Speed king Joe is on the right track

MAKING HIS MARK . . . Joe Cruttenden on track at the Knockhill circuit

RACE ace Joe Cruttenden secured his best result of his career when taking a class podium spot in the MG Trophy Championship at Knockhill Race Circuit in Scotland.

In just his inaugural year in the sport, the JDC Racing Team driver took his A&D Appliances Oldham-backed MG ZR to a season-best third in Class 'C' during the final race of the weekend.

Along with his fourth spot in the opener, Cruttenden now sits third in class and 10th overall in the hotly-contested single-make formula.

RALLIES

The 27-year-old is enjoying his first season behind the wheel of a racing car, having previously been involved in Autograss and latterly co-driving in rallies across Europe.

The MG Trophy Championship headed North of the border for rounds seven and eight with the Fife track providing a unique "switch" feature of racing around both directions of the circuit during the weekend.

Cruttenden's times tumbled during the first qualifying session, and he ended up fifth in class, although just one second covered the gap to third.

Contact on lap four stunted progress, but a mature drive over the closing stages saw him claw his way back up to fourth in class by the chequered flag.

Sunday's race saw a shift to the traditional clockwise direction, and Cruttenden had to settle for fourth on the grid.

In traditional Knockhill fashion, the weather played its part with a downpour minutes before the start.

SLICKS

Cruttenden still opted for slicks which eventually proved to be the correct decision as it soon became a drying track.

An early safety car helped close the field and the rookie kept the pressure on the front-runners in the class. With seven laps to go, Cruttenden made his move on the final hairpin to take third, a place he would hold for his best result in the sport to date.

"Knockhill is one of the hardest circuits to master and to come here and secure my best result this season is pretty overwhelming," said Cruttenden.

The series returns at Oulton Park in September.