NELSON KING ADDS TO WIN TALLY

Nelson King made it eight wins for the season with victory in the second Quaife MINI CHALLENGE Trophy of the weekend at Thruxton.

After a lengthy delay to the racing programme due to an incident in another race, the initial attempt to run the race was brought to a halt on the opening lap after a clash involving Alex Solley, Nathan Edwards and Jonny Sargeant saw Sargeant go off heavily into the tyres between Goodwood and Village.

With time restrictions as a result of the earlier incident, the grid would return to the circuit at the end of the day for what would become the final race of the weekend, with Tom Ovenden starting on pole by virtue of his race one win.

Ovenden was able to hold the lead at the start from Matt Hammond with Jack Byrne holding on to third and Charlie Mann launching a bid for fourth points leader Nelson King heading up to the complex.

Mann was able to make the move stick to grab fourth and then made a bid for third on Byrne at the chicane – nipping ahead with a move around the outside to grab third.

Ovenden and Hammond established a slender lead over the fight for third, with Mann, Byrne and King being joined in the fight by Nicky Taylor and Joe Wiggin.

Byrne was forced to run wide at the chicane on lap two which cost him dearly as King, Taylor and Wiggin all managed to get ahead and demote the rookie back to seventh spot.

With the slipstream in full effect, Hammond was almost pushing Ovenden up Woodham Hill but the pair behind would draw in to ensure that by the end of lap four, it was very much a four way fight for the lead.

King was able to get the inside line into turn one on lap five to slide ahead of Mann, and within a lap, he had the front, getting ahead of the squabbling team-mates ahead to secure the lead.

That came just after Hammond had grabbed the lead from Ovenden, with the former rallycross racer then taking the spot back from his EXCELR8 partner before setting off after King.

Hammond meanwhile would briefly slip behind Mann but soon reclaimed third, with Taylor and Wiggin also involved in the fight as the quartet swapped position.

With time running out before the circuit curfew kicked in, King was able to hold on to secure his eighth win of the campaign ahead of Ovenden, with Hammond taking third spot to round out the podium places.

Mann and Taylor followed behind with Wiggin rounding out the top six; the train of cars dicing for third being covered by little more than a second.

Oliver Meadows took seventh spot having fought his way ahead of a fading Byrne, which ensured he took top rookie honours, with Tyler Lidsey and Frankie Taylor rounding out the top ten.