LYNCH SECURES TOP THREE SLOT IN SEASON FINALE

Westhoughton-based racer Tony Lynch has ended his 2012 season with another top three championship finish after the curtain fell on his Swift Sport Rallycross Championship campaign at Croft. The Lucas Oil Team Geriatric driver made the trip to the North East seeking to wrap up third in the championship standings, while he also retained an outside chance of lifting the title if results went his way. Tony´s performance in the three heats saw him secure seventh on the grid for the season finale, with his main aim in the final race of the year being to finish ahead of James Knight-Coney - the man who headed to Croft as his closest challenger for third overall.A strong start saw Tony go from seventh to third as the field headed into turn one for the first time, but contact from one of his rivals saw him sustain damage to the rear beam of his Swift.Rather than going for a victory to round out his season, Tony instead found himself battling to bring his damaged car to the finish, and a solid performance saw him take the chequered flag in fourth spot.Finishing ahead of Knight-Coney, Tony secured a top three finish for the third successive season, although he was unable to score enough points to overhaul Jonathan Bean in the race for second place."Going into the weekend, the main aim was to wrap up third spot, so in that respect it was mission accomplished," Tony said. "Qualifying seventh for the final meant I was right in the mix when the final got underway and I made a good start to get up to third, but then got hit and picked up damage to the rear beam. "With that damage, it was all about making it to the finish and I´m chuffed to bits that we were able to wrap up third in the championship. Although it wasn't the aim at the start of the year, I´m pleased to have been able to maintain our record of finishing inside the top three for a third successive season."Tony´s championship campaign included a victory - with bonus point for fastest lap - at Knockhill back in May and another podium finish at Nutts Corner in June, although a series of incidents not of his making ultimately ended his chances of lifting the Suzuki crown."This has been the most difficult season I've had in Rallycross since I started doing it back in 2005," he said. "I think we've done something like four rear beams and two driveshafts this year which really dented our championship challenge and meant we headed to Croft fighting for third rather than trying to secure first."It´s been tough, but we have persevered with it and the team has done a great job to keep us on track. They never let their heads drop and it´s a sign of how good the team is that we were able to finish the year in third spot despite everything that was thrown as us." With his season over, Tony then handed his car over to Craig Lomax for the British Rallycross Grand Prix event on Sunday, with Craig having secured the opportunity to race the car thanks to his performance in the Lucas Oil Team Geriatric-backed BTRDA Clubmans Rallycross Stock Hatch Class.After a test at the Three Sisters circuit near Wigan prior to making the trip to Croft, the weekend marked Craig´s first experience of competing at the wheel of the Suzuki and he secured an impressive third place finish, beating Suzuki champion Chris Mullen in the process.Tony and everyone involved with Team Geriatric wish to thank Lucas Oil, Pemberton Tyres, Sign-Tec, Apollon Music, Rye Motors, Bloor Homes, Delmo Salvage, Procare and Driveme.net for their continued support throughout the 2012 season.