Speedworks Motorsport has welcomed new sponsor REIS by unveiling an interim livery on its Toyota Avensis at the Autosport International show today (14 January), prior to revealing its full 2016 colour scheme at the Season Launch at Donington Park on 22 March.

Having announced earlier this week that it has retained the services of highly-rated young gun Tom Ingram for a third consecutive campaign in the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, the tie-up with motor sport insurance specialists REIS is another feather in Speedworks' cap.

Following a breakthrough season in 2015 that yielded a brace of podium finishes, team principal Christian Dick is quietly confident of another successful challenge.

"It's great to be able to confirm Tom and our new partner REIS so early in the year," he acknowledged. "We've said all along that Tom was our number one choice as a driver after what we achieved together in 2015, and putting a deal together so soon means we can get out and do some really productive testing before the season starts.

"With its expertise in the motor sport and automotive industry, REIS is a natural fit and a brand that shares our ethos and objectives from its professionalism to its attention to detail. We're delighted to have them on-board."

The car will be on display on the REIS stand (No. 6575) throughout the show.

Buoyed by a breakthrough season in the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship last year, Speedworks Motorsport has set its sights on its maiden victory and Independents’ glory after re-signinghighly-rated young gun Tom Ingram for the 2016 campaign.

Up against a supremely high calibre of opposition in 2015, Speedworks claimed an impressive 23 points finishes from 30 starts – 18 of them inside the top ten. Behind the wheel of his heavily-revised Toyota Avensis, at Rockingham in September, Ingram duelled energetically for the lead with two-time championJason Plato, with the runner-up spoils representing the Northwich, Cheshire-based outfit’s first podium in its 132nd start.

Bringing the crowd to its feet, the mesmerising scrap was voted the most exciting of the season, and just over a month later, the KX Akademy graduate returned to the rostrum in the Brands Hatch GP finale with another outstanding second place, earning Speedworks ninth position amongst the 19 protagonists in the Teams’ standings and fourth spot out of 15 in the Independent Teams’ Trophy. Ingram wound up 13th out of 39 in the overall classification and an excellent fifth out of 29 in the Independents’ Trophy.

Having secured the 22-year-old British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) SuperStar’s signature for another year, a comprehensive pre-season testing programme is now planned – a luxury the team has hitherto been unable to afford.

Before that, however, the Avensis will be exhibited in an interim colour scheme at the Autosport International show at Birmingham’s NEC from 14-17 January, prior to a full livery unveil at the traditional Season Launch at DoningtonPark on 22 March. Speedworks’ second car – a Honda Civic Type R for BTCC newcomer Matt Simpson – will similarly be on display on the Dunlop stand. Ahead of his squad’s sixth season in the championship, team principal Christian Dick is in bullish mood.

“2015 was our most successful campaign to-date in the BTCC, but we’re far from content to sit on our laurels and we need to make sure we continue pushing if we want to keep on moving forward and accomplish our objectives,” he asserted.

“A shortage of pre-season testing – due to lack of budget or deals coming together too late – has been an Achilles’ heel of ours over the past couple of years and left us somewhat on the back foot, but hopefully 2016 will be a different story and the aim is to get up-to-speed nice and early so we can really hit the ground running. There are a lot of new parts to get to gripswith, so the more track time, the better.

“With Geoff Kingston at the helm on the engineering side, we took a sizeable step forward in 2015, and there is still plenty of untapped potential in the Avensis. We resolved the tyre degradation issues over a race distance that had hampered us so much the previous year, to the extent where the car is now stronger on Sundays than Saturdays.

“As soon as we left Brands Hatch in October, attentions turned towards this year and all the boys have put in a colossal effort over the winter to ensure we go into 2016 in the best shape we can possibly be. I’m so proud of every single one of them. There is such a close bond inside this team and everybody pulls together – we go about our business with minimal fuss, keep our heads down and work hard and that is reflected in the results.

“Of course, none of that would be achievable without having the right pedaller inside the cockpit, and in that respect, we have absolutely no concerns. Jason Plato described Tom as world-class after their battle at Rockingham last year, and I would not disagree – the kid is a champion in-waiting in my eyes.

“He has grown tremendously as a driver since joining the BTCC two years ago, and his form at the end of last season was superb. Tom’s raw speed has never been in doubt, and his racecraft is now also amongst the best in the business – as Rockingham proved, he’s not afraid of getting stuck in and going wheel-to-wheel with anybody else on the grid. Reputations don’t faze him at all.

“He shares our approach and he shares our goals, so keeping him on-board this year was extremely high on our ‘to-do’ list. Although we received interest from a number of other drivers, Tom was always our number one choice and we are delighted to have retained his services. He’s ready to take the next step and we’re ready to take the next step, so from our point of view, the start of the season really can’t come soon enough!

