Jayde Kruger signed to drive first of team’s three Mygale chassis
Title-winning team JTR is to return to the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain with, it is announced today, South African charger Jayde Kruger leading its bid to secure the Formula Ford crown for a third successive year.
JTR plans to run three EcoBoost Mygales, as it did in 2013, and team boss Nick Tandy says team members are excited at the prospect of working with 25-year-old Kruger: “We are very excited, and very excited to get started on our 2014 programme. We’ve been talking with Jayde’s management for a little while and came up with the same objectives and goals – to go racing successfully, to try to win races and try to win championships.
“Jayde impressed us last year; he came into the championship mid-season and was straight on the pace. He rarely makes mistakes and with the technical expertise and experience JTR has of the new-generation Formula Ford we think we can have a successful relationship and we can both benefit from the partnership.
“We plan to run three cars, and this week we will have all three chassis in our workshop being prepared for testing. We are in talks with a few drivers for the remaining seats, and we are hoping to firm up plans quickly.”
JTR won 25 of last season’s 30 Formula Ford races, with Dan Cammish claiming the championship title for the Bedfordshire team; his running mates Sam Brabham and Camren Kaminsky finished fourth and eighth respectively. JTR won the championship in 2012 also with Finnish driver Antti Buri.
Kruger came into British Formula Ford mid-way through the 2013 season having twice won the South African Formula Ford title, as well as the SA Formula Volkswagen crown on three occasions. He finished on the podium at Oulton Park on his debut with Jamun Racing and went on to win for the first time at Silverstone in September; he placed sixth in the championship despite his late start.
“Obviously I’m really happy,” said Jayde. “When we heard that JTR were definitely coming back to the championship it seemed like a no-brainer. They are the only team to have won an EcoBoost championship. Where else would you go? I am 100 per cent confident about the move, because they are as eager to win as I am. That’s the plan and hopefully we can carry it through.”
Formula Ford 2014 will feature 30 races at 10 rounds alongside the biggest attraction in UK motorsport, the British Touring Car Championship. The championship will boast live coverage on ITV4, as well as bumper trackside spectator attendance, and boasts a £30,000 cash prize fund.
