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Just months after making its debut in the series, the Robertshaw Racing
team has announced plans to bring the first two Chevrolet Lacettis to the
British Touring Car Championship grid in 2008 – one to be driven by reigning
SEAT Cupra R champion Harry Vaulkhard.
The two Lacettis' presence will mark the first time that the American
manufacturer has been represented in the BTCC grid since the early 1970s when
its legendary Camaro model was one of the leading cars in the series.
The Newcastle-upon-Tyne team only graduated to the BTCC in September for
the final two fixtures of the 2007 calendar. In addition to its Chevrolets,
Robertshaw also plans to continue running a Honda Integra for Newcastle’s Alan
Taylor and Honda Civic for rising Scottish ace Michael Doyle in the BTCC –
that’s on top of fielding cars in the supporting Renault Clio series.
“Our BTCC programme marks a major expansion for our company and we’ll
almost be doubling the amount of full-time staff here, but we feel ready,” said
team principal Gary Robertshaw. “Initially, our entry had been planned for
2008, but our preparations have put us ahead of schedule meaning we were able
to enter Alan into the final two meetings of 2007.
“That’s given us a good insight into the BTCC and although we know it’s
going to be a very tough challenge we won’t be going into 2008 with our eyes
completely shut. However, running the latest S2000-spec Chevrolets alongside
the older BTC-spec Hondas will mean having to divide the team into two squads.
“It would have been easy to opt for a proven car in the BTCC such as a
BMW or a SEAT, but the Chevrolets mark us out from the crowd. As pointed out,
it’s going to be a big learning curve – the Chevrolets have never competed on
Dunlop tyres before – but we have a solid amount of testing planning, including
running alongside the factory Chevrolet squad in Spain to give us an idea of
our performance. This is a long-term project, although I’d certainly like to
think we can begin rattling the bigger teams’ cages towards the end of next
season and into 2009.”
Robertshaw said Vaulkhard would be part of his squad’s Chevrolet
line-up, with a team-mate expected to be announced in the near future.
Vaulkhard, aged 22 and also from Newcastle, said: “I used to watch my
dad (Nigel) race in historic touring cars and it was always my dream to be in
the BTCC. In the world of motor sport it’s got a massive following. My ultimate
aim would be to land a drive with one of the manufacturer teams, but to make
that happen you need to make an impression first and that’s what I’ll be hoping
to do with Robertshaw Racing. I like the set-up and I like the idea of
developing the Chevrolet. This is a very exciting programme to be a part of...”
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