Cambridge V8 driver Nick Ross, has finished sixth overall in the 2016/17 BNT NZ Touring Car Championship following the final round held at Hampton Downs over the weekend.
With wet conditions hampering the efforts of competitors at the North Waikato circuit, Ross qualified his Total Lubricants Nissan Altima in fourth position, and went on to finish third in the first race of the weekend.
Race two of the weekend saw him also start from fourth position on the grid, where he lead for all of the race until a dramatic last lap incident with fellow competitor Simon Evans.
The engine in the Total Lubricants Nissan Altima had been cutting out during the race, allowing Evans to stay right on the rear bumper of Ross.
The engine cut out into turn one on the final lap due to a faulty sensor causing Evans to collide with Ross, sending the Holden Commodore of Evans skyward in spectacular fashion.
“That was a big incident, I could see the entire under tray of Simon’s car in my side mirror. Unfortunately after the hit the computer shut the engine down which was a shame because I was confident I could have held on for the win in that one,” said Ross.
In the third race of the weekend weather conditions were changeable. Starting from the front of the field, the team took the gamble to start race with slicks tyres while everyone else was on wets.
Ross lead for part of the race, before a red flag was called for an on track incident.
Following the restart and after a flurry of pit stops by other competitors, Ross still on slick tyres found himself catching the front-runners. Another collision with some slower competitors caused Ross to spin, and eventually was classified in 12th position after damage slowed the car.
Summarising his season, Ross had mixed emotions.
“If I were to summarise the season, there are positives. The car is fast. We’ve demonstrated that we can mix it up the front with the top bunch and challenge for wins and podiums on a regular basis.”
“Ahead of next season we will completely strip car and rebuild it to make it more reliable so we can fight for the championship from the start.”
Nick Ross, the TOTAL Lubricants Nissan Altima and Concept Motorsport will again be supported this season by TOTAL Lubricants, Jim Wright Nissan, RYCO 24•7, C&R Developments, Team Wino, Auto Trail Ltd, 82C, Cambridge Hire Centre and Tyre Traders.