“We have made it very clear from the outset that weare not here to make up the numbers; we are here to win – races and ultimately championships. We regard 2016 as the next phase of that journey, and havingestablished ourselves as consistent top ten contenders last year, we now need to be targeting consistent podiums and our first race victory. If we can dothat, a tilt at the Independents’ trophy won’t be too far away.”

It is little secret that his eye-catching sophomore season made Ingram the subject of several advances, meaning Speedworks had to head off a number ofrival teams’ overtures to hang onto its talented protégé.

The MSA Academy member will be entering his third consecutive BTCC campaign with the plucky independent operation in 2016, and is adamant that he is in ‘absolutely the right place’ and that he and the team can be ‘a force to be reckoned with’ this year.

“For me, it was a complete no-brainer to stay with Speedworks,” Ingram explained. “The team’s work ethic is second-to-none; everybody is ultra-professional, but at the same time they know how to have fun, which is important – this is hardly a cheap sport, so you need to make sure you’re enjoying it or else you might as well not bother.

“The second half of last year was hugely positive for us, and it was encouraging to see all the development that we had put in paying off. Our performance just got better and better, which shone through in the results with two podiums from the last three race weekends. From our point of view, the season ended too soon because we were on a roll!

“That has left us with a lot of unfinished business, which is massively exciting. I really feel at home at Speedworks – part of the family – and personally-speaking, I’m now a much stronger driver, from my knowledge and understanding of the car to my relationship with the engineers. We’re such a tight-knit unit, and although I did have discussions with other teams, having come so far together, this was no time to walk away. I’m in absolutely the right place for 2016.

“We only really scratched the surface in 2015 of what we can achieve with this car – although the first half obviously wasn’t what we had been hoping for, we dug deep and turned it around in style. There is a lot more to come from the Avensis yet, and I genuinely believe we can be a force to be reckoned with this year.”

Jason Plato and Colin Turkington to spearhead title assault

Renowned manufacturer Subaru will enter the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship after striking a sensational three-year deal with Team BMR.

The squad will run the all-new Subaru Levorg Sports Tourer in this year’s series, with both Jason Plato and Colin Turkington spearheading the Japanese marque’s title assault.

“We’re very excited to have teamed up with BMR from the 2016 Championship – the first time a Subaru has competed in BTCC,” said Paul Tunnicliffe, Managing Director for Subaru UK & Ireland. "Although the Levorg features the Subaru famed all-wheel drive system, the car can be easily developed to compete with rear-wheel drive in order to comply with the BTCC regulations… so we can’t wait to see how it goes against very established competition.”

Subaru’s maiden foray into Britain’s biggest motor racing series will see Team BMR contest for Manufacturers’ Championship honours for the first time in its short career, something that Team Principal Warren Scott is hugely honoured by.

“I am extremely delighted that Team BMR are to become a Manufacturer team in only our fourth year of competing in the BTCC,” he enthused. “I have had aspirations of becoming a race-winning team with factory support from the very beginning and I am immensely proud of the team for giving Subaru the confidence to partner with BMR.”

In Plato and Turkington the outfit already boasts drivers with well over 100 victories and four drivers’ titles between them, suggesting the new Levorg Sports Tourer will be in extremely safe hands during its maiden BTCC campaign.

“Part of my role when joining BMR was to help secure a manufacturer deal,” said Plato. “The iconic Subaru brand has always been right at the top of my wish list. Obviously it goes without saying that I am very excited about our future together and I'm confident that BMR will produce a fantastic package for me to fight for the Championship. This really is exciting times for us all... I can't wait for the season to begin.”

Turkington, who won his two titles in rear-wheel-drive machinery, was equally excited by the tie-up between Subaru and Team BMR.

“Continuing with Team BMR for the 2016 season was an easy decision for me and represents a great opportunity to build on our strong maiden campaign,” he said. “I can't wait to get started with the development of the new Subaru Levorg BTCC race car and I'm more motivated than ever to win. This announcement is huge news for the Championship and equally for me.”

Under the guidance of Chief Designer Carl Faux, Team BMR - supported by the global technical resources of Subaru - will develop the new car and its famed four-cylinder boxer engine to full BTCC specification.

“It’s an honour to be leading not only Team BMR’s first ‘clean-sheet’ car design and build, but to be able to do this with Subaru’s new Levorg model is a real privilege,” confirmed Faux. “Engineering challenges is what the project presents – a new car, new engine and all the new generation TOCA components require a methodical approach. Establishing a three-year programme means we can focus on getting the basics right early before developing the package further over the following years.”

