TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK is heading to picturesque Oulton Park for the next instalment in the 2024 British Touring Car Championship campaign this weekend (22-23 June), with its sights firmly set on conquering the circuit’s notorious ‘old-school’ nature.
Located just east of Chester, Oulton is familiar territory indeed for Speedworks Motorsport – the team behind TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK’s BTCC effort – with its workshop based less than ten miles up the road in nearby Northwich.
Northern Irishman Watson – the reigning Jack Sears Trophy winner – ascended the podium at Oulton in the Ginetta GT4 SuperCup and also has experience of the track in the British GT Championship. The 29-year-old Belfast native raced to a trio of points finishes there last season as a BTCC rookie.
Following Saturday afternoon’s qualifying session at 15:35 – streamed on ITV Sport’s YouTube channel – every moment of Sunday’s doorhandle-to-doorhandle action will be broadcast live and in high-definition on ITV4, beginning at 11:45. All three races will similarly be shown on the ITV Sport TikTok channel, in the UK and globally.
Christian Dick, Team Principal, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK, said:
“It goes without saying that we always look forward to Oulton Park. It’s a circuit that has played such a huge role in Speedworks’ history as the place where it all began, and we invariably receive amazing support there from friends, family, fans and team partners. It’s the busiest weekend of the year for us – both on and off-track!
“Compared to the first three events of the season, Thruxton was clearly more of a struggle but it is such a unique circuit and we are confident that now returning to more of a ‘traditional’ track will enable Rob and Andrew to properly exploit the Corolla’s potential. Oulton is very much an ‘old-school’ challenge and the kind of place where good drivers and cars truly come to the fore, so we go there in optimistic mood and with the steadfast aim of adding to our 2024 trophy haul.”
Andrew Watson, Driver, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK, said:
“Oulton Park is a totally different kind of circuit to Thruxton, and I’m confident we will be quicker there. It’s really fun to drive – very fast and narrow with a lot of bumps and undulations, which gives you a great sense of speed and excitement. It’s pretty much got a bit of everything, and is definitely one of my favourite tracks on the calendar. It’s the kind of place where a good car-and-driver combination can scoop some serious points.
“The hybrid probably didn’t have as big an effect at Thruxton as we had been anticipating due to the high speeds around the lap; at Oulton, I think it will make a greater difference. We go there with a full allocation, and we’ve been very quick in qualifying this year so I’ll definitely be aiming for the front couple of rows on the grid and then to convert that into some silverware on race day.
“Honestly, it’s so tight in the BTCC that qualifying is always important; we’ve seen that in the reversed-grid races, where drivers that won earlier in the day often struggle to come through, but with a good car, the right tyres and a healthy dose of hybrid, I do believe overtaking will be possible at Oulton this weekend so whatever happens on Saturday, I think we will be in decent shape.
“Ultimately, this is still only my second season in the championship, and I have a tendency sometimes to forget that. I’m learning and improving all the time, and while I clearly haven’t maximised all the results so far this year, everything we are putting in-place will ultimately pay off, I’m very sure about that.”
Images: Jakob Ebrey Photography
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