wheel onto the grass on the outside and was forced to back out of the move.

Hart continued to put the teenager under pressure as the pair went into the final lap but O’Neill-Going held on to take the win – on the road at least – in a Honda 1-2, with Newsham taking the flag in third.

Hutchison dropped away from Newsham after being overhauled by the Hyundai but was comfortably clear of Constable’s Audi, with Hall coming through to sixth by the finish from the back of the grid.

McGovern took seventh from Harry Bloor, with Jenson Mason and Lewis Kent rounding out the top ten, the latter after his team worked until the early hours to repair his damaged Lynk & Co.