With the start of the season just two months away the team is working tirelessly to ready its cars for a testing programmes ahead of the official reveal at the BTCC Season Launch at Donington Park on 22 March. The squad will also confirm its full and final line-up over the coming weeks.

Subaru’s BTCC debut will then take place at Brands Hatch in early April for the opening rounds of the 2016 Championship, which Series Director Alan Gow believes will mark the start of a prosperous partnership.

“We are delighted to welcome another manufacturer to the BTCC and particularly one with such an incredible motor sport heritage,” commented Gow. “Subaru is an iconic brand with a huge following and its introduction to the BTCC is certain to excite our many fans both in the UK and around the world. No doubt Team BMR with its hugely experienced and talented driver line-up will make for a very successful partnership.”

Video - The New Subaru Levorg:

Following the sensational announcement that Subaru will be entering the BTCC with Team BMR we take a look at the marque's Subaru Levorg model:

Series Director Alan Gow has welcomed Subaru to the BTCC:

“We are delighted to welcome another manufacturer to the BTCC and particularly one with such an incredible motor sport heritage,” commented Gow. “Subaru is an iconic brand with a huge following and its introduction to the BTCC is certain to excite our many fans both in the UK and around the world. No doubt Team BMR with its hugely experienced and talented driver line-up will make for a very successful partnership.”

Build-up to the 2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship will be cranked up several notches this week with a series of announcements, driver signings and car unveils taking place.

The BTCC will enjoy its largest ever presence at Autosport International in Birmingham with the Dunlop stand (No.6440) set to be a hive of activity throughout the four days of running (14-17 January).

Huge headlines will be made as early as Tuesday, however, with an incredible announcement coming tomorrow afternoon, so make sure you stay in touch via our Twitter and Facebook social media feeds.

A leading Independent squad will confirm a driver on Wednesday morning, which you’ll be able to read about in Motorsport News and of course right here on btcc.net, whilst the main bulk of our action takes place at the NEC in Birmingham.

One particular driver announcement will be confirmed in Autosport Magazine on Thursday morning before the car is launched at the show later that morning. In total the Dunlop BTCC stand will boast five car unveilings on Thursday from WIX Racing, West Surrey Racing, Simpson Racing, Eurotech and Handy Motorsport, with the latter also confirming its race-winning driver for the upcoming campaign.

“Everyone has been working so hard behind the scenes to get our 2016 plans to the position they’re at now – this week is when we can finally go public,” commented Handy Team Principal Simon Belcher. “It really is an incredibly exciting time for Handy Motorsport, we’ve enjoyed two fantastic years in the BTCC and now we’ve gained a foothold the time is right to turn things up a notch.

“We’re very excited to be competing with a newly built car this year, but the biggest development is bringing in a proven winner to lead our challenge. We’re confident, when the unveiling takes place, there will be a lot of happy faces among our fantastic fans, and fans of the BTCC in general.”

Andrew Jordan's Pirtek Racing Ford will make its public debut plus there will be a host of interviews and driver signings on the Dunlop BTCC stand, whilst both AmD and Speedworks will unveil their respective 2016 challengers on separate stands at the Birmingham show.

Selected BTCC drivers will be interviewed on the main Autosport Stage, where Gordon Shedden’s 2015 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship winning Honda Civic Type R will also feature.

So with a packed week of activity look out on Facebook and Twitter tomorrow morning as we build up the excitement ahead of our first major announcement of 2016!

WIX Racing’s Adam Morgan has joined the list of current BTCC drivers to be invited to the world famous Goodwood in 2016. 

Race-winner Morgan will contest the Gerry Marshall Trophy – named after the former saloon driver and cult hero – during Goodwood’s 74^th Members Meeting in March.

The Ribchester Rocket will race Ric Wood’s immaculately prepared rapid CNC Heads 1980 group 1 V6 Ford Capri, which is sure to spark memories of yet another evocative BTCC era.

“I have been to see the car and Ric’s set-up, both are absolutely mind blowing,” commented an excited Morgan. “All the cars that Ric builds are of the very highest quality. The Capri that I am racing went to Portimao earlier in the year and Ric finished second straight out of the box. The Capri is a stunning no expense spared object of beauty.

“The car has over 300bhp, hits close to 150mph and reaches 70mph in first gear! My biggest concern is being quicker than Ric as he’s a highly competent driver – beat your team-mate they always say!

“We have a couple of tests prior to the event too, so we’re hopeful of going to Goodwood and getting a really good result – I can’t wait”

“I like the way Adam conducts himself both at and away from the track,” responded Wood. “He drove my V6 Mazda at the Silverstone Classic in July, and he not only won the class but also broke the existing lap record.

