Thruxton welcomed the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship to Hampshire yesterday as the majority of the grid took the opportunity to rack up the miles ahead of their competitive return to the UK’s fastest race circuit, 19-20 May.
 
The BTCC celebrates its 60^th, Diamond Jubilee, anniversary this year and the country’s premier motor racing series has already shown signs that it will be another vintage, and fiercely competitive campaign after a storming opening race weekend at Brands Hatch – with nine different drivers making the podium, three different winners and 10 marques represented in the standings’ top ten.
 
Thruxton itself celebrates its 50^thAnniversary, and the beloved circuit, affectionately referred to as the Hampshire Speedbowl, always yields an unparalleled weekend’s action. Its flat-out characteristics are so unique that TOCA runs an annual test-day for the BTCC and its support series – Renault UK Clio Cup, the Ginetta championships and the F4 British Championship – ensuring all involved are up to speed ahead of their return in five weeks’ time.
 
Twenty-five of the BTCC’s finest drivers jumped at the chance to rack up the laps (over 1,100 in all on the day), among those, incumbent champion Ashley Sutton (Adrian Flux Subaru Racing) and his team-mate – BTCC legend Jason Plato, Halfords Yuasa Racing’s triple title-winner Matt Neal and Dan Cammish, plus past champs Colin Turkington and Andrew Jordan in the West Surrey Racing BMWs.
 
At the end of the day it was Sutton atop the timesheets, commenting later that evening that his heart rate had finally returned to normal levels after the high-speed Hampshire test!
 
“That was unexpected, I’ll be honest,” said Sutton. “It’s been a fast day in general and everyone’s been quick. We’ve come here looking for track time and I think we’ve found a few key things. It’s been a general test, not just a Thruxton test.
 
“We hadn’t done mileage prior to Season Launch at Donington Park, then Brands Hatch later that week but that was rained off. We’ve come to make up time on the others and we’ve achieved some key things and we hope some of those will carry over to Donington.”
 
Between the two sessions, eight drivers ran inside 2017’s BTCC qualifying lap record time set by the Honda Civic Type R of Matt Neal, so all signs are pointing to a fastest-ever race weekend come May.
 
Parts of Thruxton’s stunning new £2 million state-of-the-art hospitality facility, The Thruxton Centre, will be open for business by the time the BTCC makes its entry ahead of an official opening at 12:00 midday on Sunday 3 June amid a weekend of 50^thAnniversary celebrations. Highlights there include 15 special races as well as high-speed demonstrations from Williams’ 1983 FW08C and other iconic racing cars and bikes. There will be appearances, too, from a number of high-profile guests including Murray Walker and Nigel Mansell.
 
“It’s always a delight to welcome Britain’s biggest championship on four wheels back to Thruxton,” said Thruxton Group Managing Director, Bill Coombs. “It's a series that continually produces a fantastic weekend’s racing, with 32 cars and some of the best tin-top protagonists around throwing up a real treat. The test yesterday gave us a little glimpse of what’s to come – it’s going to be a quick one this year, that’s for sure. 
 
“Having had a keen eye on its opening race weekend a fortnight ago, it looks like it’ll be an even more fascinating prospect around the quick stuff here come May. I wouldn’t dare try and pick a winner!
 
“The track itself is a favourite of many of the drivers, it’s a fast and flowing test of balance, bravery and poise plus a healthy dollop of slipstreaming!
 
“For 2018, in our 50^thAnniversary year, we’re extremely proud to be able to open The Thruxton Centre – our brand-new, top-of-the-line facility comprises a restaurant and bar, exhibition spaces, function rooms, hosting and hospitality suites and a spectacular viewing terrace. 
 
“Parts of the centre will be open for use at the BTCC race weekend but its official opening takes place over the weekend of 2/3 June – as part of a special meeting commemorating our golden anniversary.”

Advance tickets for the BTCC’s visit, 19-20 May, are available from £12, with weekend passes with paddock access running to just £40. Saturday grandstand seats are an additional £5. Accompanied children aged 15 and under will be admitted free of charge. 
 
For further information or to buy tickets, see https://thruxtonracing.co.uk/racing/btcc or call 01264 882200 and select Option 1. For details on ticketing for Thruxton’s 50^th Anniversary meeting, head to https://thruxtonracing.co.uk/racing/50th-anniversary.
 
