Sky’s the limit for relaxed rookie champion Josh Cook

The defining moments in this year’s British Touring Car Championship battle are yet to happen, but one title is already beyond doubt. Josh Cook was crowned as the season’s best rookie in style at Rockingham, taking his maiden podium finish into the bargain.

Barring a disastrous final two meetings and a host of unlikely disqualifications, the Power Maxed Racing driver will be presented with the Jack Sears Trophy at Brands Hatch.

And while last year’s Clio Cup runner-up is pleased with his achievement, he’s already setting his sights on a much bigger prize.

TouringCarTimes caught up with the 24-year-old to talk about his maiden BTCC year, battles with old foes and his relaxed approach to racing.

Cook’s third place in the second race at Rockingham was no less than he deserved for a drive which featured numerous clean, hard overtakes. But far from feeling extra pressure in the BTCC, Cook said a touring car weekend is more relaxed than a Clio meeting.

“There’s a lot more to do mentally and a lot more to do off the track, but to be honest I find there’s less pressure on the races,” said Cook to TouringCarTimes.

“On a Clio weekend, you have the quali and the race on the Saturday, but it all comes down to that one race on the Sunday that everybody sees. You have one start, one first lap and one race.

“In touring cars, I can really think about it because I’ve got three races. If the worst comes to the worst and I balls up the first one I’ve got two more. That security makes you more relaxed.”

Cook’s approach to racing could be summed up in a snippet of an interview from the Rockingham weekend. Quizzed by roving pitlane reporter Alan Hyde about what position he’d be happy qualifying in, Cook simply stated “pole” – an approach which has opened plenty of eyes in 2015.

“I want to win every race I go out in. Every time I go out I want to be putting my name at the top of the timesheets. That’s why we’re all here,” said Cook.

“But you look at the names, and the likes of Andy Jordan – it took him a long time to get to the front.

“In a few years I definitely want to be fighting in the top three of the championship.

“Although I look relaxed, don’t mistake that for lack of desire or effort to win. It often pisses people off when I do better than them and I look like I’m not trying!

“It’s very stressful, and very easy to get pissed off when things aren’t going the way you want them to. But you’ve got to remember you’re still driving a British Touring Car – it’s not all bad!”

One fight which was one of the highlights of the TOCA package in 2014 was the battle between Cook and Mike Bushell for Clio Cup honours. Bushell took the glory in that battle, but Cook has had the upper hand in the BTCC to date.

Cook pointed to a number of issues which have meant the pair haven’t battled much in 2015, but was still confident he would be the faster man in equal machinery.

“Dave [Newsham] drove the car last year and got on the podium with it, but I think Mike’s struggled to adapt to the NGTC car,” said Cook.

“He’s definitely a quick peddler. But we’ve raced each other on track in Clios before and every time we’ve been head-to-head I’ve come out on top.

“I think he’s struggled a bit not having a team-mate too. With me and Dave, we can push each other forwards.”

Adapting to NGTC and the much bigger Chevrolet Cruze appears to have come naturally to Cook, but there have been times when things haven’t been quite so straightforward.

“I’ve been driving front-wheel drive cars for a long time. I understand how they work and how to drive them,” said Cook. “I’ve been racing for about 14 years and I’ve been in a front-wheel drive race car for 10 years.

“Obviously it is a very different car – the amazing thing is when something’s not quite right how far off the pace you can drop. You can’t drive around issues like you can in other cars.

“They’re strange cars to drive. They’re very heavy and the feedback’s not great through the steering wheel.”

Tyres have also played a big part, with a change in the standard Dunlop compound at Oulton Park throwing Cook and Power Maxed Racing off the scent until the Snetterton tyre test.

“It threw us a bit with our balance, and the team’s new so we didn’t have any data to pull up. We’re still learning,” said Cook.

“When we arrived at media day, that was my first time in the car. I was like ‘OK, what have we got? What does this button do?’

“Ultimately what it comes down to is the amount of money you can spend. The testing is important for a new team, car and driver.”

While the learning process is ongoing, one goal of becoming Jack Sears Trophy has already been achieved. Cook succeeds team-mate Newsham as the holder of the crown, something which isn’t lost on him.

“To be honest, I just wanted to take it off Dave!” he said.