“Not many professional racing drivers are fast and mechanically sympathetic towards their cars. Adam treats the car with respect, he doesn’t over rev or over drive the car and I, as the bloke who builds them from scratch, obviously appreciate his approach. There really is nobody else I would rather have in the car.”

Morgan's Ciceley Motorsport squad have been hard at work preparing for the 2016 BTCC season too, having tested the Mercedes A Class a number of times before Christmas.  The team have another extensive testing programme planned in the New Year and they'll be launching their latest livery at Autosport Show International – see btcc.net for details on this over the coming days.

Power Maxed Racing is busy preparing for its sophomore season in the BTCC having enjoyed a stellar maiden campaign in 2015. 

Josh Cook was the dominant force in the Jack Sears Trophy as the Bath racer cruised to claim the largest piece of silverware on offer in the BTCC.

Cook and team-mate Dave Newsham regularly troubled the established front-runners too, with the former grabbing a memorable overall podium at Rockingham. The new outfit kept pushing until the very end of the season, as Newsham narrowly missed out on his own rostrum at both Silverstone and Brands Hatch.

The team was chosen to run the new-for-2016 RML components at Brands Hatch and then again at a post-season test at Donington Park. The whirlwind period is far from over, however, as Team Principal Adam Weaver confirmed the Chevrolet squad haven’t stopped since.

“It has been an extremely busy but brilliant year,” he said. “From buying the team through to completing our first season it has been completely flat out. We were delighted with our results, but we won’t be resting on our laurels and now it’s hopefully time to push even further up the grid.”

Part of that process over the winter will be of course to secure its driver line-up for the 2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, something that Weaver admits can be a long and pain-staking process.

“It’s hugely important to get the right drivers and we’re keen to speak to all interested parties,” he continued. “There’s no need to panic and that’s why we would like to assess all the options available to us and see who fits in with our philosophy and ambitions.

“People sometimes fail to realise that it requires delicate negotiations between lots of different parties. Drivers’ sponsors can't conflict with existing team sponsors, and vice versa, and then drivers have to get permission from their prospective sponsors and so on. It's an art form, one we are mastering and having to as quickly as possible.

“Nothing would have given us more pleasure than to instantly re-sign Dave Newsham and Josh Cook, and negotiations with the latter are very much still ongoing. The process is not always straight forward, however, and that’s why it’s important that we carefully evaluate every opportunity.

“We believe that we proved ourselves to be a very worthy team in what is the toughest championship in the country, and we look forward to continuing our development into 2016.”

Andrew Jordan completed a faultless day of running in both dry and wet conditions as he continued his testing programme in the newly-liveried Pirtek Racing Ford Focus at Donington Park.

Jordan made his bow in the Motorbase-run machine at Brands Hatch last month but yesterday marked his first outing with the car fully shod with the latest RML components.

“We completed more than 60 laps and had absolutely no problems whatsoever,” he told btcc.net. “It was wet in the morning, then dried out, and then it rained again later in the afternoon.”

“There are always some frustrations with changing conditions but in truth it was actually good to get some wet running – we haven’t much of that in 2015.

“The RML parts felt very good and overall the car is just so responsive. We ran with RML’s suggested base set-up rather than trying to reinvent the wheel. We believed that would be the best way to start the process and to be honest the car was in the ballpark straight away.”

Jordan and Motorbase have an extensive testing programme planned over the winter, which bodes for a team and car that was arguably the cream of the crop in the latter half of the 2015 BTCC season.

“We were able to start some fundamental sweeps through set-up changes but we have much more planned in the New Year, and particularly when we test in Portugal,” continued Jordan. “The car is easy to drive but it’s always a much bigger task to learn everything, which is obviously one of the reasons why we have such a comprehensive testing schedule ahead.

“It’s a car that you feel fyou can really influence it. It’s so responsive to driver input and I drive very much on feel, so this suits me. You can hustle the car if needs be and it provides good feedback.

“We mostly did short runs, although we probably completed three quarter race distance on one run. Like I say, it was a really productive day but we have a lot more to do in the coming months.”

WIX Racing and Eurotech were also in attendance at the open test day at Donington Park, and we’ll be catching up with both teams in the coming weeks.

Andrew Jordan has taken to the track today (Thursday) in his newly liveried Pirtek Racing Ford Focus.

The 2013 BTCC champion has driven the Motorbase-run Focus previously at Brands Hatch, but today's test at Donington marks his maiden run in the car with the latest RML components.

We briefly spoke with Andrew this morning but we'll be catching up with him in full tomorrow at the completion of the test. So look out for Andrew's exclusive interview at www.btcc.net on Friday afternoon.

PHOTO CREDIT: Jakob Ebrey Photography