The Collard odyssey continues
“It’s going to be a season of fettling and learning and understanding it”
It crept under the radar a bit with the Plato fanfare, but Ricky Collard’s recruitment by Speedworks Motorsport to partner established leading light Rory Butcher in its Toyota Corolla line-up could be significant long term, because the Hampshireman wants his future to be in the BTCC.
Collard, remember, was a rival of the likes of Lando Norris, Colton Herta and Dan Ticktum in his single-seater days, and as a member of the BMW Junior Team was a winner of international GT3 races. But the BTCC is where the heart is for the son of Rob Collard, a 15-time race winner in the series.
Collard Jr did contest four rounds in 2018 with a WSR BMW standing in for his dad, and took a podium finish, but has faced a steep learning curve with the front-wheel-drive Toyota, especially as he was forced to miss the Croft test due to a bout of salmonella.
“Ever since the age of three, I’ve been stood on the other side of the fence, supporting my dad and going all around the country watching him, and also just being a fan of the touring cars,” he smiles. “Now 20 years later I’ve got my first opportunity of a full season, I’m super-excited for it. Rory’s pace is really quick. We saw that towards the end of last year. It is quite a difficult car to drive, the Corolla GR Sport, but I’m learning, he’s learning, the team are learning every day, and I’m hoping Rory can use his experience to develop the car, and I can just learn exactly where I’ve got to be.”