Preparations for the 2025 Mairon Freight UK TOCA Junior Championship took another step forward earlier this week (26 September) as the Chevron B1417 car completed a successful first day of testing at Anglesey Circuit.

Commencing what is poised to be an extensive test programme for the new machine over the coming months, the car enjoyed a trouble-free shakedown at the Welsh venue with Championship Director Dave Beecroft completing more than 300 laps. 

Little over a month on since the bespoke rear-wheel-drive car was launched to the world and with the UK’s governing body, Motorsport UK, having given its seal of approval of the car recently, the maiden track test marked a historic moment for the new series.

Running through planned preparation and installation checks to begin with, the car soon emerged from the pit lane in the morning and went on to complete its maiden laps around the 2.100-mile circuit in overcast conditions.

Recording solid mileage as the day wore on, the car – which boasts a number of industry leading safety features — ran faultlessly straight out of the box. Meeting all of the targets and goals that were set out beforehand by Beecroft, and the team responsible for building the car, further testing for the Chevron B1417 is now expected to continue in the coming weeks.

“It’s an extremely proud moment for everyone involved in the TOCA Junior Championship,” said Beecroft. “This project has been two years in the making and to have now completed our very first track test with the car is both special and historic. 

“To be the one to driving it out of the pit lane for the first time was outstanding; I’d had this idea of the car in my head for a number of years so to actually get behind the wheel of it was the culmination of a lot of hard work and long nights. 

“Since we launched the car we’ve been meticulously planning what the aims and objectives of our first test would be. With it being a new car there are the inevitable teething issues but thankfully the car ran faultlessly all day, which is a testament to everyone’s hard work behind the scenes.

“Our plan was to carry out a full systems check and then complete a number of short runs, all with the aim of finding out what does and doesn’t work. It’s been so far so good and we’ve gathered plenty of data that provides us with a solid baseline to move forward from.

“It won’t be too long until we start putting other drivers in the hot seat and allow them to turn the wick and push the car to its limits. Having as much feedback as possible is important to ensure we provide the best product to our customer teams and drivers.”

Further updates on the Chevron B1417 test programme will be provided in due course as the countdown continues to the opening round of the 2025 Mairon Freight UK TOCA Junior Championship, which is scheduled to begin at Donington Park on the 26-27 April.