by admin | Apr 11, 2018 | 2018 News, Britcar
This weekend sees the return of Britcar Endurance.
This weekend sees the return of Britcar Endurance.
The first race of the 2018 Season will take place on 14th April at Rockingham Motor Speedway.
“For nearly 20 years the Britcar Endurance Championship has been at the forefront of promoting affordable and realistic multi-class endurance racing in the UK, in a format where “Gentleman” drivers, hobbyists, professional racers and up-and-coming youngsters can achieve equal success in GT Supercars, production-based sports cars, Touring cars and hot hatches. The multi-class system, two-driver format with pit stops, refuelling and tyre changes involves a real team effort and reflects the true spirit of global long-distance racing.” (http://www.britcar-endurance.com/index.php)
Ahead of the first race weekend Eddy Hall, GT Team Manager, says: “It’s going to be a good season for Team-HARD in the Britcar Championship, coming off the back of last year with a 1, 2, 3 in Class and 2nd and 3rd overall. The aim this year is overall Champions and I think that’s a very achievable goal. We have great driver pairings with lots of experience and a great infrastructure behind them. 2018 is going to be better than ever.”
There is a three car entry this weekend with driver pairings of:
Simon Rudd & Tom Barley (Car 24)
Darron Lewis & Adam Hatfield (Car 285)
Graham Roberts & Benjamin Wallace (Car 45)
Simon Rudd says: “I’m really looking forward to getting back to some competitive racing with Tom (Barley). Tom, Tony and I have been working hard to get some plans together for this season. With our bad luck at Brands last year, it has put us on the back foot but we are looking forward to the season ahead. Our aims are to win the Championship. We came so close last year but it was not meant to be!”
Tom Barley says: “I am delighted to be back for another season with Team-HARD. 2017 was my most enjoyable and successful year of racing to date, with thanks to 5 race wins, a flawless crew preparing the car and a brilliant team mate in Mr Rudd. I hope that Simon and I can challenge for the championship again in 2018! We had a perfect day pre-season testing. The dedication from Peter Farrow and the team to get the car ready was brilliant, and it ran GOOD! Simon Rudd was on fire too. Hopefully there will be more of these man hugs after our first race next weekend.”
Picture – Andrea Hurcombe
Darron Lewis says: “We want to get the best start to the season as possible. I think this year will be a bit harder as the rules have changed a bit and there are a few cars that are proven to be faster than us so we have our work cut out. But I love a challenge! We haven’t done any testing so Friday will be my first time back in the car. So fingers crossed we get back into the groove quickly. Our aim is to win the Championship outright this year. We came very close last year so it is possible.”
Adam Hatfield is: “Super excited to kick off the Championship this weekend at Rockingham, and start the defence of the Class 3 title with Darron! Pre-season I have had very limited Ginetta testing but am feeling very car sharp coming off the back of the Dubai 24H in January and the Aston Martin Racing test at Portimao last month. I am sure I will get back into the swing of driving the car on Friday! I have limited experience of Rockingham in a GT4 car but will be calling on all of my previous experience of this track and working with Darron and the Team. I’m sure we will pick it up very quickly! Bring on the weekend ahead!”
Graham Roberts has recently been announced as joining the Britcar Team. He said: “I’m really excited to be stepping up to Britcar this year. I spent the last four seasons in the Fun Cup Championship where we enjoyed good success with two back to back championships; however I’m ready for a new challenge now. When testing with Team-HARD during the winter, I gelled with the team and car really well so it was the obvious choice to go with them. We decided on the Britcar Endurance Championship as the GT4 category is growing in popularity. I’ll be looking to show my nose at the front with the goal of gaining some podiums along the way. I previously contested one round of the championship two years ago and came away with 3rd in class first time out so hopefully we can repeat that kind of success. Sadly we won’t be able to contest the full season due to budgetary constraints but I’m glad to be doing what I can and I aim to make the most of it!”
Benjamin Wallace is stepping in to team up with Graham Roberts. He said: “I’m only substitute for this weekend. A Friday test day turned into a race weekend. It’s good practice for me and hopefully I’ll get a win! Graham can only do a few selected rounds. I will do those races if I can but we’ll have to wait and see.”
