ANDREW Watson is confident the bumpy start he has made to his second season in the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship will make him a more formidable tin top driver.
Watson impressed in his first BTCC campaign with CarStore Power Maxed Racing last year and made history by becoming the first driver from the North to get their hands on the Jack Sears Trophy.
Those performances convinced Christian Dick to offer the talented 29-year-old a seat with Toyota Gazoo Racing UK for 2024, where he is sharing a garage with former World Touring Car champion, Rob Huff.
So far, across the opening 12races, Watson has struggled to replicate his 2023 form in the front-wheel-drive Corolla GR Sport, leaving him thirteenth in the standings with a points total of 60.
“This is still only my second season in the British Touring Car Championship, and I have a tendency sometimes to forget that,” explained Watson, who is in qualifying action at Oulton Park on Saturday from 3.35pm.
“I am learning and improving all the time, and while I clearly haven’t maximised all the results so far this year, everything we are putting in-place will ultimately pay off. I am very sure about that.”
What could help Watson’s bid for a first podium result of 2024 is maximum boost from his hybrid energy system for qualifying, which he then carries into Sunday’s opening fifteen lap contest.
Having intimate knowledge of the 2.23-mile track from his days in the Ginetta GT4 SuperCup and British GT Championship, he hopes to combine the two and repeat the three points scoring finishes he banked at the Cheshire circuit last year.
“Oulton Park is a totally different kind of circuit to Thruxton and I am confident we will be quicker there. It is really fun to drive – very fast and narrow with a lot of bumps and undulations,” he said.
“It is definitely one of my favourite tracks on the calendar; it is the kind of place where a good car-and-driver combination can scoop some serious points.
“The hybrid probably didn’t have as big an effect at Thruxton as we had been anticipating due to the high speeds but at Oulton Park, I think it will make a greater difference.
“We go there with a full allocation, and we have been very quick in qualifying this year, so I will definitely be aiming for the front couple of rows on the grid. The aim is to then to convert that into some silverware on race day.
“It is so tight in the British Touring Car Championship that qualifying is always important and with a good car, the right tyres and a healthy dose of hybrid, overtaking will be possible, so whatever happens on Saturday we will be in decent shape on Sunday.”