Kicking off this week’s Driver Spotlight feature is Power Maxed Car Care Racing driver Rob Austin.

Austin drove the Vauxhall Astra in the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship at Thruxton following Mike Bushell's race three incident at Knockhill and was the only PMR driver to score in every round contested in 2020, securing 13 points in the trio of races.

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Team HARD. Racing has today (14 December) announced that multiple race-winner and fan favourite Jack Goff will be remaining with the squad until at least the conclusion of the 2022 season.
 
Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship driver Goff, who made his debut with the team in 2013 and took the Kent-based outfit’s maiden win in 2019, will be spearheading the development of the new Cupra Leons, which were confirmed to be replacing the Volkswagen CCs back in September. 
 
“I’m delighted to be remaining with Team HARD. Racing for another two seasons,” said Goff. “The previous seasons have been tricky on track but an absolute delight off it. I can’t fault the team’s commitment to winning and family ethics; for me, that is something really important. There is always a great vibe around the place which lifts your confidence as a driver. 
 
“Now, we’re well underway with the build of the brand new Cupra Leons and I'm super excited to be playing a major part in the car’s development. If they go as well as they look then we will be contenders for sure. 
 
“After the nail-biting scenario I found myself in on the eve of the 2019 campaign, with it looking likely I’d miss the season, I can’t thank Tony [Gilham], the team and of course my sponsors enough for this opportunity to finalise a two-year deal as we race into the hybrid era. Securing a drive always takes a lot of time and planning, so to have this sorted means I can focus on getting myself and the team back to winning ways over the next two seasons.”
 
The team announced in September that they would be bringing the Cupra brand to the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship for the first time in 2021, with the all-new Cupra Leon, which is due to be released into the UK market in early 2021 as the marque operates as a standalone brand for the first time.
 
Tony Gilham, Managing Director at Team HARD. Racing, believes that continuity with his drivers will only benefit the team’s progression up the field. 
 
“Jack is back for years four and five with the team, having made his debut with us back in 2013. With new machinery for 2021 it was vital that we secured a driver who can extract the maximum from our new Cupra, and what better than to remain with one of the highest-rated drivers on the grid. 
 
“A new car for next year, with an extensive test programme, will help move us forward on outright pace. Jack's qualifying record is unquestionable, and he’s the right man to ensure that we get our new car as far up the grid as possible to get to the front of the pack.
 
“During this current global situation, working with partners away from the track is more important than ever and Jack is a great ambassador for all concerned. This news has delighted our current partners as we start to gear up for the 2021 BTCC season.
 
“It’s already the busiest winter in the team’s history with new cars amongst a host of other shake-ups behind the scenes; it’s lining up to be the year that we can really earn our BTCC stripes.” 
 
Goff will be kept busy over the winter working alongside the team’s engineering department to design and develop the brand new Cupra Leon for the 2021 season. Furthermore, the 29-year-old will be present at the team’s RCiB Insurance scholarship programme to offer media tuition and training to its entrants.

https://twitter.com/BTCC/status/1338393572803043328

Next up in the Driver Spotlight feature is the first race-winner from the 2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Dan Cammish.

Halfords Yuasa Racing driver Cammish enjoyed his most successful BTCC campaign to date in 2020, securing more points in 27 races than in either of the 30-round seasons previously contested.

Alongside a quartet of wins and a pair of pole positions, the 31-year-old impressively finished inside the top ten in all but three races, bagging third in the overall standings.

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BTCC race-winner replaces veteran Jeff Allam in key event role

Experienced racer James Cole has been named as the new Driving Standards Advisor ahead of the 2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship. 

Series organiser, TOCA, has been carefully assessing candidates following Jeff Allam’s decision to stand down from the role, and has appointed Cole as part of the three-strong panel that assesses on-track incidents in the BTCC.

