Challenger 'heartbroken' after twist in title chase

After executing 1 of the comebacks of the season, Jordan Cox has been dealt a decent stroke to his TCR Australia Series rubric hopes.

The Garry Rogers Motorsport operator started his play astatine the SpeedSeries play finale successful unusual manner erstwhile helium and teammate James Moffat collided successful qualifying.

Neither operator acceptable a thigh time, meaning they started from the rear of the field.

Stan Sport is the lone spot to ticker the 2022 SpeedSeries. All the enactment streaming ad-free, unrecorded and connected demand

Jordan Cox leads Luke King into Forest Elbow. (Jack Martin)

Cox went connected to tempest done the field, yet finishing ninth.

That gave Cox a front-row commencement successful his Peugeot 308 for the 2nd contention courtesy of the apical 10 reverse grid.

However, overnight, it was determined a walk that Cox had made connected Hyundai i30 N operator Luke King precocious successful the portion was implicit the line.

Contact betwixt them resulted successful harm to King's car, forcing him to the pit lane and to retire.

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Instead of finishing ninth, Cox coiled up 14th aft a five-second penalty. Instead of a 35-point margin, that's blown retired to 51 points. 

Will Brown present sits 2nd successful the drivers' standings, 49 points adrift.

Cox admitted aft the contention that helium needed to marque the move.

At the time, King and Cox were 10th and 11th respectively, making the walk each the much important for the latter.

Jordan Cox onboard his Peugeot 308. (Jack Martin)

However, they were each fixed a spot erstwhile Jay Hanson crashed retired of second.

"It's massive," a downbeat Cox told Stan Sport's Greg Rust.

"It's heartbreaking to person a determination similar that. It hurts. We were successful with a bully shot. 

"We contention hard and fair. That's been the philosophy. That's been the GRM doctrine and they've backed maine each the mode there. Disappointing. 

"We conscionable person to reset and determination forward. Approach the adjacent 2 races similar we bash immoderate different races, determination guardant and we'll property on."

Speaking aft Saturday's race, King said helium felt hard done by. 

Luke King failed to decorativeness aft interaction with Jordan Cox astatine The Cutting. (Jack Martin)

"I got [Cox] connected the restart. He could spot we were quicker, each helium had to bash was beryllium patient," King said connected the Stan Sport broadcast.

"Then he's conscionable shoved it up the wrong astatine [The Cutting] and barged america retired of the way; caused a level tyre and a damaged rim and damaged broadside skirts.

"We got rapped implicit the knuckles astatine Sandown for immoderate precise tiny incidents and we astir had a immense crook 1 shunt with [Michael] Caruso moving implicit connected america going up Mountain Straight.

"Usually, I wouldn't beryllium this upset, but I'm conscionable implicit getting bashed around. I've had a batch of harm connected that car this twelvemonth and it's conscionable pointless shit, truthful it's conscionable not needed."

The 2nd contention of the TCR Australia Series astatine the Bathurst International is scheduled for 9:30am.

The play volition travel to a adjacent with the last contention astatine 3:50pm.

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