Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport advances to Thruxton this weekend (28/29 August) ready to move on from a difficult time at Knockhill, Fife, after drivers Adam Morgan and Tom Chilton battled hard to bring home a trio of points-finishes.
Having struggled on the 1.27-mile circuit during qualifying, Morgan, whose session came to an early conclusion following an off at the chicane, took 13th, while his team-mate settled for 16th on the grid.
The pair readied for battle on race day, but would drop down the order initially during race one. Fighting back through the pack, they both broke into the points-paying positions by lap 16, with Chilton crossing the line just ahead of the #33 BMW, in 12th.
Disaster would strike for both drivers in race two, with a spin for Morgan on the opening lap putting him to the back of the field, while his team-mate would make his way into the top ten before a spin on lap ten dropped him down the order.
A strong recovery drive from Morgan throughout the 27-lap encounter saw the Lancashire racer take 16th spot at the chequered flag, while the #3 machine crossed the line in 25th.
The final race of the day saw the Ciceley Motorsport-run BMW 330i M Sports gain a few places each, Morgan taking another points-finish with 13th while Chilton moved up to 23rd spot.
The squad heads to Thruxton this weekend (28/29 August), fifth in the Independent Teams’ Standings, the sixth event marking the BTCC’s second visit to Hampshire this year, with all the action available on ITV4 from 1110 on Sunday.
“It’s been a frustrating weekend,” admitted Morgan. “It could have been three top ten finishes, but the key to that was qualifying. If I hadn’t had my off I could have used a second set of tyres, qualified higher and been out of the dramas, so it is certainly a reminder just how important qualifying is.
“After the first lap [in race one], I had to fight back but spent the race working back up to 13th, rather than making progress from my grid position. That was frustrating, but we were happy with the pace of the car so there was definitely a big positive to take from the race.”
“I felt quite fast this weekend,” reflected Chilton. “I felt quite racy, especially on the softer tyre. I was on a real charge in race one and I got up from 16th to 12th which was good.
“I am 75% of the way there to being on top of a rear-wheel drive car so I am definitely getting there! I am getting faster and more confident all the time, so I am looking forward to Thruxton and another step forward.”
“That was one of the weekends that reminds you how tough this championship can be,” said Commercial Director Norman Burgess. “We had great pace, two really committed drivers and they drove as hard as they could, but the cards just didn’t fall right. You get weekends like that, but we take the positives of good pace and no damage meaning we will come out fighting at Thruxton.
“Our cars looked amazing dancing over the kerbs and, although the team were a little frustrated, to be able to welcome back our partners and involve them in the BTCC is just what we have been waiting for and they all had a great day watching cracking racing. The Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport will be back at Thruxton where we raced in May, so we have data already and we are determined to bag more wins and podium finishes.”