For more information on Thruxton’s race meetings and driving experiences, visit: www.thruxtonracing.co.uk/
 
For season or individual race meeting accreditation, please e-mail: press@barc.net

As I type, I am en route from Oman to Malaysia. A nice lady from Oman Air has brought me a large gin and tonic and there are all sorts of movies to occupy me for the next seven hours.
 
Sadly, there isn’t a channel showing me race two from Brands Hatch which I need to watch again to try to piece together who did what! It’s a bit like some complicated crime drama where the culprit is unveiled and then you have to watch it again to spot all the clues… What a race!
 
Thankfully, Tim Harvey and I don’t have to nominate a driver of the day, as there were several candidates for that mantle on Sunday. Take Jack Goff as one: that opening race drive was fantastic – error-free despite the pressure of a greasy track, a safety car restart and having Colin Turkington behind him all race long.

Jack has always looked a smooth driver, but on occasions I admit to being frustrated that he doesn’t (or didn’t) get stuck in more. Easy for me to say but when a driver has to pay his own reparations it is understandable.

On Sunday, for me, there came that tipping point where Goff delivered what he has always been capable of and while he deserves a big cheer, so does WIX Racing with Eurotech which was on it all weekend, across all three cars, repaying Jeff Smith’s and Marvin Humphries’ efforts in style. There is nothing to suggest that Goff won’t be a factor all season and the wasp-liveried Honda looks set to be a regular front-runner, as the young guns start to take over at the top.
 
We’ve had Andrew Jordan and Ash Sutton winning championships in the last five years and more young guns winning races, with Tom Ingram again looking impressive in race three as he battled up from 11th. Tom’s race-craft has stepped up a gear in the last 18 months and he looked the 'real deal' on Sunday, whilst Adam Morgan looked good in race three as well.
 
Then there was Senna Proctor’s astonishing win from 27th on the grid in race two. Let’s just ponder that for a moment. The 14th row is so far back he was nearly delayed at the main gate paying to get back in. I can’t recall anyone coming from so far back to win a race, which was impressive in itself. Plus, it was the first win for Power Maxed TAG Racing, which proves as Speedworks has done, that the longer you stay in the championship, the more you learn and the better you get. Adam Weaver and his team deserved the success. Oh, and Proctor is still only 17…
 
One thing we missed was the chance to see what would have been an epic scrap between Aiden Moffat and Proctor for another lap and a half. Moffat is a very good defender and his oval racing roots means he has impressive car control, which he needed after a day in which contact found him more than once.
 
Ah, Mike Bushell. Another young gun up the front. Yes, I accept that the weather and tyre choice helped, but he looked far more suited to the BTCC than when we first saw him two seasons ago. Mike admits it too, and will only get better.
 
And what of Dan Cammish? Much was written and broadcast beforehand and expectations were high. You don’t come into the BTCC with a CV like his and expect not to be noticed, especially in a drive like the one he has secured at Halfords Yuasa Racing, but after having a quick car in qualifying, neither Dan nor Matt Neal’s car quite looked at the races on Sunday.

Clearly, Dan expected more given his frustrations on Sunday, though they were nothing compared to his mood on Saturday after he lost his best qualifying lap. He wanted to shine on his debut, understandably, and in a way he did because he proved what he is capable of, when it all clicks together. The wins will come, surely, and that will add yet another young gun up at the front. Then there was Jake Hill coming oh-so close to a maiden win and Ollie Jackson’s maiden podium and… the list of impressive drives goes on.
 
So where does this leave Jason Plato and Matt Neal? Their BTCC careers span three decades and still both are capable of winning. The answer to where this leaves them is… we don’t know. Given the pace of the Hondas in qualifying, I can’t believe that Matt won’t win races this year, and the Jason Plato story doesn’t end here, does it? Look at the way he races, the way that he has historically over-delivered in cars that had no business being near the podium. I don’t know, genuinely, what it is that has hampered JP since the start of last season as one hears so many conflicting stories, but one thing is for sure – he hasn't forgotten how to drive.
 
We know Jason wants to win, it is what makes him tick. He isn’t a go-for-points man, he goes for wins and he will want to go from the BTCC, whenever that may be, with wins, not midfield placings. I can’t believe he won’t bounce back, but with every weekend that he struggles, so the spotlight begins to shift to others.
 
Now, teams. Bravo BTC Norlin Racing. Its new Honda Civic Type Rs looked increasingly impressive and Chris Smiley is becoming more of a factor as he is given the machinery with which to do the job. James Nash will be up there too, once he has a handle on NGTC equipment.
 
