Newsham tames the rain at Croft as Hall takes his first ever TCR UK victory

TCR UK Touring Car Championship – Rounds 4 & 5
Croft – 2nd & 3rd May 2026

A strong weekend for Callum Newsham, including a win from pole position, took him to within five points of championship leader Jenson O’Neill-Going as TCR UK made its annual visit to Croft in North Yorkshire. But it was Max Hall who had the broadest smile at the end of a wet day’s racing, after taking his maiden victory.

Qualifying

Callum Newsham was seemingly in a class of his own as he continued his qualifying form from the season’s opening round, storming to pole position. Despite carrying 30kg of compensation weight, Newsham’s JH Racing-run Hyundai Elantra was nearly half a second clear of the rest around the 2.1-mile former airfield venue.

Second quickest, his best qualifying position for over 12 months, was Yorkshire local Brad Hutchison. The Capture Motorsport with MPH Racing driver was one of the few not to improve in the second half of the session after picking up some damage. Having set what would remain his best time, Hutchison ran wide at Sunny Out and picked up a puncture which fired him across the grass at the next corner, knocking his CUPRA Leon VZ’s tracking askew.

Lewis Kent showed his liking for the circuit as he put a difficult season-opener behind him to qualify third fastest. His Lynk & Co 03, run by SVG Motorsport, was just 0.03s slower than Hutchison’s CUPRA. Fourth fastest, and best of the Honda Civics, was Max Hall (Hall’s Racing), another 0.05s back.

Harry Bloor (DT Racing Developments) achieved his best-ever qualifying position in fifth overall, just a tenth slower than Hall. Bloor would start alongside the third Civic of Max Hart (ALM with Hall’s), the Irishman competing at Croft for the first time.

With all of the Hondas searching for rear-end grip, two-time champion Carl Boardley (CBM with SVG Motorsport) could only manage seventh fastest after a trip through the gravel at Hawthorne late in the session.

But that was still better than championship leader Jenson O’Neill-Going. Carrying the maximum 40kg of compensation weight after his Brands Hatch success, the Power Maxed Racing Civic was only eighth fastest, just over 1s off the ultimate pace.

The top 10 was completed by a pair of Irishmen. Substituting for good friend Barry-John McHenry, Alastair Kellett (Vannin Motorsport Audi RS3 LMS) went ninth quickest on his TCR debut. The multiple Fiesta champion was 0.1s quicker than Rod McGovern’s Power Maxed Racing CUPRA Leon VZ.

CROFT QUALIFYING RESULT

Round 4 – Race Report

After glorious sunshine on Saturday, the weather took a turn for the worse on race day. If it gave others hope that they would be more able to challenge Newsham, they were to be left disappointed in the opening race.

Hutchison’s hopes evaporated before the race had even started with driveshaft failure on the green-flag lap. Hall would suffer similarly when the lights went out.

A flying start from Kent allowed him to overhaul a slightly more cautious Newsham for the lead exiting the chicane, but the Elantra clearly had more pace. At the end of the second lap, a good exit from Croft’s very tight hairpin allowed Newsham to slingshot into a lead he wouldn’t relinquish.

Behind the lead pair, Hart and Boardley were engaged in a battle for third, but the race was neutralised after Russell Joyce’s Audi RS3 LMS skated into the barriers at the first part of the complex.

The race was red-flagged to enable the clear-up and then restarted behind the safety car. Crucially, the Capture Motorsport and Hall’s Racing teams effected repairs to both Hutchison’s and Hall’s cars in time to allow them to take the restart.

Newsham reeled off the remaining duration, setting the fastest lap on his final tour to earn another point, and secured his second win of the season. He was some 1.4s clear of Kent, who had successfully reverted to a much softer set-up on the Lynk & Co.

Kent withstood significant pressure from Hart in the closing stages as Boardley dropped a couple of seconds back, still a comfortable fourth.

Fifth, earning himself the laurels in both the Goodyear Diamond Award honours for drivers aged 40 and over and the Tom Walker Trophy for drivers who came into the season without a podium finish, was McGovern. He pounced when O’Neill-Going ran wide at the chicane then held off his team-mate to the chequered flag.

