Max Buxton enjoyed a dream debut in the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship at Croft this past weekend (2-3 August) as he delivered a mature performance that culminated in him impressively scoring points in a frenetic finale.
Stepping up to the UK’s premier motorsport series with TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK with IAA, the 19-year-old kicked off what promises to be a fledgling touring car career in style as he completed all three races, notably finishing on the fringes of the top ten in the final contest.
Arriving at the North Yorkshire venue having had the benefit of completing the required test mileage in his Toyota Corolla GR Sport, Buxton hit the ground running on Saturday morning as he enjoyed a trouble-free run in both free practice sessions.
Gaining familiarity with the various procedures and processes that take place throughout practice, Buxton - who is the youngest driver on the grid - performed admirably, which in-turn set him up for an encouraging maiden qualifying session later that afternoon.
Hustling his front-wheel-drive machine to 21st on the grid for race one, the Lancashire-based racer produced a faultless drive in Sunday’s opening encounter as he made his way up the order to take the chequered flag in 19th – setting competitive lap times once into the groove.
The talented teenager was on the move again in race two as he enjoyed several captivating battles before crossing the line in 18th.
Buxton’s crowning glory of the weekend came in an action-packed race three, which is renowned for producing high drama as the grid is partially reversed based off the final classification from race two.
Despite starting on row nine, Buxton found himself in the midst of multiple wheel-to-wheel battles from the get-go. Crucially, the series rookie held his own and even more importantly he avoided a number of incidents that could have ended his race on the spot.
Utilising all of his ever-expanding experience to navigate his way up the order, Buxton crossed the line in 12th overall which netted him four championship points.
Max Buxton: “My first BTCC weekend is in the books and I’m super happy to be going home with some points. The whole experience has been an absolute dream come true and I had so much fun - especially in that last race!
“Going into the weekend I said that I wanted to make progress every time we went out onto the track and we did just that. I worked through my programme on Saturday and then had my first taste of qualifying, which was really exciting and insightful.
“The conditions at the beginning of race one were a little tricky, especially being on the hard tyre, so to bring it home inside the top 20 was great and from there I just continued to build and learn. Race three was chaotic at times but I had some good battles with some established drivers and brought it home in P12.
“I’ve got to say a big thank you to everyone at Speedworks Motorsport for all of their support, as well as Jade Edwards and Josh Cook who have helped prepare and then coach me through the weekend. It’s been a really positive first event and I can’t wait to take another step forward at Knockhill.”
The 2025 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship season continues in two weekends at Knockhill on the 16-17 August.
