Hill poised for Brands Hatch BTCC action
As the 2017 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship roars into action around the tight confines of Brands Hatch this weekend, 23 year-old Jake Hill is looking to build on an impressive first-full season with Team HARD, having made it clear he has high hopes.
“It was fantastic to complete my first season in BTCC, I learned so much and am hugely grateful to Tony (Gilham) and all the team’s and our partners for making it possible. I was often in the top-ten and battling with all of the championship contenders at some point, so with the VW Passat CC as a much stronger package I aim to be in the top ten most of the time now, and want to secure podiums and Independent Category Wins.”
Hill’s distinctive TAG Racing No.24 machine has shown strong pace in the limited testing so far, even running in the rain at Rockingham recently, and has given Hill and his team-mates Michael Epps and Will Burns confidence that the car will be competitive.
“This year everyone is running the same RML Components, we all have more power and wider tyres and most people feel it will be the most competitive year for a long time. There are 32 teams and drivers that are all capable of running at the front so it will be incredibly tough. But we have some great people in the team, I have a year’s experience now and the support of TAG Racing, RCIB Insurance and Auto Aid Breakdown on my car. Plus we have some amazing partners, some like Sportif Cars, Brisky Racing, Bill Rawles Classic Cars, AW Supply Services were with us before, and we’re also excited to welcome Rolec Electrical and Mechanical Services, Ecoflam, and Danfoss on board for this year too”
BRDC ‘Rising Star’ Hill only has to travel less than 20 miles from Goudhurst to get to Brands Hatch, and is one of the instructors at the famous Brands Hatch Racing School, so in every way this is very much ‘home’ for him - and also for his team.
“I know I will have some great support from friends and family - my grandad is flying down from Scotland! - and I know the place so well, but it will be crazily competitive - less than a second will cover the whole grid, so it will be pretty tough. But I just can’t wait!” smiled Hill.
Qualifying is at 3.40pm this Saturday 1st April, with the opening three rounds of the 2017 BTCC at 11.30am, 2.15pm and 5.15pm respectively, with qualifying live on itv.com/btcc and the races shown live on ITV HD, and repeated the following week.
British Touring Car Championship | BTCC - Sport
itv.com
Watch BTCC racing live on ITV4 and ITV.com, plus get the latest news, features and highlights on ITV Player
“It was fantastic to complete my first season in BTCC, I learned so much and am hugely grateful to Tony (Gilham) and all the team’s and our partners for making it possible. I was often in the top-ten and battling with all of the championship contenders at some point, so with the VW Passat CC as a much stronger package I aim to be in the top ten most of the time now, and want to secure podiums and Independent Category Wins.”
Hill’s distinctive TAG Racing No.24 machine has shown strong pace in the limited testing so far, even running in the rain at Rockingham recently, and has given Hill and his team-mates Michael Epps and Will Burns confidence that the car will be competitive.
“This year everyone is running the same RML Components, we all have more power and wider tyres and most people feel it will be the most competitive year for a long time. There are 32 teams and drivers that are all capable of running at the front so it will be incredibly tough. But we have some great people in the team, I have a year’s experience now and the support of TAG Racing, RCIB Insurance and Auto Aid Breakdown on my car. Plus we have some amazing partners, some like Sportif Cars, Brisky Racing, Bill Rawles Classic Cars, AW Supply Services were with us before, and we’re also excited to welcome Rolec Electrical and Mechanical Services, Ecoflam, and Danfoss on board for this year too”
BRDC ‘Rising Star’ Hill only has to travel less than 20 miles from Goudhurst to get to Brands Hatch, and is one of the instructors at the famous Brands Hatch Racing School, so in every way this is very much ‘home’ for him - and also for his team.
“I know I will have some great support from friends and family - my grandad is flying down from Scotland! - and I know the place so well, but it will be crazily competitive - less than a second will cover the whole grid, so it will be pretty tough. But I just can’t wait!” smiled Hill.
Qualifying is at 3.40pm this Saturday 1st April, with the opening three rounds of the 2017 BTCC at 11.30am, 2.15pm and 5.15pm respectively, with qualifying live on itv.com/btcc and the races shown live on ITV HD, and repeated the following week.
British Touring Car Championship | BTCC - Sport
itv.com
Watch BTCC racing live on ITV4 and ITV.com, plus get the latest news, features and highlights on ITV Player