MAX HALL AND HALLS RACING CLAIM MAIDEN TCR UK VICTORY AT CROFT

May 8
3 min read

Max Hall produced a wet weather masterclass at Croft Circuit this past weekend (May 2-3) to clinch both his and Halls Racing’s maiden victory in the TCR UK Championship.

On what proved to be a groundbreaking outing for the new squad at the North Yorkshire venue, Hall mastered the treacherous conditions in race two to triumph, while team-mate Max Hart also picked up silverware after tallying a third place finish in a damp opening encounter.

Having shown plenty of pace and potential during last month’s curtain-raiser at Brands Hatch, the Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR duo arrived at Croft quietly confident of challenging for front-running honours - and that’s exactly what they did during qualifying on Saturday afternoon.

In what proved to be a hotly contested battle for pole position in dry conditions, Hall led the line for the team as he punched in a time good enough to secure a spot on the second row of the grid, while Irishman Hart put himself in contention by bagging sixth overall.

Greeted by persistent rain and wind at the track on Sunday morning, the team ended up enduring a rollercoaster opening encounter around the challenging 2.100-mile circuit.

As the lights went out, Hall saw his hopes of a potential podium immediately disappear as his front-wheel-drive machine suffered a driveshaft failure, all of which resulted in him having to hobble back to the pit lane.

Up at the front, Hart’s launch off the line had seen him quickly progress into fourth, and that soon became third just a lap or so later. Not content though, the TCR Europe competitor remained a constant threat to the top two but he was unable to find a way past, ultimately settling for third.

Following a herculean effort in the pit lane, Hall was able to rejoin the fray late on and his re-introduction to the bout proved to be crucial as it allowed him to finish tenth overall, which in-turn clinched the reverse grid pole position for race two.

With a clear road ahead of him, Hall made arguably his best start of the season in the weekend’s finale however an even better launch for Brad Hutchinson behind meant that the former Junior Saloon Car Championship title winner initially dropped to second.

The Bristolian would be second for less than a lap however as a fine overtake as the field streamed into the Complex for the first time saw him reclaim the lead, and from that moment on he didn’t look back.

Punching in consistent lap times throughout the remaining laps, Hall was peerless out front and charged to victory for the very first time in TCR UK. Behind, Hart enjoyed a race-long battle with fellow Honda driver Carl Boardley to net fourth overall - capping off a fine weekend for him.

Max Hall: “What an incredible win - I’m absolutely over the moon. I absolutely love those conditions and I knew that once I could get out front that I could control things. I had a good battle with Jenson (O’Neill Going) early on but managed to break clear and bring it home.

“Brands Hatch was a tough one for us but to bounce back in this way here is incredible. I’ve got to say a massive thank you the entire Halls Racing team for all their efforts and of course our sponsors for their brilliant support.”