2017 BTCC Champion Ash Sutton is bullish about regaining the championship title which slipped through his grasp in 2018, and sees plenty of promise in the Adrian Flux Subaru Racing car after the test day at Brands Hatch on 27th March.
“Some of the things left me very excited”
“It was great to get back out in the car after such a long winter break,” he said, “lots of work has gone on back at HQ like many of the teams, but some of the things left me very excited over the winter break.”
After completing the test in front of huge crowds at Brand Hatch, Ash was very positive about the changes to the car this year.
“It was great to see ideas come to life and translate that back from a driver’s point of view.”
Sutton will race the #116 car and will have legions of fans willing him to get a great start to the season and embark upon another title-winning campaign.
“A second title sounds much more exciting”
Sutton will be entering 2019 with momentum on his side as he won the last race of 2018 and is competing in a car he’s helped to develop over the last three years.
After a slow start to 2018, he went on to take a total of six wins from the 30 rounds – a win percentage of 20%. With a fast start to 2019, Sutton may find himself in a fantastic position after the first few rounds, but is no stranger to having a target on his back and being the man to beat after wearing the reigning Champion’s #1 on his car for all of 2018.
“The season ahead is all about one thing for me, reclaiming back that title” he said. “Over the last two years we have proven we can win races – that’s ticked off and we plan to continue that – but a second title sounds much more exciting doesn’t it!?”
Sutton, now aged 25, finished the 2018 season in 4th place in the Driver’s Championship having amassed 256 points, and is now a member of the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) SuperStars programme.
Sutton showed fantastic promise on his way to BTCC by winning the Clio Cup (a BTCC support series) in 2015, then moving into BTCC with MG for 2016 and winning a race in his debut season. That year he also took the Jack Sears trophy, awarded to the best-performing rookie.
FAST FACTS – ASH SUTTON
- Jack Sears Champion 2016
- 25 BTCC podiums (13 wins)
- 2017 BTCC Champion
- 2018 Championship – 4th place
- Age 25
An evolution of a winning car, and a new team mate
Once again the Adrian Flux Subaru Racing team, run by BMR Racing, will race a rear wheel drive version of Subaru’s capable Levorg Sports Tourer, and will therefore be the only ‘estate’ bodied car on the grid.
With a version of Subaru’s ‘boxer’ engine being engineered by Swindon Powertrain this is an estate car with much more power than a lot of high-end sports cars you’ll find on the public road, and with a stripped-out interior it weighs much less, too. Add aerodynamic aids, race suspension, slick tyres and more into the mix and you have a car capable of getting around the tight and twisty Brands Hatch Indy circuit in just 48 seconds.
The drivers of this impressive machine need to be able to step up to the mark, and so Ash Sutton is joined by 20-year-old Senna Proctor, racing the #18 car. This means the team boasts one of the youngest driver line-ups on the grid with an average age of just 22 years and 10 months when the season begins, second only to Laser Tools Racing, with their sole driver Aiden Moffat aged 22 years and 7 months.
A BRDC Rising Star – Senna Proctor
Proctor joined the BTCC in 2017 with Power Maxed Racing and succeeded Ash Sutton as the winner of the Jack Sears trophy that year, showing his talent from the very start.
2019 also marks Proctor’s return to BMR Racing, the team he raced with in Ginettas and Clios in 2015/16 to great success.
2019 will be Proctor’s third year of racing in the BTCC and he comes with a depth of experience that belies his youth, having scored his debut BTCC win at the Brands Hatch Indy circuit last year – proving he’s no stranger to the circuit’s demands.
With a further pair of podiums during the season and consistent points-scoring Proctor finished the 2018 BTCC Driver’s Championship in 12th place with 170 points, and is now a member of the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Stars programme.
“My main priority is to get results and enjoy it.”
“For me testing went well,” Proctor said, “we ticked all the boxes we needed to, such as getting myself comfortable with the car and fine-tuning it to my liking. I am over the moon with everyone at BMR and the hard work back at HQ over winter seems to be paying off.
“This season for me is about trying to win races, which is easier said than done in the BTCC, I will be aiming to win the championship but so will the other 29 drivers on the grid so I will take it race by race and if we are in the fight come the last round so be it, but my main priority is to get results and enjoy it.”
FAST FACTS – SENNA PROCTOR
- Jack Sears Champion 2017
- Three BTCC podiums (1 win)
- Son of BTCC racer Mark Proctor
- 2018 Championship – 12th place
- Age 20
2019 BTCC Calendar
The opening round of the UK’s largest national race series, the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship (BTCC), takes place at Brands Hatch Indy circuit in Kent on 6-7 April, with the 2019 season concluding back at Brands Hatch on 12-13 October.
The season comprises 30 rounds, split over 10 race weekends, with practice and qualifying on a Saturday and three races on a Sunday. The series takes in some of the best race circuits in the UK including Silverstone, Knockhill and Thruxton.
How to watch BTCC Live:
If you’re unable to find your way to the circuit to experience BTCC in the flesh then don’t despair, ITV4 will once again be showing live coverage (available in HD) of 2019 BTCC rounds, with extensive coverage of the support races including Ginettas and Clios.
Qualifying will be shown online at 3pm on Saturday 6th April- http://itv.com/btcc.
Coverage of Rounds 1, 2 and 3 from Brands Hatch will be live on ITV4 and ITV4 HD 10:15am – 6:15pm Sunday 7th April 2019, with highlights available.
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