MARK Wakefield rewarded the dedication of mechanics that worked late to finish repairs to his car so that he could race at Snetterton on Sunday.

The Northwich driver failed to set a time during qualifying for the Volkswagen Racing Cup’s second round after the clutch failed on his VW Golf.

And technicians from HSG Sport, a Kingsley-based outfit preparing his machine this season, had to remove the gearbox three times before settling on a fix.

“We didn’t want to give up but it looked like we were done at one point,” said Wakefield.

“With that in mind, I’ve got to be happy with two solid results.”

READ > Wakefield targets podium at Snetterton

The 21-year-old surged forward from a starting position at the back of the grid to occupy a position inside the top eight by the end of the opening lap in race one.

He continued to climb in the second, slicing inside Russell Joyce for fourth before a spectacular accident involving two rivals brought an early end to proceedings.

Wakefield classified fifth based on the standings at the end of the previous lap.

That elevated him to the grid’s front row for a second sprint at the Norfolk circuit, but a track made greasy by light rain saw him slip to fifth by the finish.

He concluded: “The first race was brilliant, and I was gutted it had to stop because I was on course for a podium.

“I was ok at the start of race two but it had started to spit and I was struggling for grip on old tyres – it was like skating on ice for the first couple of laps.

“It was good to stay out of trouble and to get around in one piece while at the same time putting more points on the board.

“That’s what I wanted, even if the weekend didn’t pan out as I’d planned.”