The iconic Knockhill circuit awaits WSR and BMW this weekend as the British Touring Car Championship makes its annual trip north of the border to Scotland.
With Jake Hill riding high in the Drivers’ Championship and BMW occupying the second spot in the Manufacturers’ points as they seek a record 10th title, there is plenty at stake at the hillside track near Dunfermline.
Jake is set to reach a milestone moment in his BTCC career as Race Two is set to be the Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport driver’s 250th start in the UK’s leading series. He is aiming to use it to strengthen his bid for the title.
Jake holds second place in the Drivers’ Championship thanks to five wins already in 2024 and is only 21 points away from the top spot with 12 races to go.
Knockhill was the scene of his first BTCC win in 2019, a 59-point weekend haul (from a potential 67) in 2022 and a double success last year, including an imperious wet-weather drive, making the Kent racer one of the drivers to beat at the track.
Team BMW’s Colin Turkington was the fastest driver at Croft last time out as he set pole position and won Race One, but the four-time champion suffered at the hands of poor driving from others; twice being pitched off the road in the subsequent races.
The Northern Irishman has a strong record at Knockhill however with three wins and 20 top-three finishes there including podium doubles in three consecutive years from 2020-22 in the BMW 330i M Sport and its hybrid successor, the 330e M Sport.
Adam Morgan is a two-time podium-finisher at Knockhill and looked likely to win in the wet last year before another driver spun him off while dangerously rejoining after a gyration of their own.
The Lancashire racer produced one of the drives of the weekend at Croft as he stormed through from the penultimate row of the Race-Three grid to finish ninth and aims to summon all his speed as he aims to score a maiden Knockhill win on Sunday.
How to watch
While all races will be broadcast in HD on ITV4 on Sunday from 1110, a world-first agreement means that viewers from around the world will be able to watch the races live on the ITV Sport TikTok channel without restrictions, opening up the series to a live global audience for the first time. Qualifying will, as in 2023, be broadcast on the ITV Sport YouTube channel.
NEED TO KNOW
To aid overtaking, drivers can access the series’ standard Hybrid Energy Management System, during qualifying and racing, meaning up to a 60bhp increase against cars not using boost.
Because of their championship positions, Jake and Colin will be allowed to use hybrid boost for three and 11 seconds on each lap of qualifying respectively and for six and 10 laps of Race One. Boost will be available to Jake once he is doing 135kph and to Colin at 125kph.
Adam can access his boost from 115kph, will be able to use it for 15s per lap in qualifying and for 12 laps in Race One. Boost allocations will be re-set based on the Race One finishing order.
The ‘Quick Six’ qualifying format debuted at the opening round and features the field split in half for a 10-minute Q1 session with the fastest six drivers from each group progressing to the next stage.
The remaining 12 cars take part in a 10-minute Q2 with the fastest six progressing to the ‘Quick Six’ Q3, in which the fastest driver will take pole position.
At Knockhill the soft-compound Goodyear will be the standard tyre while the option medium tyre must be used once on race day.
WHAT THEY SAID
Jake Hill, Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport, said: “Croft was incredibly frustrating, but that’s in the past now and our full focus is on Knockhill. I took my first win here, had some of my best-ever weekends in the BTCC here too and I’ll be aiming for another like that this time. It’s quite funny to think that I’m about to hit 250 races in the BTCC. Every year’s been a building year and right now I feel I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been to win the championship and have the best car and people around me to help me achieve that.
Colin Turkington, Team BMW, said: “Knockhill is one of those tracks that always feels like a bit of a second home to me. I went to University in Scotland, so I feel pretty connected here and the welcome is always incredibly warm from the fans. Despite the disappointment of what happened at Croft, the big positive is that we were really quick and if we can get the BMW performing as well as that this weekend, there’s no reason why we can’t be in for a big points score, which will feel even more useful right now as we get towards the business end of the season.”
Adam Morgan, Team BMW, said: “Knockhill’s an amazing place. It’s one of those tracks where you can gain so much time by really attacking, but if you attack just a tiny bit too much then it can blow your laptime, so you’re always right on a knife-edge. That makes it so much fun to drive and fantastic for the fans, who feel closer to the track here than anywhere else. The target is to regain our early-season qualifying form and use that to lead us onto the podium, which should be achievable as the big acceleration zones should suit the BMW very well.”
Dick Bennetts, Team Principal, said: “It’s been a very big job to get three cars ready for Knockhill as we sustained a lot of damage at the hands of other drivers at Croft and because the sheer distance between our base and Knockhill means we have to start transporting the cars a day earlier than on a normal race week. The team at WSR have done a fantastic job in double-quick time to get the BMWs ready and we’ll aim to see them rewarded for their efforts with podiums and hopefully wins as we continue to push for the Drivers’ and Manufacturers’ titles.”