Timetable for 14th April 2018
Free Practice: 09.00 – 09.20
Qualifying: 10.30 – 11.00
Race 1: 12.05 – 12.55
Race 2: 15.55 – 17.55
by admin | Mar 30, 2018 | 2018 News, Britcar, BTCC, VW Cup
Interview with Tony Gilham post Media Day, Official BTCC Test Day and prior to a busy race weekend over Easter.
This week we’ve had Media Day. How did that go?
We sure have. Media Day was very, very productive. We had a plan that we were working around. We didn’t do everything that we wanted to do on the plan. We didn’t, get the new tyre runs in that we wanted to do but we got all the answers that we wanted at Donington so that when we go to Brands we will know exactly where we’re going to be and what our targets are that we think we can achieve. We’re very happy with the car and all the drivers are very happy. The engineers and all the guys been working so hard in the build up to Media Day it was just nice to get there. All four cars complete, ready, running reliably and importantly for us, potentially very quick.
So we’re quietly confident with what we’ve built over the winter and everything that’s gone into it but it was for us a very proud day because obviously we’ve essentially built four new cars over the winter. We took on a lot. It was a big workload, it is a big ambitious project with the amount of changes that we’ve made. And that includes obviously the whole infrastructure in terms of the team, the setup, cars, the whole lot.
So we arrive in 2018 exactly where we want to be in good shape. And now we’ve just completed the Brands Hatch test we’re now in very good shape for round one which is now just a week away.
So we’ve had the official BTCC test today. How has that gone?
Again a very productive day. A little bit mixed conditions but like UK Motorsport that is something that’s going to happen more often than not. So we have run through everything again we wanted to run through today. We’ve got some very valuable data, some great feedback from the drivers and again we know what we’re working towards today. What we came here to do we’ve achieved. We can take away lots of positives and feel that we’re going to be in good shape come next weekend, which is exactly what we planned to do and hoped to do. We’ve got four cars all in one piece. All tidy, all looking (in my opinion)very good, very attractive and four happy drivers. And most importantly a very happy workforce.
Did you see who’s livery was voted the favourite in our Team on social media?
Mike Bushell – Photo by Hill Speed Images Motorsport Photography
I did see that, it may have been the blue and black car which will please Mr. Wheeler! (Brisky Racing) It is a gorgeous looking car. I mean, I love all of them for their own reasons. Yes, they’ve got their individual colours, they’ve got their individual sponsors. There’s a little bit of uniformity going across the Team. So they are essentially showing that they’re all our cars but trying to keep everybody happy is not always the easiest thing to do when it comes to multiple partners and sponsors that are on the car but we’ve tried to keep it a little bit more corporate this year. So we feel we’ve produced what is an attractive looking car. In my opinion the best looking cars on the grid. I would say that, I may be biased but I think they look stunning. Now don’t get me wrong, there’s some other very good looking cars out there but at the end of the day this is all part of the show that we’re all putting on and it’s it’s great to see people making the effort.
There’s a bit of disappointment from a few of the fans with the lack of pink.
Yes that’s been said quite a lot because the green and pink obviously runs through the Team-HARD. veins. But at the end of the day that will never go away. The pink bobble hats, all the stuff. The pink ribbons will be put on the car for next weekend, which is where the pink came from, our Breast Cancer support. I would love to see just four green and pink cars go around the track from a very sort of selfish point of view and just because that’s where it all began. But at the same time we rely on drivers and sponsors and partners and so many people that contribute to the whole ship and operation. It’s a big old operation now so we have to work with people to make sure that we produce cars that are in the corporate colours of the companies that we are working with.
So yes, in an ideal world, there will be more green and pink going on but there’s reasons why there isn’t. And it’s growing up, we’re maturing, we’re evolving and there’s lots of other things away from just the Touring Cars where you’ll see the green and pink feature quite heavily. So there’s a whole new performance range coming. There’s a whole new cleaning product range coming. And there’s a whole different area of clothing. So we’ve got #HARDwear, #HARDstyle, #HARDperformance, there’s there’s a lot of Team-HARD. themed things that will be going on aside from just Touring Cars. We compete in lots of different series now and it’s something that will never, never go away, it will stay with us and there’s lots of exciting things happening behind the scenes that will be launched imminently.
So that leads us onto the busy weekend coming up with VW Racing Cup at Silverstone and the British GT Championship at Oulton Park. Are things looking equally as positive and promising in those areas?