Disappointments? One could possibly argue West Surrey Racing's weekend wasn’t as good as it should have been as Rob Collard struggled and Colin Turkington had his limp-home moment at the start of race two. His car did suffer the odd electrical hiccup last season and in the current climate, you cannot afford a bad race. You have to score. That, perhaps is why stringing together a championship-winning season is so difficult now.
 
If we were shown one thing at Brands, it is that we are in for another epic season. When I stood at Old Hall Corner on Good Friday 1978 and watched my first Tricentrol British Saloon Car Championship race, I fell in love with noisy, sideways saloons. The racing, though, wasn’t a patch on what we saw on Sunday and with a few, no, a lot of drivers hoping to bounce back at Donington Park, we are in for another storming weekend.
 
Now, how do I access the ITV Hub at 35,000 feet….?

Matt Simpson enjoyed his best start to a Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season to date back at Brands Hatch, leaving the Berkshire racer brimming with confidence heading to Donington Park.

Simpson Racing now sits inside the WIX Racing with Eurotech stable, with Jeff Smith's outfit now running a third Honda Civic Type R. Simpson feels everything has fallen into place nicely for him this off-season, and his results over the Brands weekend – a pair of highest-ever seventh place finishes – have only bolstered his optimism.

"We set ourselves a goal this year with the new team at Eurotech to try and qualify and finish in the top ten positions over the course of the season," said Simpson. "Obviously, that wasn’t necessarily expected to be the case right from the off at Brands Hatch but it was a fantastic weekend.

"I was some six-tenths quicker in the car in places over the off-season than through last year, and around Brands Hatch in practice, I was quicker than I ever had been there before. In qualifying I tend to over-drive and that tends to make you slower but we managed eighth, which was a strong starting point.

"It was a shame about the first race really. I was in the right place at the right time around the outside of Tom Chilton and Sam Tordoff but contact unfortunately ended the chance of what I think could have been a top five finish – my wet pace has been really good."

Yesterday, at the TOCA Support Test, Simpson toured Thruxton Circuit for the first time in a Eurotech-engineered Honda. The learning process, for him, continues in what he sees as the perfect environment with buckets of support from his stablemates as well as his engineers.

"I’d never driven the Eurotech-engineered Honda around Thruxton before, so I was a little apprehensive and didn’t know how the car might feel," he continued. "I got my eye in though and it was a productive day with setup changes and some good things learned.

"Every team sets the car up in different ways, so although it’s the same package, the engineering and setup side of things has been a dramatic change.

"I really feel at home with these guys and I’m brimming with confidence. I get on with my engineer Richard Owen really well, he’s been great, so hopefully we can push on, try and improve and set ourselves some new goals.

"I’m learning a lot from Jack (Goff) and Brett (Smith) as well as Jeff (Smith) with all of his experience. We have debriefs together and we’re all as one. It’s great – they’ve definitely got this Civic ticking, that’s for sure.

As far as Donington Park is concerned, Simpson wants to build some momentum, and carry on where he left off in Kent.

"Media day was really good at Donington Park in the damp conditions but I didn’t get a new tyre run when it dried out in the afternoon.

"I’m hoping for more of the same – just to keep building on my confidence and get myself some more top ten finishes. Hopefully then, the rest will fall into place. It’d be nice to come into Thruxton with a bit of ballast on-board, you never know! That would be mega."

Adrian Flux Subaru Racing's Ashley Sutton set the quickest time of the day in this afternoon's Free Practice session, with more than two-thirds of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship field taking part in the annual TOCA Support test day at Thruxton Circuit.

Sutton headed Mike Bushell, whose late lap fired him second and just 0.026s shy of the Subaru man. Halfords Yuasa Racing's Matt Neal lapped third quickest – recovering from throttle issues in the morning's running to reveal a little more of the new Honda's potential.

"That was unexpected, I'll be honest," said Sutton. "It's been a fast day in general and everyone's been quick. We've come here looking for track time and I think we've found a few key things. It's been a general test, not just a Thruxton test.

"We hadn’t done mileage prior to Season Launch at Donington Park, then Brands Hatch later that week but that was rained off. We've come to make up time on the others and we've achieved some key things and we hope some of those will carry over to Donington."

