Lynch readies for overseas adventure

Wigan racer Tony Lynch will seek to maintain his lead in the Supernational Championship standings when the MSA British Rallycross Championship in association with ODYSSEY Batteries heads overseas for the fifth round of the year.

Westhoughton-based Tony and his Lucas Oil Team Geriatric team will leave their base on Thursday for the long trip to the Maasmechelen circuit in Belgium, which returns to the series calendar this weekend for the first time since the 2013 season.

Whilst the challenging circuit is one that hasn’t been kind to Tony in the past, he makes the journey this time around in confident mood after an impressive season to date at the wheel of his new Ford KA.

Although he has yet to take a victory this year, a run of three successive podium finishes means Tony currently holds a slender three point lead in the standings heading into the second half of the campaign.

The long break since round four has provided Tony and his team with the opportunity to go over the KA with a fine-toothed comb; with extensive work being carried out to ensure the car is at its best for the trip to Europe.

That included a special pre-event shakedown with Julian Godfrey Motorsport to aid preparations for this weekend’s meeting; something that leaves Tony in optimistic mood about his chances on track.

“Given how late the programme with the KA came together, we’ve never really had chance to sit down and really go through the car before this small break,” Tony said, “so we’ve been really busy in the time since Pembrey working on it and trying to gain a better understanding of what makes it tick.

“The boys have done a fantastic job in recent weeks to work though the long list of things we wanted to do, and it’s no exaggeration to say that the car should now be the best it’s been all season this weekend.

“I certainly feel confident about what we can achieve, particularly having had the additional input from Julian Godfrey this week to help with the set-up. To have that knowledge and experience at our disposal was great, and hopefully it will be reflected in our performance on track.

“Although Maasmechelen is a circuit that hasn’t always given me the best results in the past, I feel this is the weekend where we can put that right and as the man to beat in the championship, my only target can be to challenge for victory and push hard to keep my advantage out front.”