VX Racing hold on to their leads in the 2008 HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC), staying on top in the Drivers’, Teams’, and Manufacturers’ Championships following an eventful weekend at Snetterton marking the first race in the second half of the season.
Reigning BTCC Champion Fabrizio Giovanardi continues to leads the drivers’ standings with 171 points, pulling ahead of his second placed team mate Matt Neal, with a 34 point advantage. VX Racing rookie Tom Onslow-Cole lies in sixth with 108 points. Snetterton saw VX Racing take an even greater lead over their nearest rivals in the team standings, heading into the upcoming race weekend at Oulton Park with a 138 point advantage.
The Oulton Park round in 2007 was successful for VX Racing, but particularly for Giovanardi, who drove brilliantly to achieve two second place finishes, along with the fastest lap in race two with a 1:39.263. He was unlucky in the final race however, and had to retire after his car sustained damage which wasn’t repairable in the pit lane.
Qualifying for round 19 of the BTCC will be held on Saturday 26 July at 14.45, with the first of three races starting at 12.45 on Sunday 27 July.
Fabrizio Giovanardi #1“Oulton Park is my favourite circuit, so I am very excited to be there for the next race weekend. On paper, Oulton should be a better circuit for VX Racing than Snetterton, so I can’t wait to see how we perform there. Thinking back to my performance last year, it would be good to see the podium as frequently in 2008, and I really hope to be able to complete all three races!”
Matt Neal #4“I think that Oulton Park will be a challenging circuit for us, but similar to Snetteron the track has lots of fast corners, which should give the VXR Vectra an advantage. I first cut my teeth at Oulton Park and have a good history there, but of course our success ballast will once again be an issue for us to take into consideration.”
Tom Onslow-Cole #10“Looking ahead to Oulton Park, I feel quite neutral about my expectations. I was lucky enough to put the VXR Vectra round the track there earlier in the season, and even though it was just a few laps that has given me confidence as we head into the next rounds.”