Jack Goff, Sam Tordoff, Josh Cook and Dan Cammish rounded out the top seven – with each setting times beneath Matt Neal's qualifying lap record around the Hampshire circuit. Though as is always the case with testing, it's more about the time out on circuit than outright pace as teams and drivers work through their programmes in what is a learning process early on in the season.

More than 1,100 laps were completed across the day, with a focus on Dunlop's Thruxton-specific rubber as well as chassis and setup development for the forthcoming campaign.

2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Free Practice 2 – TOCA Support Test – Thruxton Circuit

1 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing 1m15.717s
2 Mike BUSHELL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +0.026s
3 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.094s
4 Jack GOFF (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +0.143s
5 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team GardX Racing with Motorbase +0.245s
6 Josh COOK (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +0.264s
7 Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.280s
8 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.326s
9 Tom CHILTON (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +0.371s
10 Brett SMITH (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +0.470s
11 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +0.484s
12 Adam MORGAN (GBR) Mac Tools with Ciceley Motorsport +0.522s
13 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) BMW Pirtek Racing +0.524s
14 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Simpson Racing +0.695s
15 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) DUO Motorsport with HMS Racing +0.774s
16 James COLE (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +0.945s
17 Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) Team HARD with Trade Price Cars +1.101s
18 Rob COLLARD (GBR) Team BMW +1.211s
19 Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +1.234s
20 Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Ciceley Motorsport +1.267s
21 Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing +1.420s
22 Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +1.544s
23 Michael CAINE (GBR) Team HARD with Trade Price Cars +1.641s
24 Josh PRICE (GBR) Autoglym Academy Racing +1.657s
25 Sam SMELT (GBR) AmD with Cobra Exhausts +2.807s

Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher's Tom Chilton headed the way in the opening Free Practice session from Thruxton Circuit this morning.

Twenty-three of the 32-car field made the trip to Hampshire for the annual TOCA Support Test and it was the Ford Focus RS leading the early running as teams began to work through their busy programmes for the day. Chilton's 1m15.979s was inside Matt Neal's pole time, and lap record, set in qualifying here last year. 

"Thruxton's one of my favourite circuits, along with Brands Hatch. I do love it here." said Chilton. "I used to be an instructor here, so I know it very well. We worked through some qualifying runs this morning and we may use some newer Dunlops this afternoon to see where we can go.

"You've got the combination today where the track's warm enough for the tyre to work well but it's cool enough for the engine. I was pushing quite hard, and we'll change the set up to see if there's any more time to gain this afternoon."

Senna Proctor continued where he left off at Brands Hatch with the second fastest time of the morning, just a tenth-of-a-second shy of Chilton's timesheet-topper, with his Power Maxed with TAG Racing team-mate Josh Cook making it two Vauxhall Astras in the top three.

The new-generation FK8 Honda Civic Type R, in the hands of Dan Cammish, rounded in fourth spot with reigning champ Ash Sutton and Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing's Mike Bushell completing the top six.

As is always the case in testing, however, pace is not always the immediate priority – especially during the opening throes of the campaign. Teams and drivers are continuing the learning process as they look to unlock their 2018 machinery and evaluate the Dunlop SportMaxx compound for the Thruxton race weekend, 19-20 May.

2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Free Practice 1 – TOCA Support Test – Thruxton Circuit

1 Tom CHILTON (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher 1m15.979s
2 Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +0.130s
3 Josh COOK (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +0.168s
4 Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.240s
5 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing +0.396s
6 Mike BUSHELL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +0.538s
7 Adam MORGAN (GBR) Mac Tools with Ciceley Motorsport +0.584s
8 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) BMW Pirtek Racing +0.686s
9 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +0.709s
10 Brett SMITH (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +0.792s
11 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.860s
12 James COLE (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +0.960s
13 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) DUO Motorsport with HMS Racing +0.972s
14 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team GardX Racing with Motorbase +0.998s
15 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +1.106s
16 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Simpson Racing +1.162s
17 Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Ciceley Motorsport +1.483s
18 Jack GOFF (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +1.604s
19 Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +1.810s
20 Rob COLLARD (GBR) Team BMW +1.829s
21 Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing +1.985s
22 Josh PRICE (GBR) Autoglym Academy Racing +2.335s
23 Sam SMELT (GBR) AmD with Cobra Exhausts +2.826s

BTC Norlin Racing made good progress at Brands Hatch as it starts life with a newly-aquired pair of Honda Civic Type Rs but the team are hungry for more next time around.