Yes they are. We’ve got VW this weekend, for the first time alongside TCR which will be interesting to see how that goes. We’ve got very quick drivers in the team. Obviously, we’ve got our Scholarship winner with young Ethan Hammerton making his debut with us. He’s only 17. Toby Davis is back. Mark Wakefield, Jamie Bond. So it’s a very, very strong line up. So we’ve got a very strong team going into the VW cup to defend the title that obviously Bobby Thompson won last year.
British GT is the same weekend. We make a very warm welcome back this weekend to Will Phillips. Unfortunately, Nick Worm is not available this weekend due to personal reasons but he will be filling in alongside Ben Wallace. So that’s an interesting line up in a silver, silver pairing. Obviously, Anna Walewska and Callum Hawkins-Row make up the other (Pro/Am) pairing. So decent line-ups.
The balance of performance has not been very favourable for us in the Ginettas. So we will struggle in GT. There’s only 4 Ginettas on the grid this year and it does seem to be evolving in the higher mark of car being more favorable in terms of McLaren’s and BMW, which I understand. However, the Ginetta is still a very capable car. It’s just interesting to see where we go or how we fare now the new BOP (Balance of Performance) is out with the new throttle bodies and everything so it’s interesting. I’d like to say we’re in very good shape in terms of competitiveness, but whilst we’re very prepared as a team and our drivers are great, I’m not sure that we’ve got the right BOP that will allow us to compete at the front.
So there’s some decisions to be made going forwards for 2019?
Yes, there is. I mean, we look at all sorts of options and we’ve got a decent relationship with Ginetta. We’ve got the Ginetta Supercup running alongside Touring Cars. We’ve got 8 Ginettas in total, including Britcar. So we’ve we’ve got a big commitment and sensible relationship with Ginetta, but I’m not sure how long that can stand in British GT. So the GT4 category is very,very strong and I don’t know what the best thing to do is at this stage. I feel we’ve got a competitive package but it comes down to the BOP which is issued on a round by round basis. But from I guess any mark they will always want more because as a racing driver all you want to do is win and if you feel that it’s not possible to win with the performance that you’ve been you’ve been given then is frustrating. But that’s what it is, we’re part of the championship and we have to abide by the rules and the regulations that are set. So we give it our all and hopefully it’s good enough on the day because anything can happen in motorsport as we all know. So we’ll see, we’ll play it by ear.
Good luck to all of our guys and I’ll be up and down this weekend, trying to visit everybody. So from here I’m going to try and get to Oulton and to Silverstone this weekend at some point. It’s a long weekend over Easter but I also want to support everybody.
by admin | Mar 21, 2018 | 2018 News, Britcar
Team HARD. Racing are very pleased to confirm their second pairing in the Dunlop Endurance Championship for 2018. Following a class 3 title winning season in 2017, Darron Lewis will pair up with Adam Hatfield as they look to challenge for overall honours in 2018.
Team owner Tony Gilham said “Darron will be entering his third season with the team and he has been an absolute revelation since coming on board in any car that he has sat in. He deserved his win last year with his pace and consistency and also produced some very memorable moments like his start at the Donington Park. He was also awarded driver of the year so to retain his services is great for us as a team. Alongside Darron will be Adam Hatfield who came on board last season and who also proved to be a very capable driver in a variety of machinery. At the Britcar Silverstone round he was a class act and they will be looking to form a very strong partnership and championship assault “
Darron said “After coming so close to the overall title last year, finishing second in the championship, it is great to be back with Team HARD. to try to go one step better and to also defend our class win. Thanks again to the team for the opportunity and I’m very much looking forward to a third year with them. I’ll be racing alongside Adam and after racing against him a couple of times last year, I’m sure that we will be able to push towards the front from the get go.”
Adam has also enjoyed a great relationship with the team over the last year or so and we have seen his progression all the way to British GT as well as debuting the Toyota Avensis BTCC car in Britcar at Oulton Park.
Adam said ” I am super excited to be back with Team HARD. for the 2018 season, we had some great success together in 2017 and hope to continue that this year. I can’t wait to get underway and partner up with Darron who has a proven track record in the Ginetta and Britcar being a returning class champion. The competition will be tough as always but let’s hope we can emulate that success this season.”
by admin | Mar 16, 2018 | 2018 News, Britcar
Team HARD. Racing are very pleased to confirm their first pairing in the Dunlop Endurance Championship for 2018. Following a very successful year in 2017, Simon Rudd and Tom Barley team up again for what is a proven and very formidable partnership.
