VX Racing prepares for Thruxton thriller

Fresh from the opening race victory at Brands Hatch, VX Racing will be looking to maintain the lead in the Championship standings, as the British Touring Car Championship heads to Thruxton in Hampshire this weekend. Championship leader Matt Neal , reigning Champion Fabrizio Giovanardi and rising star Andrew Jordan will be vying for victories as the team look to build on their opening round success.

Matt Neal ,who took pole position, a win and two third places at Brands Hatch, is looking forward to the challenges of Thruxton, “It was a good start for me at Brands. The cards fell my way and I had the sort of weekend that Fabrizio usually has – and he had one of mine! I enjoy Thruxton but it’s never been a happy hunting ground for me. It suits the Vauxhall though, so I’m looking forward to the weekend, but with a bit of trepidation.

“I’ll be carrying maximum ballast, but Thruxton is probably one of the better places to carry it and I’d rather be carrying it than not carrying it. Thruxton is one of the few circuits left in the UK which haven’t been ‘sanitised’ with a chicane, so it’s very much flat out, with lots of opportunity to draft other cars. Drafting can really help in qualifying, particularly when you’re carrying maximum ballast, but it’s quite difficult when you only have three runs.”

After following Neal home to a second place in race one at Brands Hatch, Giovanardi suffered several incidents in the remaining two races, salvaging few points from the opening round of the season. The Italian is undeterred as he looks forward to returning to the track which gave him his first ever BTCC title two years ago.

Giovanardi commented, “Thruxton is a complete contrast to Brands Hatch as it is so fast and flowing. It is like a ring, very fast and wide, but I really enjoy those characteristics. I expect to be fast this weekend because the track suits the Vauxhall and I am running no success ballast. The aim is definitely to go for pole and then the wins. I need to rescue points after not scoring very well at Brands Hatch, there is a long season ahead but I know I’m in for a tough fight against my team mates.

“Tyre wear is a very important factor for us this weekend. Last year I blew a tyre in the race because the wear rate is so high. We will work hard during the practice sessions to find a set up which will use the tyres well and save them as much as possible. Hopefully we will then be in a good position to take the wins. ”

19 year old Jordan, who shone on his debut with the VX Racing team at Brands Hatch, commented, “Thruxton is probably my favourite circuit on the calendar because you have to be brave to be quick. I have good memories from last year’s races where I started from pole position and challenged Plato for the lead, with that in mind and the strong pace we showed at Brands Hatch I’m definitely aiming for the podium this weekend and hoping to challenge for the win.

“Thruxton is a fast circuit which will really suit the Vauxhalls. It is one of our strongest circuits. We know we will have to keep an eye out for James Thompson in the Dynamics car and Plato in the RML Chevrolet, because they will be strong this weekend, but like Fabrizio, I’m not running any success ballast, so I think we will be in with a good chance.”

The Thruxton Round will take place on the 25th/26th April, with qualifying taking place on Saturday afternoon and the three races on Sunday. Catch all of the action live on ITV4 Sunday from 11:30am until 6pm.