Jake Hill had his best weekend of the 2020 KwikFit British Touring Car Championship at Oulton Park, with two solid points finishes and a podium in race one.

“We had another strong Saturday – good pace in practice and another good qualifying in P6 – great that we have qualified in the top 7 in all three races so far, so our single-lap pace is good.

“In unbelievably wet conditions the car was really good. I lost a couple of places at the start but got passed Chilton easily then caught and passed Neal on lap one. The BMW’s are usually rapid in the wet, but maybe the weight hurt them and I passed both of them and then caught Cammish.

“I though I might pass him but they are so much faster in a straight line I just couldn’t make it stick. Finishing P4 was our best result of the season and I am chuffed with that.

However when the race winner Josh Cook’s car was checked post-race, it was found to have failed the mandatory ‘ride-height’ check and subsequently he was disqualified.

This promoted Hill to P3 – and a maiden podium for the team – a much appreciated result after the trials of the first two events.

“Wow! It’s fantastic to get mine and the team’s first ever podium. So pleased after having five retirements in the six races so far. Such a mega job by the team as always – hugely appreciative of the work they have done.

Starting P3 in another wet race Hill lost out to the fast starting BMW of Turkington, then battled hard with Ash Sutton who edged past using the superior traction of the rear-wheel-drive Infiniti.

However on the grid Hill had reported a huge misfire – and whilst the engine suppliers Swindon had attempted to address the problem, it still remained, manifesting itself at the slow speed corners like Knickerbrook, Lodge and the hairpin.

“At low revs it just struggled and spluttered and I was a sitting duck.  Honestly I can’t believe I scored some points, let alone finished P7 and only lost four places. A tough race but I am so pleased to have scored points again.

The reverse grid draw saw Hill placed P4, this time on a totally dry circuit , but hopeful that the engine issues were solved.

A solid start saw Hill immediately battling – the advantage of rear wheel drive shooting Oliphant immediately up to P3, with Hill under pressure from another rear wheel drive car of Sutton.

A lap later Sutton edged passed, and another of the new-for-2020 cars, the Hyundai of Proctor also made his way through.

However Hill was fighting an issues with low voltage, resulting in a significant loss of engine power, compounded by the power steering cutting out, causing the steering to lock at high speed.

Despite this, a determined drive saw Hill end up P7 – taking three top-ten finishes and demonstrating his ability to fight for a result once again.

“Race one the car was good, and it was SO nice to get mine and MB Motorsport’s first podium.

“Race two and three we yet again had technical issues that were engine related. In the nine races so far we have had engine issues in five of them. I am trying so very hard, as are my guys at MB Motorsport. I am delighted to have taken a podium, and so pleased to be able to have shown mine and my amazing partners that we can deliver.

“Next week we are at Knockhill. I won my first-ever BTCC race there last year so it holds special memories and I love the place! Rory (Butcher) got the car working brilliantly there last year, so let’s see what we can do. I always enjoy the trip to Scotland, and I’ll enjoy it even more if we get some more silverware!”

Images courtesy of Jakob Ebrey