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Thruxton is preparing to welcome the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) on 19-20 May, with new race-winner Josh Cook primed as the local driver to watch at the forefront of what is being billed as a ‘changing of the guard’ in Britain’s top motor sport series.

In its 60th anniversary year, the BTCC’s Diamond Jubilee season is already shaping up to become one for the ages as the championship’s perennial favourites go into high-speed battle against the new wave of precocious talents enjoying success in Britain’s premier tin-top series.

It is a ‘revolution’ Cook from Bath finds himself at the heart of after claiming his maiden BTCC pole position and victory behind the wheel of his Power Maxed TAG Racing Vauxhall Astra last time out at Donington Park, in so doing lifting himself to third in the overall Drivers’ standings.

Buoyed by the prospect of following up his landmark weekend with another successful event at the Hampshire speedbowl, as Thruxton is affectionately known, Cook is convinced that local support has the power to carry him further on the crest of his current wave.

“It was fantastic to stand on top of the BTCC podium for the first time in my career and I cannot wait to experience that winning feeling again and again,” the 26-year-old commented. “Thruxton is an exhilarating circuit to race at and nothing would make me happier than to carry our momentum through to another great result. I will be giving it my all and I am sure the vocal home support for me and the team will be worth those extra tenths of a second.”

With the BTCC headlining an action-packed TOCA racing weekend, visitors will get their first proper look at the circuit’s brand new, industry-leading £2 million hospitality facility – The Thruxton Centre – ahead of its official opening by Nigel Mansell and Murray Walker on Sunday, 3 June amid a weekend of 50th Anniversary celebrations.

“I am looking forward to exploring the state-of-the-art Thruxton Centre,” Cook continued. “It is a brilliant new centrepiece for the circuit and one that represents an exciting future for this legendary venue.”

Cook’s burgeoning BTCC success comes as part of an unmistakable ‘youthful charge’ among some of the series’ up-and-coming participants, one that currently sees the top eight drivers in the standings average little more than 25 years of age.

Even so, there remains arguably no substitute for experience and few in the BTCC come as seasoned as fellow local favourite Rob Collard, the Frimley man seeking more silverware at Thruxton after a triumphant performance in front of a bumper crowd at the hugely popular Andover venue 12 months ago.

Competing in his 19th season of BTCC competition, Collard in the factory-backed Team BMW 125i M Sport has demonstrated some of his best form in recent years, finishing in the top five overall in both 2016 and 2017. He will be seeking to replicate his popular 2017 victory this weekend.

Armed with its striking new Civic Type R, Swindon-based Honda UK’s works team, Halfords Yuasa Racing, has enjoyed significant success at Thruxton over the years and is targeting a landmark first win for the latest-generation model with its accomplished driver pairing, BTCC veteran Matt Neal and rookie sensation Dan Cammish.

Fan favourite DUO Motorsport with HMS Racing will also strive for the top step at Thruxton with its all-new Alfa Romeo Giulietta. The Swindon team has re-introduced the iconic Italian marque to the BTCC for its first Thruxton appearance in more than a decade, HMS Racing hoping to hark back to Alfa Romeo’s iconic glory days when the Italian factory squad famously swept to the 1994 BTCC title with Gabriele Tarquini.

The RAF Falcons are additionally confirmed to perform their incredible display during Thruxton’s BTCC race meeting on Sunday, 20 May at approximately 10:15. More information can be found here

Tickets for the BTCC’s visit on 19-20 May can be purchased on the gate, priced at £16 for Saturday (qualifying) and £33 for Sunday (race day). Saturday grandstand seats are an additional £5. Accompanied children aged 15 and under will be admitted free of charge.

The latest exhilarating chapter of the 2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship will be played out this weekend (April 28/29), with Donington Park providing the backdrop for rounds four, five and six.

Celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, the series kicked into life at Brands Hatch in blockbuster fashion at the start of the month and that level of excitement is set to continue under the flightpath of East Midlands airport.

