Shedden excluded from qualifying, team blames ‘finger trouble’
Three-time British Touring Car champion Gordon Shedden has been stripped of his Snetterton pole position for a rear-wing infringement.
Team Dynamics, the squad that runs the Scot’s Honda Civic Type R, has blamed “finger trouble” for a mistake in the rear-wing angle.
The mistake means Shedden is excluded from qualifying and will start Sunday’s opening race from 29th and last on the grid.
It elevates four-time champion Colin Turkington’s West Surrey Racing-run BMW 330i M Sport to pole, and Tom Ingram’s Excelr8 Motorsport Hyundai i30 N to the front row.
Dynamics boss Matt Neal told Motorsport.com: “They found the rear wing was one degree the wrong way.
“It should be one degree one way, but it was one degree the other way.
“The way people have reported it so far, it makes out that we’ve been cheating, but that’s obviously not the case.
“The wing was just set incorrectly – it was a finger problem.”
Shedden is already on the back foot in the championship following a bad opening weekend at Thruxton.
He crashed out of the first race in Hampshire, and struggled in the second after Dynamics ran out of time for a proper repair job.
An inspired drive in the reversed-grid wet-dry finale brought Shedden fourth place from back of the grid, less than a quarter of a second from finishing second.
After claiming pole at Snetterton, Shedden agreed that running without success ballast as a result of his Thruxton weekend made this an extremely important weekend for gathering points.
“We’ve just got to get some points back onto the board,” he said.
But despite the disappointment, Neal had no complaint about the penalty for the infringement.
“Rules are rules,” he added. “If the wing had been one degree the other way, it would have made absolutely no difference to our performance.
“If anything, it was hampering us technically and giving us more drag.
“What can you say?”
Ironically, it was Shedden’s teammate Dan Rowbottom who was the fastest to miss out on making it into the top 10 qualifying shootout, and who therefore inherits the position on the outside of the fifth row.
Related video
Snetterton BTCC: Shedden scores first pole of comeback
Snetterton BTCC: Turkington opens 2021 account with Race 1 win
BTCC Knockhill: Gamble claims maiden BTCC win in finale
British Touring Car Championship rookie George Gamble took his maiden series victory in the reversed-grid finale to the Knockhill round.
BTCC Knockhill: Sutton takes first Ford win after close Hill fight
Reigning British Touring Car champion Ash Sutton finally claimed his first victory of the 2022 season at Knockhill after another thrilling battle with Jake Hill.
BTCC Knockhill: Hill wins Race 1 after thrilling Sutton fight
Jake Hill took victory in the first race of the Knockhill round of the British Touring Car Championship after a scintillating battle with Ash Sutton.
BTCC Knockhill: Hill on pole as BMWs dominate qualifying
Jake Hill took a dominant British Touring Car Championship pole position at Knockhill as a sea of five BMWs flooded the top six.
Ranking the top 10 BTCC drivers of 2021
A refresh in equipment and some returning faces helped contribute to a supremely competitive 2021 British Touring Car Championship campaign. Ash Sutton was crowned a three-time champion, successfully defending his 2020 title, but faced stiff competition in the final year before the switch to hybrid. Motorsport.com picks out the best performers.
Why the BTCC's ballast increase couldn't stop champion Sutton
Ballast will be gone from the BTCC next year as hybrid power enters the scene, but for its final season the maximum was increased from 60kg to 75kg. Despite having to carry that nearly all season, Ash Sutton was always the favourite to pocket a third title - the 27-year-old getting his reward for a season of speed tempered by savvy to nail his opportunities
The much-loved tin-top superstar bowing out at 59
OPINION: It's not often that a driver achieves widespread affection for their personality, as well as their on-track performances. One such individual is Gabriele Tarquini, who will soon bring the curtain down on a remarkable career that has yielded touring car titles on the European and global stage - and, famously, in Britain too
The making of the BTCC's newest superstar
Ash Sutton is on the verge of being crowned a three-time British Touring Car Champion; he seems to have it all. But life hasn't always been straightforward for this superstar of touring cars, as Marcus Simmons has been finding out
Five key plotlines to follow in the 2021 BTCC
It’s been a busy silly season in the BTCC since the chequered flag fell to end the 2020 campaign last November. While last year’s top two have stayed put, there’s been a lot of fat to chew elsewhere, which should result in another fascinating year of tin-top action.
Why a BTCC legend remains defiant at '97 not out'
After a year of enforced absence from the British Touring Car Championship grid, Jason Plato is back and hungrier than ever. Despite stellar opposition and some familiar challenges, the two-time champion still has his eyes focused on the biggest prizes.
The Top 10 BTCC drivers of 2020
The 2020 British Touring Car Championship will go down as a classic in which new winners graced the top step of the podium and an unloved chassis was resurrected into a champion. But who were the year's top performers?
The Villeneuve-esque 'engineer's dream' who lit up BTCC 2020
The Infiniti Q50 was completely redesigned, redeveloped and revamped by BMR and Laser Tools Racing for 2020. And the flamboyant brilliance of the driver behind the wheel was enough to snatch the title at the last gasp…