TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK duo showcase strong speed at Brands Hatch
- Five points finishes out of six for Speedworks Motorsport-run outfit in Kent
- Watson features up at the front in only second weekend in Toyota colours
- Misfortune robs Huff of top result but BTCC returnee ‘excited for the future’
Andrew Watson and Rob Huff continued to prove the potential of TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK’s Corolla GR Sport last weekend (11/12 May), with an encouraging display in the second outing of the 2024 British Touring Car Championship campaign at Brands Hatch.
After tallying almost 100 laps of the short ‘Indy’ circuit between them during free practice, Watson and Huff proceeded to qualify seventh and 11th respectively in the high-calibre, 20-car field, with the former missing out on progressing to the ‘Quick Six’ shootout by less than five hundredths-of-a-second in a characteristically close and competitive session in the UK’s premier motor racing series.
The Northern Irishman opted to fit the faster, soft-compound Goodyear ‘option’ tyres for the curtain-raising contest. He made full use of them to climb to fourth courtesy of a committed performance, only for a contact-induced penalty to subsequently demote him to eighth. On the standard medium rubber, team-mate Huff took the chequered flag 11th, leaving him free to run the soft tyres in race two – a luxury afforded solely to those finishing outside of the top ten.
In front of the live ITV4 television cameras and a capacity trackside crowd in the scorching spring sunshine, the 2012 FIA World Touring Car Champion duly exploited his tyre advantage and maximum hybrid deployment to advance to sixth. He had fourth position firmly in his sights when he was shown the mechanical warning flag, obliging him to pit for some loose bodywork to be fixed and denying him what had looked likely to be his best result of the season thus far.
A similar fate befell Watson in the sister British-built Toyota, restricting him to an unrepresentative 15th position, but the reigning Jack Sears Trophy winner refused to be deterred and battled through the pack to a strong seventh place in the weekend’s finale, with Huff just over a second further back in ninth, both unleashing a strong turn-of-speed on the less-favourable medium-compound tyres.
The action will continue at Snetterton in Norfolk – the longest track on the BTCC calendar at just under three miles – on 25/26 May.
Christian Dick, Team Principal, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK, said:
“That was another weekend where I would say we came away ill-recompensed for the pace and performance we showed. Andrew produced a stellar drive to really maximise the benefit of his soft tyres in race one and was unfortunate to be penalised for the slightest of contact, but he charged through the order again in race three to bag himself a very solid clutch of points.
“Rob was similarly impressive in the final race, making up more places than anybody else in the field, and he was denied a really strong result in race two after playing his cards to perfection in terms of strategy to put himself in the pound seats.
“Due to its short, sharp nature, the Indy layout always tends to throw up some kind of drama and both of our drivers paid the price for that in race two through no fault of their own, with contact from behind causing damage that scuppered their chances.
“Still, looking at the bigger picture, we left Brands Hatch with a lot of encouragement and signs that we are continuing to move in the right direction. I’m confident it won’t be long before we begin to reap the rewards.”
Rob Huff, Driver, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK, said:
“In terms of the overall outcome, it was obviously a frustrating weekend, but at the same time there were lots of positives to take away. The Toyota felt really good in qualifying until we tried something a bit unorthodox with the tyres in Q2 that didn’t quite work out, but these are all learning experiences.
“We struggled slightly in race one and then on the warm-up lap ahead of race two, the front roll bar broke, which took away a lot of front-end grip and meant the car was moving around more than usual. We battled on anyway and were going really well until my rear bumper began flailing in the wind following earlier contact – and as the officials deemed it to be dangerous, I had to ‘box’ to get it repaired. That was a great shame, because I think we would have been on for a really good result.
“It also meant we had to start race three from the back of the grid, but the team did a mega job to get the bumper fixed and the roll bar replaced and the Corolla felt magnificent – the best it has done for me so far. We had really good pace and I only wish the race could have gone on another 15 laps!
“Ultimately, our current championship position doesn’t accurately reflect our performance and potential. We made really good progress both on and off-track at Brands Hatch, and I’m just so excited for the future with this team. I think together, we can really create something very special.”
Andrew Watson, Driver, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK, said:
“In general, I feel we took a good step forward at Brands Hatch. Qualifying was predictably tight, but the team did a great job and seventh place put us in the mix for race day. With the soft tyres on and full hybrid, we knew we were going to go forward in race one. There was a bit of fighting at the start, which let Josh [Cook] and Ash [Sutton] get away slightly and I couldn’t quite catch up to them, but I was happy with the points. I think the penalty was tough, but it is what it is.
“Race two was just a demolition derby, which culminated in me receiving the mechanical warning flag after contact from behind dislodged the rear bumper, but the team put in a fantastic effort to repair the car for race three and it was so important to go out and reward everybody with a really positive performance and result.
“That was one of my best races so far in the championship, I would say. The Toyota felt brilliant and we were able to slice our way through the field. It was still only my second weekend in the car but to make that much progress on the medium tyres proves we’re getting the Corolla into the right window now, and over the upcoming events, we’re only going to get stronger...”
Images: Jakob Ebrey Photography