Three breathtaking races around the Kent venue brought three different winners as Jack Goff, Senna Proctor and Tom Ingram all topped the rostrum. Such is the competitive nature of this years grid, nobody visited the podium more than once – meaning a total of nine different drivers picked up silverware.

Further proof of how open the BTCC is this year is that the top ten in the championship standings sees ten different marques operated by ten different teams filling those spots. At the helm of the points arriving at the second event of the year is Speedworks Motorsport’s Ingram.

Adding a race win to a pair of solid points finishes at the curtain-raiser, the Toyota Avensis driver holds a slender three-point buffer over fellow Brands Hatch winner Goff and will carry 75kgs of success ballast into qualifying and race one.

Scoring a win at Donington Park last year, the Independent champion will be keen to further cement himself as the man to beat in the early stages; however challenges are set to come from all angles.

At the wheel of his Honda Civic Type R, Goff showcased that he isn’t a man to count out this year and he will be sighting further silverware for WIX Racing with Eurotech.

Adam Morgan and Rob Austin both scored podiums at Brands Hatch and the pair will be looking for more of the same in their respective machines. Despite expecting a tough time, reigning champion Ashley Sutton underlined his quality at the opening event to descend on Donington Park firmly in the mix in fifth.

Double champion Colin Turkington is another top name that will be eyeing victory to further ignite his title battle. Power Maxed Racing’s Proctor achieved that feat in a race that will live long in the memory for years to come having charged from P27 on slick tyres and a drying track.

Ollie Jackson, Rory Butcher and Mike Bushell round out the names that will carry success ballast into the weekend, virtue of their respective positions in the championship.

In total, 25 out of the 32 drivers competing this year having already scored points – once again echoing the level of competitiveness that the BTCC boasts this year.

Beyond the top ten, a host of names will be looking to strike at Donington Park and thrust themselves into contention. The likes of Andrew Jordan, Matt Neal, Sam Tordoff, Tom Chilton, Rob Collard, Josh Cook, Dan Cammish and Jason Plato, to name a few, will be notable drivers to look out for.

The introduction of the Dunlop hard option tyre will also no doubt play its part over the course of what is set to be a thrilling weekend of tin top action from Britain’s premier motor racing series.

The 2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship will go down to the wire at Brands Hatch in two weeks time following an action-packed penultimate event of the season at Silverstone this past weekend (September 15/16).

Sam Tordoff, Tom Ingram and Aiden Moffat shared the spoils to score victory however it was Colin Turkington that left the Northamptonshire venue leading the standings, despite his advantage being slashed to 34 points.

Qualifying proved to be a frenetic affair around the 1.64 mile circuit with track space proving to be critical. As the clock ticked to zero, Tordoff emerged as the man to beat as he set a blistering time of 58.480 to score his and Motorbase Performance’s first pole position of the year.

Ricky Collard took on a starring role in the session in just his third race meeting, piloting his West Surrey Racing BMW to second place – just 0.018 from pole. Tom Chilton, Jack Goff and Andrew Jordan meanwhile rounded out the top five.

Of the top three in the championship standings heading into the weekend, Colin Turkington was the highest qualifier in 18th, with Ingram 19th and Ashley Sutton 25th.

Having had to endure his own fair share of bad luck throughout the season, Tordoff delivered a near-perfect performance in the opening encounter to score his maiden victory of the season.

After a season of bad luck Tordoff converted his pole position into a first victory of the season. Holding his lead off the line, the former series runner-up led home a Motorbase one-two as Tom Chilton scored second, despite launching a challenge for the lead in the closing stages.

Despite making an early challenge for top spot, Collard dropped to fifth at one stage before clawing his way back to third, ultimately crossing the line to take a popular breakthrough rostrum. Throttle issues scuppered Jordan’s chances of big points whilst Turkington threaded his way to eighth. Sutton meanwhile produced a feisty drive to climb through the order into 11th.

Scoring just a single point in race one and trailing Turkington by 50, many eyes were focused on what Ingram could achieve in round 26. Free of ballast and on the faster tyre compound, the Speedworks Motorsport served up a mesmerising performance as he charged from 14th to score his third victory of the season, and crucially reigniting his title chances.

