Team HARD will expand to a four-car entry for the 2018 British Touring Car Championship after extending its relationship with Brisky Racing.
Though the team will operate as a four-car squad, it will be split logistically into two smaller teams running two cars each.
As well as putting more Volkswagen CCs on the grid, team boss Tony Gilham hopes this will help his squad to continue to develop.
“We have been working with Richard [Wheeler] and Brisky Racing for the last two years and our relationship has developed very quickly as we have the same drive and determination on a business level, but also share the same passion for motorsport,” he said.
“This will allow us to extend to four BTCC cars for 2018 but at the same time bring another dimension to our infrastructure behind the scenes, meaning that we can really focus on our development as a team aiming for the top.”
Brisky Racing was one of the first outfits to commit to the UK TCR series. As well as supporting HARD in the BTCC, the team plans to run at least three cars in the TCR competition.
“Brisky Racing initially started out to make motorsport affordable and fun and that is still a big part of what we do,” said team boss Wheeler. “But the opportunity to work with Tony and Team HARD at the top level of British motorsport was too good to miss, as it’s very clear to see the progress that Team HARD has made over the last few years.
“I believe the time is right to step up and help Team HARD take the next step, building a bigger presence on the grid for 2018. Between us we can build on recent successes to take next year to a new level. It was a natural step to increase our involvement from last year. With the addition of some exciting new partners we think that we will certainly raise some eyebrows when the season kicks off at Brands.”
It’s understood HARD wanted to expand to four cars in 2017 and had agreed a deal to purchase a fourth TBL, but TOCA said it would “prefer” teams of no more than three cars.
