Chris Stockton is set for a full-time return to the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship next season in a BTC Racing-run NGTC Chevrolet Cruze which RML had already started development on.
The Cruze was the model Jason Plato used to take the 2010 title, and Stockton, whose Ningbo.co.uk business bought the machine, says it is a great opportunity, though he concedes they may not make the start of the season because of development plans.
Stockton competed in the first half of the Silverstone round last weekend in the Thorney Motorsport Vauxhall Insignia, but illness ruled him out of race day and he was replaced by Tony Gilham, and the NGTC experience has spurred him to return to the grid permanently.
He said on btcracing.co.uk: “It is a very big opportunity for www.Ningbo.co.uk to buy this car. A lot of development work has already been completed by RML to get to this stage, and it is nearly ready to start assembling the TOCA parts, subject to a final inspection by the British touring car technical chief Peter Riches this week.
“Ningbo had the marketing budget in place for 2013 for BTCC, but have decided to spend a lot of it on buying the best equipment I can use, rather than running with an existing team. This might delay the first outing, but it is a price I think is worth paying.
“I’ve tried competing in older machinery, and without making excuses, its impossible to take on the best in less developed machinery.”
Headed by Bert Taylor, BTC has a lot of motorsport experience , and made their BTCC debut in 2006, racing Lexus’ in the final two rounds, before completing full seasons in 2007 (again with the Lexus’) and 2008 (in ex-Motorbase SEATs).