Qualifying proved frustrating, with Chris Smiley and James Nash lining up 16th and 26th respectively but the outfit were confident of their ability to make progress come raceday. Duly, after an early safety car period, the two were up to tenth and 17th come the chequered flag in the opener – some typically touring car scrapping doing the business. Having briefly caught Team Boss Bert Taylor prior to the weekend's action getting underway, he would be satisfied with that as a start for what are two freshly-built Hondas.

The debate over tyre choice was the talk of the grid prior to race two, with Norlin electing to run wets. With the Dunlop Sportmaxx shod runners flying on the drying track, Smiley and Nash battled as high as sixth and seventh respectively before the BluResponse wets started to suffer. Nash would bring his Type R home in 14th – more points for the team and his first of the season, while Smiley took the chequered flag 17th. Race three yielded 16th for Smiley, though terminal damage put paid to Nash's efforts.

“It’s unbelievable to finish in the top ten at the opening race of the season," said Smiley. "This was my aim for the day and I’m delighted to have made up six positions.”

“The rest of the day was frustrating, running sixth for much of race two, until the track dried and we were caught on the wrong tyre. Race three looked as though ninth was possible, until I was caught up in someone else’s incident at Druids on the last lap, but that is touring car racing.

"I can’t wait to get to Donington Park with the awesome guys and girls from BTC Norlin Racing.”

“For various reasons we were only able to do minimal running before this weekend and so today has been pretty much a very public test session for us," said an optimistic Nash.

"The most important thing is that we’ve sorted the handling problem that had handicapped us through qualifying and the opening race. I’m confident we’ll do well at Donington Park.”

Winter has been flat out for Bert Taylor's outfit, now into the second year of its BTCC return, having put together a pair of new cars and welcoming aboard several key partners including The Range and Hampton by Hilton.

“As a minimum this weekend, we wanted to have both cars within the top 15 during the three races,” said Team Manager Bert Taylor.

“Whilst we didn’t quite get the results that we wanted, we have seen that we are comfortable racing towards the front and have shown that we have the tools to get the job done this season.”

“We wanted to be leaving the circuit with a better haul of points, but we're happy that we have understood the cars better and moved closer during each race to where we know we should be.

"We're now focusing on Donington Park, so expect more passion and determination than ever before from BTC Norlin Racing, we want more!”

WIX Racing with Eurotech's 2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship got underway in fine style at Brands Hatch this past weekend, with the outfit leaving Kent atop the Teams' Championship with a race win in the bag.

The outfit's Honda Civic Type Rs were potent throughout 2017 and a one-two in the opening Free Practice session of the season, Goff from team-mate Brett Smith, set the tone once again.

That pace was evident throughout the remainder of Saturday's action, reaching a crescendo with Goff's scorching qualifying time – enough to seal a third pole on the bounce for the 27-year-old and Eurotech, as well as a Brands Hatch Indy double following Jeff Smith's pole last year. Smith Jr. set a time good enough for 10th, while Matt Simpson, in the Eurotech-backed Simpson Racing Type R made it a hat-trick of top tens for the stable with eighth spot.

Goff was able to covert his start-line advantage into a maiden race win of 2018, fending off Team BMW's Colin Turkington in difficult wet conditions. Smith meanwhile, brought his Honda home in 11th.

https://www.facebook.com/OfficialBTCC/videos/1920019784706129/

 

Changing conditions in race two, however didn't favour the pair, who had opted for the Dunlop BluResponse wet tyres. The drying track surface favoured those who had gambled on fitting slick rubber prior to lights-out and Goff clung manfully onto 10th, with the maximum allotted 75kgs of success ballast aboard his Type R. Smith rounded in 20th, but it was Simpson in the sister Civic who really impressed. He was one of the drivers to take the risk on dry rubber and fired his Type R to seventh – a best-ever result in the series, and right from the back of the grid to boot following his opening race DNF.

The weather held off for Round 3 and an elbows-out performance from Goff yielded eighth, with Simpson able to swashbuckle his way to another seventh placed finish. Smith, meanwhile, found himself in the midst of the action but was shuffled down the order to 22nd after contact.

"It couldn't have gone much better than that," said Goff. "You never really know what to expect when it rains like it did overnight but to come away with a win from Round 1, it's taken a lot less time than it did last year, so I'm chuffed with that. It's all thanks to the fantastic guys here at WIX Racing with Eurotech who've given me a fantastic car. We've shown we're quick and we want to show it more in races – we've done that here. Credit to Colin (Turkington). He's a fair racer and I like to think I am too. We didn't give each other much room but just enough!"