Team owner Tony Gilham said “Simon is our longest serving driver and will be with us for his 5th consecutive season. Last year was a great season for Simon and we saw another level of development both on and off track. Tom will now be entering what will be his 4th season with us as well, so we have a very strong relationship with both drivers and that helps as we look to put together a potential championship winning package. “
Simon said ” I am delighted to re-sign with Team HARD. for the 2018 season. It has been a tough winter but with Tony and the teams help, it is great to know that we will be back out there to fight once again. We had a great season last year and but for some issues that were out of our control, we had a real chance to win the championship. This year, we are hoping to go one better and take the crown. A huge thanks to the team, my family, Steve and all my loyal partners for their support once again. Watch this space for some more announcements over the coming weeks.
Tom has also enjoyed a great relationship with the team over the last few years and have seen his progression all the way to his BTCC debut in 2013.
Tom said ” I am delighted to be back for another season with Team HARD. 2017 was my most enjoyable and successful year of racing to date, with thanks to 5 race wins, a flawless crew preparing the car and a brilliant team mate in Mr Rudd. I hope that Simon and I can challenge for the championship again in 2018!”
Tony concluded “We are very much looking forward to working with Simon and Tom again and also a massive thank you to Claire, Rob and the rest of the Britcar team for their hard work and commitment in putting together what we believe to be a very good championship”.
by admin | Jan 10, 2018 | 2018 News, Britcar, BTCC, Ginetta GT4 Supercup, VW Cup
Come and meet some of the team and its array of drivers at the 2018 Autosport International show at the NEC, Birmingham.
The team have a stand in Hall 7, stand number 7530 and will be there from Thursday 10th to Sunday 14th Jan.
On display will be Bobby Thompson’s 2017 VW Racing cup Championship winning car and one of the teams ‘Stilp HARD Academy’ karts.
Bobby will also be there with his Championship trophy, so if you want to get a photograph with Bobby, his trophy and car, pop over to the stand to see us.
For those of you who are interested in signing up for the ‘GKR BetterFuture Scholarship’, there are still places available and bookings can be taken at the show.
There will also be a limited amount of team merchandise available, including the now famous, Pink pom pom beanies.
Entry on Saturday and Sunday is from 09:00–18:00
by admin | Nov 17, 2017 | Britcar, BTCC
For the first time in almost 20 years, a BTCC car will take part in a night race. This will take place at Brands Hatch this weekend for the Britcar finale in to the night event.
Jesse Chamberlain and Ben Wallace will be the lucky pairing to enjoy this unique opportunity and we very much look forward to welcoming Jesse to the team and also seeing Ben continue his rate of progression within the Team HARD. motorsport programme.
Jesse said, “Thank you to Team HARD. for giving me this opportunity to race in this exciting event. It’s been a career goal to race in a BTCC car and to do that with Team HARD. is a dream come true. I’m looking forward to the challenge of the after the dark racing and especially as this is the first time in so many years that a touring car has entered in to this type of event and I’m honoured to bring back the touring car to endurance racing with me at the wheel. I’m also looking forward to racing with Ben and I’m sure we will be competitive and will be pushing for a great result.”
Ben commented, “Like Jesse I am honoured to be given this opportunity and can’t wait to get out on track for what will be my first time driving a BTCC car. I’ve been with Team HARD. for a couple of seasons now and I’m loving every minute, it is amazing that one team can offer such a variety of cars for its drivers and enables us to build a real strong relationship as we look to continue my development as a driver and build on my career. This will give us plenty to think about over the winter as we look at options for 2018.”
This isn’t the first time that the Team HARD. Toyota Avensis, previously piloted by Jake Hill, will compete in the Britcar Championship this season having already been raced by Adam Hatfield at Oulton Park picking up a class win on its debut.
Tony added, “A very warm welcome to what is very much a family team to Jesse and looking forward to working with him this weekend. I’m sure he will love every minute and I’m keen to see how he adapt to the new machinery. He is a great driver with lots of potential so we will see what we can do as we look forward to 2018. Ben has been involved with us for a while now and is still so young but way ahead of his years with his maturity and have no doubt that he will shine this weekend on track. It’s always exciting to see the team HARD. colours on a BTCC car and especially in a night race which always adds to the experience.”
