Tom Onslow-Cole will make a return to Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship machinery at the Dunlop tyre test at Snetterton on 11 July, piloting one of the Team HARD-built Volkswagen CCs.
Onslow-Cole last raced with the outfit back in 2012, driving what was the first VW CC to appear on the BTCC grid to great success – sealing a second, third and fourth place finish at Thruxton in the then newly-built car’s third race weekend. The platform has proven a regular success since, and the team are continuing development to find its sweet spot.
The squad’s engineers have been working hard during the first half of the season, following on from an intensive winter programme but as yet have only been able to proffer glimpses of consistent front-of-the-grid pace – such is the intense level of competition in the championship.
Team Principal Tony Gilham is hopeful that bringing Onslow-Cole in to the fold will help the team find what has been missing as it looks to unlock its potential.
“The BTCC is bigger and better than ever and although I have been away from the grid building a successful GT career, the appeal of the BTCC never goes away,” said Onslow-Cole.
“It will be interesting to drive an RML-specification touring car to see how things have changed over the last few years. I have always kept in touch with Tony (Gilham) and the team, so the invitation to come down to help the team progress further was too good an opportunity to miss.”
“Tom is a very professional, proven racing driver in many disciplines and so to get him in to work with us to develop our BTCC car with his touring car experience is a no brainer,” added Gilham.
“We believe Tom can add a massive amount to our programme. It’s no secret we have invested a lot of time and money over the winter, so we need and want to find the maximum performance possible from the cars.
“It has been a tough start to the season and we haven’t achieved so far what we set out to. We have some developments to bring to the table and hope to find what we are looking for.”
Onslow-Cole continued: “I recently met with Tony and the team to discuss what we will be working towards on the day and I feel that I can help them in the areas required. It will be very interesting to see how we end up at the test and go from there.
“I’ll always have a place in my heart for the BTCC and would never rule out a return at some point as long as it fits in and around my other commitments both on and off track.”
