A FERRARI driver on trial for an alleged street 'race' has been cleared of dangerous driving but convicted of lying about who was the driver.

John McGurk was claimed to have driven a Ferrari F40 at up to 80mph in the rural roads near Blenheim Palace, before overtaking in a line of cars before a bend on the A44 near Enstone.

Prosecutors at his trial at Oxford Crown Court said that the 44-year-old, of Loxley Road, Stratford-upon-Avon, then lied to police by falsely claiming that somebody else had been behind the wheel at the time.

McGurk had taken to the witness box to profess his innocence and said that he had performed a legal over-take and he had only sought information from officers to name the correct driver.

READ AGAIN: Ferrari sped around rural roads near Blenheim Palace, trial hears.

After deliberating for one hour and 12 minutes jurors returned unanimous verdicts to both counts.

He was found not guilty of dangerous driving and guilty of doing acts tending to pervert the course of public justice.

McGurk had between September 4 and October 18 2017, pursued a course of conduct which amounted to perverting the course of public justice by nominating somebody else as the driver.

He did this, prosecutors said, to frustrate the police investigation into the alleged 'dangerous driving'.

After the verdicts had been returned at court yesterday presiding Judge Maria Lamb agreed to adjourn the case so that a pre-sentence report could be prepared.

That report - prepared by the National Probation Service - will explore all sentencing options.

He was released on bail until his sentencing at the same court on July 11.

The headline of this article was amended to reflect the fact McGurk was found guilty of perverting the course of justice, but cleared of dangerous driving