Dave Newsham and Power Maxed Racing have withdrawn from the British RallyCross Championship in order to focus on a return to the British Touring Car Championship for 2017.
Newsham recently competed in the Knockhill round of the BTCC for the team, standing in for regular racer Kelvin Fletcher, who was with his expectant wife.
Despite the late call-up, Newsham managed to score points in all three races at the Scottish circuit, including taking the team’s best result of the season with seventh in race one.
Now the Scot is targeting a full-time return to the BTCC in 2017 with the team who he raced for full-time in the 2015 season.
The team have formally withdrawn from the rallycross championship, putting their Ford Fiesta Supercar up for sale.
“The response before I got to the track was overwhelming on social media and after I arrived, well it went to another level,” said Newsham. “I didn’t think anyone would really miss me, but I couldn’t have been more wrong, thankfully.
“It’s a shame as Rallycross is so much fun and the car is very competitive now, I’ve taken heat wins, seconds and thirds. With the early teething issues ironed out now, it is in the perfect place for somebody with the right budget to challenge for the championship. It simply needs a new livery and you’ll have virtually a brand new car!”
Newsham held a meeting with Team Principal Adam Weaver after the previous round of the season, in which it was agreed that more coverage for sponsors would be achieved by returning to the BTCC. As a result, any further expenditure on rallycross was deemed to be investment in the wrong direction.
Weaver himself added that he fully supported Newsham’s decision, adding that competing in rallycross was also at times somewhat expensive.
“It’s a shame to withdraw from British Rallycross as it is such a strong championship,” added Weaver. “I completely understand Dave’s decision as we too are massively subsiding the RallyCross drive.
“The cars are extremely expensive to run; they’re like works rally cars! We have invested close to £50,000 in car developments, £30,000 on engine upgrades, new wiring loom, ECU, dash then plenty of labour on top!”