SWINDON racer Simon Belcher was forced to withdraw from yesterday’s three British Touring Car Championship races at Thruxton after his Toyota Avensis suffering extensive damage during a high-speed accident in qualifying on Saturday.

Fortunate to be fit enough to compete, after sustaining a wrist injury during a jet-skiing incident last Monday, Belcher’s hopes were dashed in the opening minutes of qualifying when, as he headed onto his first flying lap, his car was tagged as he exited Allard at high speed by the Ford Focus of Mike Bushell – the latter joining the circuit from the pitlane.

The contact resulted in a heavy rearward collision with the barriers and substantial damage to both ends of the car and, after a investigation of the damage by the Handy Motorsport mechanics, the repairs were too great to rectify before racing.

Belcher, whose visit to Thruxton ended with an accident last year, said: “We got a chunk of the back of the car pushed back out but there’s some of the integral stuff which the scrutineers weren’t happy with.

“It’s very frustrating for it to end how it has. The feeling of being at Thruxton and not racing is horrible.”

There is a four-week break in the Championship calendar with rounds 10, 11 and 12 scheduled to take place at Oulton Park Island Circuit in Cheshire over the weekend June 6-7.