Bloor was seventh, ahead of Hutchison, Mark Smith (Capture Motorsport CUPRA) and Hall, who lost a lap taking the restart from the pitlane.

CROFT ROUND FOUR RESULT

Round 5 – Race Report

The travails of Hall and Hutchison in the earlier race at least meant that they benefited from the top-10 reversal used to form the grid for the second contest. It put Hall on pole and Hutchison on the inside of row two.

A fine start from Hutchison jumped him into the lead but, sadly for the Yorkshireman, it didn’t last long. Approaching the Complex for the first time, Hutchison suffered another driveshaft failure and he cruised in to retire. It was a cruel end to a weekend that had promised so much.

Hall swept past with the fast-starting O’Neill-Going in tow while Hart and Boardley tussled for third and Newsham quickly climbed to fifth from 10th on the grid. One of Newsham’s victims was McGovern, who was further demoted by both Kent and Bloor on lap three of an eventual 12.

McGovern attempted to retaliate at the Complex but appeared to be caught out by Bloor’s wet-weather line. The CUPRA tagged the back of the Honda and pitched it into the tyre wall. Bloor’s race was over and safety car was called.

Fifth in the queue and with a closed-up field in front, Newsham would have been fancying his chances. But, as racing was about to resume, his Elantra was hit with gear-selection issues. Newsham was forced to pit and, in the process, Kent and the others behind were slightly delayed, giving the top four a break.

O’Neill-Going made a better restart than the leader but Hall was able to rebuff his challenge which ended up with his fellow young gun having to focus more on those behind than in front.

Hall went to win by 1.73s and was clearly delighted to have secured his maiden win. O’Neill-Going could be very satisfied with second as he retained the points lead, knowing that his car will shed some weight for the next round at Snetterton in July. The result also won him the Tom Walker Trophy section.

Boardley withstood Hart’s challenge to secure his second podium of the season as he continues to get to grips with the Honda. Kent, fifth, was also on their tail by the end of the race.

Mark Smith matched his best-ever result in TCR UK in sixth, beating McGovern to success in the Goodyear Diamond Award. McGovern, seventh, was shadowed home by Kellett. The latter had experienced a challenging day, his first wet running in the Audi. Clutch failure and a spin eventually ended his first race, and he struggled to get the car off the line in race two. But he finished less than a second behind McGovern.

After a couple of visits to the pits, Newsham returned to limp around in fifth gear and secure points for finishing ninth overall. It means he trails O’Neill-Going by five points in the standings, with Hart a further 15 adrift.

CROFT ROUND FIVE RESULT

Driver quotes

Round 4 winner, Callum Newsham

“That was not easy [in the wet conditions]. Every lap I was spinning the fronts of out of the hairpin. That was where I was struggling, in the last sector.

“That was some scary, scary stuff out the back there!”

Round 5 winner, Max Hall

“That’s the way I like it – that’s dream conditions for me!

“I kind of messed up the restart, to be honest. I wheelspun a bit so everyone caught me up. Me and Jenson had a good battle and I just built the lead from there.”

Championship positions after Croft

Next time – Snetterton

The 2026 TCR UK Touring Car Championship takes its Summer break early, returning to action at Snetterton in Norfolk on Saturday 11th July and Sunday 12th July.

In 2025, Snetterton provided a thrilling weekend of racing in both dry and wet conditions, playing its part as another exciting chapter for the 2025 TCR UK Drivers Title fight. It’s also the home to the start of TCR vs Trucks, where we had our first event alongside the British Truck Racing Championship.

With five rounds completed, we’ll be in Norfolk for rounds six and seven of the 2026 season, where we’ll rejoin the British Truck Racing Championship alongside an action-packed support programme.

You can purchase tickets for the next event of the 2026 season at Snetterton from their website:
https://www.snetterton.co.uk/2026/july/british-truck-racing-championship

To find out more about the TCR UK Touring Car Championship, visit https://www.tcr-uk.co.uk/ for more information and how to get involved.

To learn more about the 2026 TCR UK Touring Car Championship Calendar events, visit https://www.tcr-uk.co.uk/2026-calendar/ for more information.