Vaulting into fifth on the opening tour, Ingram continued his charge and hit the front on lap ten, never to be seen again afterwards. Adam Morgan muscled his way into second whilst Tordoff, after leading early on, relinquished his lead in the ballast-laden Ford Focus RS to round off the podium.

Turkington battled the harder and slower tyre to salvage eighth once again. Reigning champion Sutton meanwhile lured a disastrous race as he failed to make the start due to mechanics still working on the car in the garage as the pit lane opened.

With Aiden Moffat drawn on pole position for the final race of the weekend, the Laser Tools Racing driver became the 16th different victor of the season as he produced a defensive masterclass to score his first win of the year.

In what turned out to be a pulsating 25-lap encounter, Moffat starved off a race-long attack from Ingram, Turkington, Rob Austin, Josh Cook and Chilton to pilot his Mercedes Benz A-Class to the chequered flag.

Pipping Turkington to second place, Ingram closed the points deficit to the 34 points – ensuring he will head to Brands Hatch at the end of the month still in contention to battle for the biggest prize in British motorsport.

One title was wrapped up at Silverstone as Dan Cammish built up an unassailable lead in the Jack Sears Trophy.

For the full classification of results from all sessions over the course of the weekend as well as the championship standings, click here.

The 2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship will draw to a close at Brands Hatch on September 29/30 with all titles set to be decided.

The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship continued its Diamond Jubilee celebrations at one of the biggest motorsport events of the year this past weekend, the Goodwood Festival of Speed, with Andrew Jordan coming out on top as the victor.

Taking place from July 12th to July 15th, more than 100,000 spectators poured through the gates each day to soak up the sun and all things automotive, with the BTCC taking on its own starring role.

Last staging a shootout at the event in 2016, the series returned with six drivers all vying for the bragging rights of being fastest up the iconic 1.16 mile hill.

Triumphing two years ago, 2013 champion Jordan retained his monaca as the man to beat after firstly piloting his West Surrey Racing BMW 1-Series to the top of the times in the two sessions held on Friday and Saturday.

Once again leading the way on Sunday morning, the BMW Pirtek Racing driver lit up the timesheets when it really mattered during Sunday afternoon’s main event, clocking what was to be an unbeatable time of 52.58 to win the BTCC shootout.

Commenting on the victory, Jordan said: “It’s an amazing feeling to be the BTCC’s King of the Hill and a great way to get my first ‘win’ of the season. The Goodwood hillclimb is an incredible challenge and you have to straddle that fine line between being incredibly brave and a bit cautious to get to the top in the best time.

“I’ve had a fantastic time so my thanks go to the guys from WSR for preparing the car and to the Duke of Richmond and his organising team at Goodwood for putting on such an incredible event again. I’m certain this success can inspire us to go and take BMW Pirtek Racing’s first BTCC race win of the year very soon.”

Power Maxed TAG Racing’s Josh Cook finished second after hustling his Vauxhall Astra between the hay bales to record a time of 54.06, narrowly ahead of Adam Morgan who was third despite having a wild moment on the grass exiting Molecomb.

Halfords Yuasa Racing’s Matt Neal was fourth with Speedworks Motorsport’s Tom Ingram fifth, the pair separated by little under eight tenths of a second at the end.

Rounding out the list of runners was Rob Austin in the HMS Racing Alfa Romeo Giulietta. Despite starting strongly, Austin appeared to encounter trouble towards the middle part of the climb and was unable to push on further, ultimately setting a time of 65.53.

Away from the modern day touring car machinery there was also a host of iconic machines on display. The Austin 105 that piloted Jack Sears to the inaugural British Saloon Car Championship title in 1958 took pride of place, as did a Volvo 850 Estate and Alfa Romeo 155 from 1994.

Elsewhere a Ford Galaxie 500, Ford Escort Twin Came, Triumph Dolomite Sprint, Rover SD1 Vitesse, Jaguar MK1 and Morris Mini Cooper S all garnered plenty of attention.

