TCR rookie Reece Barr enjoyed a ‘good weekend’ in the TCR Europe series at Circuit Paul Ricard, with the Irishman taking home a fifth place finish in race one before contact ended his chances of points in race two.
Barr qualified as the third quickest Hyundai driver on Saturday, putting his i30 N TCR in sixth, behind team-mate Dušan Borković and M1RA’s Dániel Nagy.
He then went on to secure a strong fifth overall in the first race to bag important championship points.
Race two on Sunday was a more challenging affair for the 17-year-old, who ultimately failed to finish the race when contact with Pit Lane Competizioni’s Nicola Baldan’s Hyundai broke the driveshaft on his car whilst he was running in 12th position.
“Overall it was a pretty good weekend,” summarised Barr to TouringCars.Net. “I’ve learned quite a lot in the first weekend and to get the P5 in the first race was really good.
“I have things to learn, to go away and improve, and if I improve on that hopefully we can maybe work on getting a podium in the next one, because we’re pretty close.”
Barr called the incident with Baldan a racing incident, as the duo became bunched up behind the slower Subaru of Stefano Comini with two laps left to run.
“He [Baldan] was chasing Comini in front, and Comini seemed to be a bit slow as the conditions started to dry out. He went into the middle of the track for a really wide entry into the chicane, so I went alongside.
“I was completely alongside, the move was done, and I was on the inside and he turned in on me. It was a racing incident – it was neither of our faults really.
“The race was pretty hectic, but it caused a driveshaft failure from that, which was a bit unfortunate. It was an exciting race and there was a lot going on.”
Barr also praised Target Competition for their preparation of his car in what were his first races in TCR machinery.
“Target have been amazing so far and going with the Hyundai was a great decision on their part. They were flawless all weekend, giving the car the best set-up and giving great advice, so it was the best combination.”