Pirtek Racing’s Andrew Jordan enjoyed a winning debut in the Pickup Truck Racing Championship after an impressive performance on track during the season finale at Brands Hatch.
With his campaign in the British Touring Car Championship at an end, Andrew made the most of the opportunity to take up a guest drive in the season finale in a truck run by multiple champions Matt Roach Racing.
Running in a livery similar to that seen on his BMW 125i M Sport BTCC machine, Andrew went into the first qualifying session of the weekend working on race preparation rather than chasing a quick time, given that he would be starting race one from the back of the grid as a series newcomer.
Second qualifying however saw him set the sixth best time on a drying track, which gave him pole position for race two thanks to the series’ reverse grid regulations.
Making up four places on the opening lap when the lights went out in race one, Andrew showed impressive pace throughout and worked his way into the podium places by the end of the twelfth lap.
Once into second spot and with clear air ahead, Andrew set about chasing down leader Lea Wood and closed down a gap of nearly two seconds to cross the line just two-tenths of a second behind his former touring car rival.
Having enjoyed his hard-fought charge through the field, Andrew then went into the second race of the weekend looking to go one better from his position at the head of the field.
Maintaining his lead when the lights went out, the 28-year-old was unable to relax as he came under intense pressure from his rivals behind throughout the 17 lap encounter.
Showing all of his experience, and managing a misfire on the truck, Andrew managed to fight off all challengers – including new champion Scott Bourne – to secure an impressive victory that capped a strong debut weekend in the series.
“I’ve known Matt Roach for since my days in rallycross and he’s said for a while that I should have a go in the pickup,” he said. “It was an opportunity to go out and have some fun away from the pressures of a BTCC weekend, and also gave me the chance to help promote Pirtek to a different audience – which is an important part of any relationship with a sponsor.
“On track, I wasn’t sure what we could do from the back of the grid in race one as the conditions were different to those we had faced in qualifying. It got a bit feisty at times as we battled through the field, but I realised we could get on the podium by the middle of the race and kept pushing hard. To finish right on Lea’s tail from the back of the grid was fantastic.
“Race two was difficult because we had a misfire on the truck that hampered me on the straights. It meant that I had to defend into Paddock Hill Bend every lap to keep the field behind me, and to come away with a win is more than I expected from the weekend.
“Overall it was a fantastic event to be part of and I really enjoyed the whole experience. There are no clashes with my BTCC programme next season so who knows, maybe we could go out and do a few more rounds in 2018.”
With his 2017 racing programme now at an end, Andrew’s focus now turns to pre-season testing ahead of the 2018 BTCC season, where he will continue as part of the West Surrey Racing line-up for a second year.
Pirtek is Europe’s number one provider of hydraulic solutions and mobile hose replacement, with over 170 centres supported by over 700 mobile service workshops throughout Europe; offering solutions to a number of business sectors, including the automotive industry.
Select a country