Round 5 of the Radical SR1 cup was set to be Tom's 3rd appearance of the year for the Team Derby Motorsport University team. A win last time out in the feature race of the year meant that Tom was feeling strong and confident at one of his favourite circuits; Oulton Park GP.
With a Friday test day setting the picture for the race day on Saturday, as always, Tom worked with the team to dial the car in as best as he could around the technical and undulating Oulton Park. Tom commented "our pace on Friday was a shock. The guys and girls have worked so hard in the break prepping the car for it to be as good as it can be and that really showed."
On race day, with good data, Tom found himself the favourite once more for qualifying on pole position. Smartly he joined the circuit right at the back of the pack so he could focus on his own laps. His first flying lap on the cold circuit was a full second clear of anyone else, an absolutely superb performance. In order to get two good lap times in that he needed he pushed again on his second flyer and set a time just 0.1 of a second slower than his previous best. At this point Tom decided to come into the pits in order not to destroy the fragile tyres. With the track going quicker and quicker, Tom decided to go for one more lap as he chased down a group ahead of him. An unbelievable lap of a 1:42.36 seconds meant he was on pole position by almost a second over his next rival, in exactly the same machinery. Tom commented "those were some of the best laps I have ever put together. I felt so at one with the car, it was so compliant and a joy to drive; I loved every second of it."
Race 1 got underway with Tom controlling the pace from the front. As the lights went out, he was edged by 2nd place before holding his line into turn 1. From that point he never looked back. After just 5 laps of racing, his gap was up to almost 5 seconds over the rest of the pack. After setting fastest lap after fastest lap, he kept the gap maintained at around 7 seconds over 2nd place. A faultless race from Tom meant he could cruise to victory with over 8 seconds in hand at the line- his 3rd win on the road this year. He commented "What a race. I felt so comfortable to push right from the start and build a gap. After that I just felt so in control of the race, something you don't experience very often. Thank you so much to the team, you all deserve it."
Race 2 looked to be set for the same outcome until a damper failure took him out of the race. A disappointing end but something unavoidable through the team and himself.
The final round of the Radical SR1 cup will be hosted at Tom's home race at Donington Park on 17th September, where he will be looking to finish where he left off.