Tom Oliphant sets focus on early silverware

Tom Oliphant has his eyes on early silverware when the new BTCC season finally gets underway next weekend at Donington Park.

The delays to the calendar as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic means the nine round calendar will be condensed over little more than three months, with the Donington meeting kicking off a run of four race meetings across five weekends.

Oliphant goes into the new season as part of a streamlined Team BMW outfit after the departure of Andrew Jordan earlier this month, with the third-year driver hoping to make the trip to the top of the podium during the season ahead.

On the back of the tyre test at Snetterton, the 29-year-old enjoyed a solid test at Silverstone alongside team-mate Colin Turkington and now heads to Donington hoping to replicate the kind of form that saw him finish on the podium at the East Midlands circuit twelve months ago.

“I couldn’t be more excited to get back racing again!” he said. “It’s been a long wait due to COVID-19 and I know it’s been a stressful time in lockdown for a lot of the BTCC community, so I can’t wait to get out there alongside the rest of the grid and put on a show for all the fans again.

“With track time set to be limited before the season begins, the Snetterton test was really important for me to dust off the cobwebs, get behind the wheel again and work with the team on some crucial set-up and tyre work so we can hit the ground running at Donington Park.

“Donington is one of my favourite circuits in the country and the BMW was fantastic there last season, so I want to be challenging for silverware from the opening race of the season. With a year under my belt with Team BMW, I’m ready to fight for the top prizes!”