Round 6 - Event Report

Trackday Championship (TDC) headed to Oulton Park for the penultimate round of the 2026 season!

Qualifying:

After a closely fought qualifying it was Matt Swaffer who claimed pole position in the Swaffer Racing #45 BMW, ahead of the #46 Team Air Supply Golf of George and Jack Wright. Rounding out the top three was current Championship leader Michael Rawlings in the #34 Paddock Performance BMW.

Race:

Swaffer made a strong start from pole to claim an early lead, ahead of the Wight and Wright AirSupply Golf. A fast-starting Michael Rawlings, unable to find a way past in the opening stages, had to settle for third on the road through the opening laps. Tylah Motorsports John Lyne made a great start from sixth, moving his Class B #71 Clio into fourth ahead of Ashley Parsons in the #83 Toyota Celica and Nathan McPhail in the #90 Honda Civic. However, Lyne was unable to maintain the position. In Class D, Neil Bullen converted pole in class into the class lead in his #76 Hills Motorsport MX-5, with Jack Hargraves in the #66 MX-5 MK3 settling into second place.

As the opening laps unfolded, the battle at the front remained close, with Swaffer, Wright and Rawlings all trading competitive lap times. Lap 6 saw a decisive move as Rawlings was able to pass the #46 Golf to take second on the road and start chasing down the Swaffer Racing BMW in the lead as the pit window neared.

Class D was slowly coming alive as Hargraves used his consistent pace to take the Class D lead from Bullen just as the pit window opened! Bullen pitting from second in class in an attempt to get the undercut on his Class D rival. The move worked perfectly as when the dust settled from the pit stops Bullen found himself back in the lead of the class. 

The undercut was obviously powerful here, as a late stopping Rawlings was able to leapfrog Swaffer and take the overall lead as the pit cycle unfolded. The battle between the top two remained close, with Parsons now in third in the Class C Toyota Celica, following intermittent fuelling issues in the #46 Wright Golf.

Rawlings and Swaffer traded laps times throughout the closing stages of the race. With Rawlings, ultimately coming out on top, setting the fastest lap of the race with a 1:53.143 before taking the chequered flag and the win. Matt Swaffer finishing just 2.807 seconds behind in second place.

Ashley Parsons continued his strong season with victory in Class C, finishing third overall in the Se7en Motorsport Toyota Celica. Nathan McPhail took second in class, and fourth overall, in the #90 MCS Racing Honda Civic Type R, with the #68 AW Tracksport Honda Civic rounding out the Class C podium.

In Class D, it was Neil Bullen who prevailed in the Hills Motorsport #76 MX-5 MK3 reclaiming the lead from lap 15 through to the finish. Class D championship leader Jack Hargraves came home second in class, in the #66 Boreham Motorsport MX-5 MK3 and secured a healthy haul of points. Steven Orant completed the Class D podium in his #56 STAL Powered for Racing MX-5 MK4.

With the final round at Brands Hatch on Saturday 14^th November next up for TDC, Michael Rawlings now leads the championship provisionally, with Matt Swaffer just 13 points behind!

In Class C, championship honours are within Ashley Parsons' grasp in the Se7en Motorsport / Michael John Flooring Toyota Celica, while the Class D lead remains with Jack Hargraves.

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Photo: Rikki Palmer / Gary Hawkins Photography