Team Principal Jeff Smith said: "What an amazing way to start our 2018 campaign, pole positon and all three cars in the top ten for qualifying, followed by a great win by Jack Goff in the opener. We have clearly given Matt a car he can put up the sharp end, too, and we are looking to continue scoring results like this with all three cars under our banner.’

Round 2 of the 2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship threw up a fantastic spectacle, with a trio of drivers making their maiden visit to the rostrum.

Power Maxed TAG Racing's Senna Proctor took the race win, and he was joined by Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing's Jake Hill and AmD with Cobra Exhausts' Ollie Jackson on the podium. All three rolled the dice, gambling on Dunlop SportMaxx dries when more than two-thirds of the field elected to start on BluResponse wets in mixed conditions. It proved to be the prudent choice, with the track surface coming to those on slicks later in the race.

"On the grid for race two, my Team Manager and I said over the radio 'on three shout which tyres to go for' and we both shouted slicks," said Hill. "From 25th on the grid we didn’t have much to lose and very quickly I realised we had made the right choice”

By lap 11, Hill had set the fastest lap of the race and the tide turned towards the gamblers. He and team-mate Bushell traded fastest laps and made quick progress. Aiden Moffat in the Laser Tools Mercedes-Benz was the one catching the eye right off the bat, overcoming a major moment to take the race lead before hitting the tyre barriers at Druids after contact. 

This left the door open for Proctor, with Hill and Jackson also scurrying through – as did the AmD MG of BTCC returnee Tom Boardman, then taking fourth position.

https://www.facebook.com/OfficialBTCC/videos/1920133324694775/

 

“Oh my word that was crazy!" added Hill. "The car was mega, I had a look at passing both Proctor and Moffat but they were so defensive so it wasn’t worth the risk.

"I am beyond happy! I am so, so grateful to so many people who have helped me get to this point - obviously the legendary Tony Gilham and the boys at Team HARD, especially Geoff (Kingston) and Jamie, Josh, Carl, Nathan and Gary – the engineers who have been working on my car – as well as my amazing supporters.

"I have to say, I would not be racing in anything - let alone BTCC - without their help.

“I’m worried I will forget anyone - but my 2018 partners Rolec Racing, Trade Price Cars, the awesome Richard Wheeler from Brisky Racing, Ecoflam, Danfoss, Bill Rawles Classic Cars, AWS Appliance Spares, Scoria Tech, Zynth, Jakob Ebrey Photography, Spine Optics, P1 Nutrition, Tech Max Pro Gear, Torq, the BRDC. There's one person who has been with me since the beginning, from Ginetta Juniors in 2010 to today and has never, ever let me down is John Miskin from Sportif Motor Group."

AmD with Cobra Exhausts' Jackson was equally over the moon. He was also one of those to gamble ahead of race two, so, early on, he slipped back down the order. As circuit conditions improved, though, he started to rapidly climb through the field. From 21^st at the end of lap twelve, Jackson had raced his way into the top eight and continued to pick off the drivers ahead to run in a four-car train battling for the lead with three laps to go, eventually storming to third place and securing a maiden BTCC podium – a first for the Audi S3 Saloon and the team’s first since Knockhill in 2014.
 
“It’s been an emotional weekend," said Jackson. "We’ve worked so hard as a team to improve the Audi and have been getting quicker and quicker, and today we’ve been able to fight for strong results across all three races.
 
“Race one was perhaps the race of the day to be honest and to come from where we where on the grid to finish twelfth was really good and helped to set up the result in race two.
 
“We knew it was a gamble to go with slicks but also knew that the circuit was only going to get drier and it proved to be the right call. The car was absolutely fantastic and to bring home a podium was beyond our expectations coming into the weekend.
 
“Even with the success ballast onboard for race three, we could well have had a top five finish had we not been hit off track a few times, which also cost us the Jack Sears Trophy this weekend.
 
“However, I can’t go away from a weekend where I’ve taken my first podium feeling disappointed and I think we have shown this weekend that we deserve to be taken seriously in this series and aren’t just here to make up the numbers. We have to now try to build on this and fight for regular points as the season goes on."

