Speedworks “comfortable” ahead of Brands Hatch opener

Speedworks Motorsport boss Christian Dick says he’s pleased with the team’s progress on their Toyota Avensis over the winter and the momentum gained towards the end of 2015 will stand them in good stead at Brands Hatch this weekend.

Tom Ingram has signed for a third year with the Cheshire-based squad off the back of a hugely impressive sophomore campaign, which saw him take memorable podiums at Rockingham and Brands Hatch.

The Avensis has been kitted out with the new RML stock components and while team principal Dick admits this makes it harder to judge its ultimate pace against its rivals, he is happy with the work which has been done.

Speaking to TouringCarTimes, Dick said: “With the RML components we’re running, it’s difficult to know what the target time is, but we’re very comfortable with where we’re at with the car.

“We’re not too far off the ultimate pace, but we don’t know where everyone else is with boost levels and the weight they are carrying. Tom’s comfortable in the car and enjoying driving it with the new kit on, so all we can do is push on and see where we are in qualifying at Brands.

“To a certain degree it is a reset button – a lot of things have changed in terms of the setup of the car. But what that momentum we had last season has given us is that Tom is really aware of what he wants from the car, and what he needs to make it work.”

After two seasons as a single car outfit, Speedworks is again expanding to two cars in 2016. Former Quaife Intermarque champion Matt Simpson will campaign a former Team Dynamics Honda Civic Type-R, fitted with last year’s GPRM parts.

Assessing the progress of his newest charge, Dick said: “Matt’s put a lot of miles in and he has done great. Again, it’s difficult to say where he’s going to fit in at Brands – there’s a lot of pressures for him in his first weekend in the BTCC. When you get there [to the race meeting] you’re pulled from pillar to post and it’s difficult to concentrate on your job of driving a racecar.

“By the time we get to mid-season he will be in a good place. He’s not putting any pressure on himself to go out there and hit the front straight away.”