Cole has contested nearly 150 races in Britain’s elite motorsport series – in both top-level front and rear wheel-drive machinery in the current NGTC era – scoring a pole position and race victory during his time behind the wheel.

The 32-year-old’s rapid racing ascent began in the Formula Ford GB Championship, making his debut in 2008 before going on to take the title in 2009 – ahead of future two-time IndyCar champion Joseph Newgarden. 

The line-up in that particular Formula Ford season also included a certain Dan Cammish, who won the scholarship class that year, whilst Rory Butcher made a guest appearance in the renowned single-seater series.

After graduating first to British Formula 3 and then to the FIA Formula 2 Championship, Liverpudlian Cole made the switch to tin-tops in 2013. His 144 BTCC races were contested in Vauxhall, Toyota, Ford and Subaru machinery, with his victory coming in the latter during the 2017 campaign.

Cole’s new position will commence at the opening round of the 2021 BTCC season at Brands Hatch on 3/4 April and he will be in attendance at every race weekend thereafter.

Alan Gow, BTCC Chief Executive, said: “James has the ideal background for this important role. He has raced in our championship over the course of six years in both front and rear wheel-drive current generation BTCC cars, is a race-winner and has been in the thick of the modern BTCC environment… so I’ve no doubt James will bring great equanimity to the role.”

James Cole, BTCC Driving Standards Advisor, said: “I am delighted to accept this wonderful opportunity and proud to be back in the BTCC paddock. I always loved my time in Britain’s best motorsport series and feel that I can bring a well-rounded experience to the role, particularly having driven modern-day machinery, as well as understanding the dynamics of a BTCC race weekend. I will have been on both sides of the fence, having had many of my incidents assessed in the past, so I am as much there to understand the drivers’ point of view, as I am to ensure that the rules and regulations of the series are upheld.” 

Tom Onslow-Cole made his BTCC return in the latest Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship, as the 33-year-old stepped in for RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport’s Ollie Brown.

Having undertaken a seven-year sabbatical from the series, and with 45kg of success ballast on board his Volkswagen CC, Onslow-Cole initially struggled to find the pace to match his BTCC rivals, before breaking into the top 20 from his third race onward.

Driver Fact File

2020 saw Mike Bushell return to the BTCC grid, contesting six rounds under the Power Maxed Car Care Racing banner, and a further three for RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport.

An unfortunate incident during race three at Knockhill resulted in injuries which prevented Bushell from taking part in the rounds at Thruxton, before Team Hard recruited the 31-year-old for Croft, where he went on to break into the points-scoring spots in race two.

Having last contested a BTCC race in 2016, Andy Neate made his series return in 2020, driving one of Motorbase Performance’s new Ford Focus STs alongside team-mates Rory Butcher and Ollie Jackson.

Neate was often in the top 20 during the latest campaign and bagged a pair of points finishes, at Brands Hatch Indy and Oulton Park.

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Bobby Thompson obtained his highest number of points in a single BTCC season during the 2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship, with the 24-year-old taking top 15 finishes in over half the races he contested.

A strong contender in the Jack Sears Trophy, and with the penultimate event of the campaign on the horizon, Thompson topped the standings. But it was his unfortunate incident during race three at Croft, and resulting concussion, which saw the GKR TradePriceCars.com man ruled out of the final two race weekends.

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The latest Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship saw ROKiT Racing with Team HARD driver Nic Hamilton secure his maiden BTCC point, on Brands Hatch’s GP configuration.

Brands Hatch would prove a happy hunting ground for the 28-year-old, as he also bagged his best-ever qualifying position with P19 during the season finale on the Indy circuit.

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Next up in the Driver Spotlight is Excelr8 Motorsport driver Chris Smiley.

In the Northern-Irishman’s fifth BTCC campaign, Smiley enjoyed a consistent year in the new-for-2020 Hyundai i30N, finishing in a points-scoring position a total of 21 times as well as bagging the car’s first-ever podium at Donington Park.

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