For the full classification of hillclimb times from the BTCC contingent, click here.

The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship returns to action on July 28/29 at Snetterton for rounds 16, 17 & 18. In-keeping with the BTCC’s 60th anniversary, round 18 of the series will be a ‘Diamond Double’ race which will see all drivers compete on the same tyre and without success ballast, whilst points will be doubled too.

Matt Simpson, Colin Turkington and Rob Collard took a win apiece as the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship served up a scintillating three races at Oulton Park this past weekend (June 9/10).

In searing temperatures and a bumper crowd, Britain’s premier racing series saw three different drivers scaled the top step of the podium – taking the 2018 tally to nine victory from 12 races.

Qualifying saw history made as Simpson set a new lap record on his way to his first-ever BTCC pole position. Firing a warning shot in free practice after setting the pace, the Simpson Racing driver backed-up his front-running pace by setting a blistering time of 1:25.750 around the 2.23 mile Cheshire venue – a lap that would was ultimately never bettered.

Motorbase Performance also enjoyed a strong qualifying session as Sam Tordoff pipped team-mate Tom Chilton to second place whilst BMW Pirtek Racing’s Andrew Jordan rounded out the top four.

As the lights went out for the opening encounter of the weekend, Simpson launched his Honda Civic Type R into a lead that he ultimately would never lose. Controlling the pace, Simpson delivered a measured drive and despite coming under late pressure in the closing stages, he had enough in hand to score a popular breakthrough triumph.

Behind Simpson was the Motorbase Performance Ford Focus RS of Tom Chilton, who bagged his and the teams maiden rostrum finish of the year. The former Independents champion resisted a near race-long challenge from the BMW of Andrew Jordan to keep second place as Jordan capped the podium.

Unfortunately for Simpson he was unable to see if he could replicate his race one performance, forced to instead watch on from the sidelines as his race-winning machine underwent an engine change.

With everyone moving up a spot on the grid, Chilton blasted away from pole position and held off the early advances of Jordan as the field filed down The Avenue into Dentons. Further back there was action aplenty as Dan Cammish, Josh Cook, Aiden Moffat and Ashley Sutton were all caught up in an incident, Moffat and Cammish coming off worse out of the four.

Back at the front however all eyes were on Turkington as he made up places in no time at all, soon surging into second place. Producing a textbook pass on Chilton into Lodge corner, the double champion powered his BMW into the distance and on to an emotional first win of the season for both himself and West Surrey Racing.

Halfords Yuasa Racing’s Matt Neal slipped past Chilton at Old Hall a couple of laps later but was unable to catch Turkington, settling for second whilst Chilton bagged a second podium of the day.

Race three saw Rob Austin drawn on pole position but there was to be drama further back as a multi-car accident brought the red flag out immediately. Coming together with Mike Bushell, the quartet of Tom Oliphant, Rory Butcher, Daniel Lloyd and Chris Smiley all saw their races come to a premature end – with substantial damage bestowing all of them.

On the restart, Austin was powerless to stop fellow front row starter Rob Collard from getting the jump on him off the line, setting into second place behind the West Surrey Racing pilot. Building up an early advantage, Collard soon gapped the Alfa Romeo driver and stamped his authority on the race.

Austin had looked on course for a second podium of the season but cruel fate was to strike as he slowed, forcing him to retire to the pits. That left West Surrey Racing to pick up a famous 1-2-3 finish as Jordan and Turkington followed Collard to a mammoth haul of silverware.

As a result of the weekend’s three races, Turkington leaves Oulton Park as the championship leader, 12 points ahead of Adam Morgan and Jack Goff.

For the full classification of results from all BTCC sessions over the course of the weekend, click here.

The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championships heads to North Yorkshire next with Croft playing host to rounds 13, 14 and 15 on June 23/24 – marking the traditional halfway point of the season.

Advance tickets for the fifth meeting of the 2018 campaign are available until June 14, priced at just £11 for Saturday, £24 for Sunday and £33 for the full weekend. Head to the Croft Circuit website for more information.