TEAM VERTU TARGETS BRANDS HATCH VICTORY
Team VERTU will seek to return to the top step of the British Touring Car Championship podium when the series heads to Brands Hatch this weekend for the second meeting of the season.
The EXCELR8-run team endured mixed fortunes in the opening rounds of the year at Donington Park, picking up a pair of podium finishes but missing out on hard-fought victories in both the first ever BTCC ‘Race for Pole’ and the opening race of the season.
Defending champion Tom Ingram was on fine form at Donington Park, although his current championship position of eighth isn’t a fair reflection of the pace displayed by the #80 Hyundai.
Ingram topped the times in both practice and qualifying during the opening weekend of the year, and then led the way in the qualifying race only to miss out on victory by just 0.024s due to a time penalty for being slightly out of position at the start.
Having also lost victory in race one to an overboost issue, Ingram came away from round one with a single podium finish to his name having stormed through the field in race three and will now look to benefit from an increased level of turbo boost to challenge for victory during the weekend ahead.
Experienced racer Tom Chilton also endured a difficult to his campaign with a single top ten finish from the opening three races of the year.
Heading to his home circuit, Chilton is also optimistic about his chances of fighting for silverware at the sharp end of the field to kick-start his own challenge for championship honours.
Former British GT Champion Ricky Collard secured a podium finish on his return to the series at Donington Park, despite having just half a day of running his car prior to the opening meeting.
Collard won on the road at Brands Hatch back in 2023 before losing the victory to a track limits penalty, and has a strong record around the Indy layout in the past – scoring podium finishes in both Formula Ford and British F4 earlier in his career.
Nicolas Hamilton meanwhile heads to Brands Hatch chasing his first points finish of the season having taken a best finish of 17th at Donington Park during the opening meeting of the season.
Hamilton showed encouraging pace during testing at Brands Hatch before the season started and will also hope for three strong results amongst those drivers eligible for the Jack Sears Trophy.
After free practice at 10:35 on Saturday morning, qualifying and the qualifying race – over 18 laps – will then take place in the afternoon to determine the grid for the opening race on Sunday.
That race is scheduled for 11:30, with races two and three at 14:45 and 17:30.
Tom Chilton, #3 Team VERTU Hyundai i30 Fastback N, said:
“After a difficult start to the season at Donington Park, I’m looking forward to getting my campaign underway this weekend at Brands Hatch. It’s no secret that I love the circuit and I’m heading there confident that we can be in the mix towards the front and bag a decent haul of points.
“The fact we’ll have plenty of turbo boost to take into Saturday can only help us in the qualifying race and the goal is to pick up a strong result in that to set us up for Sunday. I’m hoping to come away from the weekend with a trophy.”
Ricky Collard, #11 Team VERTU Hyundai i30 Fastback N, said:
“Considering how little time I’d had in the car, Donington Park exceeded my expectations in terms of the results and has given me a good platform to now build on at Brands Hatch.
“The knowledge I’ve gained from getting a race weekend under my belt with the team means I’m going into round two feeling much more confident of hitting the ground running when practice gets underway.
“Brands Hatch is a circuit where I’ve always gone well, and I see no reason why this weekend will be any different.”
Nicolas Hamilton, #28 Team VERTU Hyundai i30 Fastback N, said:
“The opening round at Donington Park was less than ideal from my side. I think I put a bit too much pressure on myself going into the weekend. I was so excited to start the season in this new team and car, and I feel I mismanaged myself mentally.
“I have reset for Brands Hatch. It’s a circuit I like and I have gone well there in the past, so I am really looking forward to getting back in the car.
“Progress and development is my main target. I have the best team behind me and I will be working as hard as I can for some solid results.”
Tom Ingram, #80 Team VERTU Hyundai i30 Fastback N, said:
“Donington Park was a much stronger weekend than the championship standings suggest, and we head to Brands Hatch looking to make the most of the pace that is clearly in the car.
“Being lower than we expected to be in the standings means we’ll have more turbo boost to use on Saturday, which I expect to make a big difference around a short circuit like the Brands Hatch Indy layout.
“We’ve been on the podium at Brands Hatch Indy each season since I joined Team VERTU, and more silverware is the aim this weekend to really kick-start our title challenge.”
Justina Williams, Team VERTU Team Owner, said:
“Although Donington Park didn’t deliver the race wins we know we are capable of, we showed that our package remains one of the strongest on the grid. With that in mind, we head for Brands Hatch this weekend in confident mood and I’m optimistic about our chances of seeing one of our drivers on the top step of the podium.”
