Having qualified fourth for the opening round of the Radical SR1 Cup at Oulton Park, RAW’s Julian Lay had a possible podium in his sights from the days two races.“I wasn’t sure where I had qualified, but I had a spin at the Brittens chicane, but the car is great,” he said, and team mate Gavin McAlpine was delighted with his time, “I was quicker, the car was quicker, new tyres were quicker and it’s great,” he said after taking 11th best time. Race 1: But it was a disappointing start as Lay slipped to sixth on the opening lap, with McAlpine just outside the top 10. Lay had been chasing Ross Elliot for a number of laps, but when his rival then entered into a duel for fourth, there was drama on the horizon.
With both of the fourth placed duellists spinning off independently on lap eight, Lay was suddenly back into fourth, where he remained for the rest of the race. “I don’t know what happened at the start, but they just went passed me,” he said.McAlpine’s hopes of a top 10 were dashed too, “I spun at the Shell Hairpin, but managed to keep going. I just need to find a little more,” he insisted after finishing 12th.
Race 2: For the second race Lay was starting in third and McAlpine 11th as they came to the grid, but once again the opening lap proved costly. Lay had fallen to seventh and was in that position when the safety car intervened after four laps. Three laps later the green flag was waved for a three lap sprint to the flag. Despite securing his fastest lap of the race on the last lap, he was still seventh at the flag. For McAlpine a place gained on the opening lap was enough to secure his top 10 target, as he retained the place throughout.
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