Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS will seek to bounce back from a tough weekend at Snetterton when the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship heads to Thruxton (8/9 June) for the fourth meeting of the campaign.

The EXCELR8 Motorsport-run team scored three wins from the opening six races of the campaign, but endured a more trying in Norfolk two weeks ago, with a best finish of fourth.

Heading for the fastest circuit on the calendar however, confidence is high for all four drivers ahead of weekend where the team will celebrate its 100th race in partnership with Bristol Street Motors – which will be marked by Tom Ingram running the #100 on his Hyundai i30 Fastback N for the meeting.

Ingram currently heads the team’s challenge in the title standings and sits just eleven points off top spot as he chases his third victory of the season. The 2022 champion will have five seconds of hybrid power available for qualifying on Saturday as he looks to make to push for a place towards the sharp end the grid for Sunday’s races.

Although Ingram has two wins at Thruxton in the past, they came before he joined forces with the team, with his focus on trying to make it onto the top step again this time around.

Tom Chilton heads to Thruxton also aiming to impress towards the front end of the field following solid start to his campaign, which included a podium finish at Brands Hatch during round two.

A pair of top six finishes last time out allowed him to retain a place inside the top ten in the early season standings, and he will aim to maintain his consistent run results to maintain his own championship challenge – with the top six in the points just eight points away.

Second year racer Ronan Pearson will be making only his third appearance at Thruxton, with his BTCC debut last year being his first outing at the circuit for five years.

The Scottish driver will seek to rebound from a difficult weekend at Snetterton as he bids to replicate the stunning performance he put in at Brands Hatch to score a maiden BTCC victory, with his target being to secure Jack Sears Trophy honours for the first time in 2024.

Nick Halstead meanwhile returns to action after illness forced him to withdraw from the Snetterton meeting after the opening race of the weekend.

Like Pearson, Halstead has limited experience at Thruxton but heads into the weekend buoyed by the pace shown in the opening rounds of the season, and with his focus on trying to add to the points he scored at Brands Hatch.

Tom Chilton, #3 Team Bristol Street Motors Hyundai i30 Fastback N, said: “Thruxton is a track that I absolutely love as it provides such a unique challenge with all of the high-speed sections around the back of the circuit. You really need to have confidence in the car underneath you if you want to get the maximum from it at Thruxton, and I don’t think I’ve ever felt as comfortable in the Hyundai as I do this season.

“With five top six finishes from the last six races, we’re now getting the consistency that we were missing in the past and have shown good pace at the three circuits we have visited so far, which were all very different and provided different challenges.

“It leaves me feeling confident as we head into the weekend and with Thruxton being the only circuit on the calendar where I’ve yet to take a win, I’d love it if we could be in contention at the front this time around.”

Ronan Pearson, #14 Team Bristol Street Motors Hyundai i30 Fastback N, said: “After such a high at Brands Hatch, Snetterton was a difficult weekend to take in terms of the results but we can’t change it, and I head for Thruxton determined to fight for the kind of results we showed we were capable of across the first two rounds of the season.

“Last season, I faced a big step into the unknown at Thruxton given I’d only raced there once back in 2018, so I’m immediately in a much better position this year with the extra knowledge and experience that I’ve now got behind me.

“We’ve got the car in a really good place at the moment and I’m hopeful of fighting inside the top ten for three strong results, and a first Jack Sears Trophy win of the season.”

Nick Halstead, #22 Team Bristol Street Motors Hyundai i30 Fastback N, said: “Thruxton last year was a real baptism of fire for me as it’s probably the circuit where I have the least amount of experience, so it will be interesting going back there with the changes that we’ve made to the car since then.

“As a team, we had a tough weekend at Snetterton last time out and having been forced to sit out two of the races, I’m eager to get back behind the wheel and return to action this weekend. The weather forecast is scheduled to be dry throughout which will give us the chance for some consistent running for the first time this season, and I’m hoping we can benefit from that to fight for good results and hopefully bag some more points.”

Tom Ingram, #100 Team Bristol Street Motors Hyundai i30 Fastback N, said: “I’m heading to Thruxton in the same mindset as I have done for recent events, which is to try and ensure that we maximise our potential on track across the three races. Even though we didn’t get the results we wanted from the three races Snetterton last time out, we continued to show the pace that is in the car and I see no reason why we can’t be strong this weekend.

“People often comment on how Thruxton is a power circuit, but it’s also one where you need to have a good chassis if you want to be successful. A lot of the work we have done as a team has been to improve the chassis, and when you consider we qualified on the front row last season and scored two podium finishes with a car that wasn’t as good as it is now, I’m feeling confident.

“Hitting 100 races with the team is going to be nice, as is running the #100 for the weekend, and it would be fantastic if we could score a first win together at the circuit to mark the occasion.”

Justina Williams, Team Owner, said: “Although we didn’t pick up the results we hoped for at Snetterton after the opening two rounds, the fact that we scored two fastest laps from three showed we had the pace and it was just unfortunate that circumstances conspired against us.

“Celebrating 100 races with Bristol Street Motors is a big thing for is this weekend as most of our success in the BTCC has come during the time that our partnership has been in place, and hopefully we can bring home some silverware this weekend to mark the occasion.”