It's hard to see past this past weekend's action as perhaps Power Maxed Racing's best-yet in the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, with the outfit, on its first competitive outing as Power Maxed TAG Racing, securing a maiden victory in the series.

Following on in perfect fashion from his 2017 Jack Sears Trophy triumph, Senna Proctor stormed through the field from 27th to take victory in one of the most incredible BTCC races in recent memory. 

“I don’t think it’s quite sunk in yet," said Proctor. "I didn’t even know that I’d won until I pulled into Parc Ferme and realised that no one was there in front of me - it was a very surreal moment.

"I can’t thank Martin (Broadhurst – Team Manager) and the team enough for putting together an incredible package, and the decision to bring Rob Peacey (engineer) in is definitely going to stand us in good stead for the season.

"Starting at the back of the grid, being the furthest down of the nine cars that made the decision to run on slicks, we didn’t expect to take the victory, but it’s proved that we’re here to win.

"I'm looking forward to this season even more than I was before and I know that between Josh and I, we’ll be seeing a lot more podiums. Thanks again to all my sponsors - we literally wouldn’t be here without you.”

https://www.facebook.com/OfficialBTCC/videos/1920133324694775/

 

The decision to gamble on the Dunlop SportMaxx option tyre in drying conditions proved the right one, and the 19-year-old made dreams come down in the PMR garage, not least for an understandably emotional Team Principal in Adam Weaver.

“As with pretty much everyone in the paddock, I’m a life-long BTCC fan," said Weaver. "I remember watching the likes of Steve Soper and Andy Rouse as a kid, determined that at some point I’d be there, doing that.

"To win the second race of the season in the championship’s 60^th anniversary year is an indescribable feeling, and to do it from almost the back of the grid is something that none of the thousands of spectators watching will forget in a hurry. Seeing Josh (Cook) fight his way up from 28^th to fifth spot within just a few laps had my heart racing, but it was just unfortunate for him that the track dried out as it did.

"I can’t overstate how proud I am of Senna, Josh, Martin Broadhurst, and of the team he’s pulled together over the past four years. Bring on Donington!”

PMR Team Manager and Technical Director, Broadhurst, spoke with equal pride.

“The drive Senna put in was absolutely spectacular," he said. That race will, quite rightly, go down in history as one of the greatest drives of the NGTC era, and the decision by Senna and Race Engineer Rob Peacey to stick with the option tyre was a risk that I backed one-hundred percent.

"Yesterday was the culmination of four years' hard work, and both Adam and I made sure to personally thank every single person that played a part in getting those cars onto the grid.

"I take pride in the team we’ve put together and I know I speak for us all when I say that each and every one of them puts literally everything into making the cars the best they can possibly be, and this weekend it paid off - our first race win and fastest laps by both Josh and Senna, to boot. Getting both drivers home in the points isn't a bad feeling either!”

Former Jack Sears Champion Josh Cook had a weekend of mixed emotions.

“I was a little disappointed about an incident in Race 1, as the car was feeling fantastic and I genuinely think we would’ve been on for a really strong result, but that’s racing!" said Cook.

"If the track had stayed damp in Race 2, I would’ve been up at the pointy end. We were the fastest car on wets, and I’d battled my way up to fifth before the tyres unfortunately started to go off. Had that happened, though, Senna wouldn’t have had his first win, and I can’t even begin to describe how happy I am for him.

"As a team, I think we’ve shown that the cars are competitive and that we’re a force to be reckoned with this year. I spent the majority of Race 3 defending, whilst battling with power steering issues, which didn’t allow me to push on quite as much as I would’ve liked. A solid 10^th puts us in the points and sets us up well for Donington in a few weeks’ time. I’m so glad I made the decision to come back to PMR this year - it’s good to be home!"

The 2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship kicked off in typically dramatic fashion last weekend with opening weekend records tumbling.

Three thrilling races provided three different winners with a victory apiece for Jack Goff, Senna Proctor and Tom Ingram, whilst incredibly nine different drivers filled the nine podium positions on offer.

If that wasn’t #BTCC enough for you then the current top ten championship positions should catch your eye, with ten different marques and ten different teams filling those positions – underlining the level-playing field and high-class competitiveness throughout the capacity 32-car grid.

Add this to the ever-changing conditions at Brands Hatch, tyre choice drama and one of the most incredible races in the series’ illustrious 60-year history and it seems that the BTCC is in better health than ever.

Roll on Donington!