So it's race week for round three of the MINI Challenge, and this time we'll be heading on up north to the Cheshire based circuit, Oulton Park, which, as you may already know, is my favourite track on the British Touring Car calendar. Oulton Park is absolutely stunning and by far one of the best-kept circuits I've ever visited. Of course, you only really fully appreciate all its glory when on a track walk and not doing 100mph, but I'd describe the track as top-end golf course beauty, with perfectly cut grass, hundreds of stunningly mature trees and actual flowing...

So round 2 at Brands Hatch Indy of the Quaife MINI Challenge UK JCW series is complete, and what a rollercoaster of highs, lows and everything in between it was, not just for me but for everyone. Unlike Donington last month, Brands Hatch works to a regular timetable, and by this, I mean Friday testing is actually on Friday and not on Thursday like it was at Donington. It's far nicer to have the race weekend actually as a weekend without a day's break in the middle, although, to be fair, the Friday break last time out at Donington gave...

With the racing season very much underway, we find ourselves once again in race week, but this time for round two of the MINI Challenge JCW series. I'd be fibbing if I didn't start by saying that I'm still floating up on cloud nine. I mean, it's nearly been three weeks since Donington, and you'd have thought the excitement and appreciation for what we achieved would have worn off by now, but it just hasn't. To be honest, my initial reaction in the week following Donington was more on a disbelief level, I mean, I couldn't believe how well I...

So the first round of the 2022 MINI Challenge JCW series at Donington Park is done and dusted, and wow, wow, WOW, did we have an epic weekend! As I've mentioned many times in the past, Donington Park, which is attached to the East Midlands Airport, has a Friday noise curfew. This is to manage noise for all the locals who purchased houses next to a race track and a busy airport, so our Friday testing for Donington is always on Thursday. So, we arrived early Thursday morning, as our first test session was at 9:50 am, the second overall...

Well, here we are, race week to the first round of the British Touring Cars championship. I genuinely cannot believe how quickly time has flown by; it only felt like two weeks ago we were packing up at Brands Hatch at the last round of the season last year. But despite how quickly it's felt, we've been incredibly busy behind the scenes planning for 2022 and making it all happen. Since we last spoke after the official Goodyear tyre test at Silverstone back in mid-March, Graves Motorsport has been very busy stripping and preparing my MINI ready for this season....

As I usually do, I thought I'd let you know we got on from yesterday's MINI Challenge Goodyear tyre test at Silverstone, which was a very positive day that bodes incredibly well for this year's season. So, as with any 'race car' day, the morning started pretty early, and I got to the circuit at about 7am so I could make some adjustments to a couple of stickers, which in my naivety, I thought was a '2-second' job, turns out it wasn't, and it took about an hour and a half with a bit of help. Nevertheless, all the changes...

Wow, I can't believe how quickly the offseason has flown by; I mean, the last time you received one of my seventeen and a half (A4) page reports was just after the last round at Brands Hatch GP, which was at the end of October, almost five months ago, crazy how time flys! How does that saying go? "Time flies when you're..." anyway... I've got to be honest; it's been a very busy offseason for myself and the immediate team working behind the scenes at Gravett Racing; we've been working hard, pretty much non-stop, to secure the funding and support...

So that's it, my first year of MINI Challenge JCW racing is complete, and wow, has it been an exciting season for the trio that's Gravett, Coates and Graves. So Brands Hatch GP, yep, it's incredible, and there's nothing more to say... okay, maybe there's a bit more, but I just thought that right off the bat, I'd start by saying it's an absolutely brilliant circuit and a real privilege and honour to have finally raced the famous long GP loop. Visiting any new circuit is always challenging, especially when you're up against many other drivers who have lapped that...

Well, here we are; it's the final round of the British Touring Car Championship and, therefore, the final round of the MINI Challenge JCW series. I can't believe how quickly this year has gone; as I said in my pre-Donington report, it only feels like yesterday we were gearing ourselves up and getting ready for that first round. It's been a crazy year that's just flown by; merry Christmas... well, it's starting to feel that way with what seems to be even earlier than usual Christmas TV Adverts! Anyway, baubles, lights, snow and Wham! aside; It's Brands Hatch GP weekend...

After a tricky race weekend at Knockhill two rounds ago, it was nice to have a strong result at Croft a couple of weeks back. The plan for Donington was to continue building on that momentum from Croft, which I am pleased to say is exactly what we did with solid, milestone progression throughout the weekend. As you already know, Donington is one of my favourite circuits, and because of that, every time I go there, I feel on the front foot, which is a definite advantage for such a high-commitment track. So, we arrived at Donington early Friday morning...

Autumn's an odd but equally a beautiful time of year, just as long as you try and minimise the amount of time you spend walking under conker trees. These should definitely come with a warning sign, as I almost got hit by a falling conker, walking past one the other day, crazy! Anyway, peeling swiftly away from my horticulturist fascinations, it's race week, again, and the penultimate round of the MINI Challenge JCW Championship, which is at Donington Park this coming weekend. I can't believe how quickly this season has gone, it only felt like yesterday we were gearing up...

So at Croft, we seem to have found our rhythm back, which is fantastic! As you already know, I am a big fan of Croft circuit, as it's an absolutely stunning place to race a car. Croft is one of those underrated gems of British motorsport; Because Mr P doesn't own it, I don't think it gets its fair share of credit; although situated high up in North Yorkshire, I'm sure that doesn't help either. But Croft circuit and the local areas have some of the most stunning, quintessentially British scenery and is the reason why I very much enjoy...