Aiden Moffat to make BTCC history

Scottish driver Aiden Moffat is set to become the youngest ever driver in the 56-year history of the MSA British Touring Car Championship after his entry was confirmed for the remainder of the 2013 season.

The 16-year-old will begin his BTCC career at Knockhill this coming weekend (24/25 August) driving a Finesse Motorsport-run S2000 Chevrolet Cruze – the car previously piloted to a Jack Sears Trophy win by Joe Girling earlier in the 2013 campaign.

Finesse Motorsport has owned the car throughout 2013 but initially loaned the machine out to the M247 Racing squad. With Girling currently taking a sabbatical from the series, Finesse decided that it was the perfect opportunity for both Moffat and the team to graduate to the BTCC. The squad, which runs cars on the TOCA bill in the Renault Clio Cup UK, will shakedown the Cruze at Knockhill later this week with former BTCC racer and Clio Cup champion Jonny Adam on driving duty.

From Dalkeith, just outside Edinburgh, Moffat started his motor sport journey in karting at the age of 12. He dovetailed his successful three years of karting with a venture into junior banger racing in 2010! After winning the Scottish championship a year-later, Moffat moved into the Motorsport News Ford Fiesta Junior Championship for 2012. There he got his first taste of circuits like Silverstone, Brands Hatch and Donington Park and he took his maiden car-racing win in the final race of the season.

The talented youngster competes in the Celtic Speed Mini Cooper Cup as well as the Scottish Ford Fiesta Championship in 2013 – and will continue to do so alongside his BTCC commitments for the rest of the campaign. He’s had a recent pole position in the Cooper Cup and has won the last four races in the Fiesta ST Cup.

Incredibly Moffat will now make his debut in Britain’s premier motor sport series aged just 16 years, ten months and 28 days to become the youngest ever BTCC driver – a record previously held by 12-time race winner Tom Chilton.

Aiden Moffat said: “I am just so excited to be on the big stage racing in front of thousands of fans at the circuits and millions more watching on TV. I know the Knockhill circuit inside and out so that should help with my debut, but I am simply going to enjoy it. I’ve always dreamed about doing the BTCC and it’s always been in the plan, but it has come around sooner than we thought. To be told I am the youngest ever driver in the BTCC just adds to the excitement to be honest, so I really can’t wait to get out there. My race craft has really progressed and I’ve been up against some really tough racers in Scotland. I won’t be phased by the challenge, but I’ll certainly be taking it all in and looking to learn from the experience.”

Neil Giddings, Team Manager at Finesse Motorsport, said: “We’ve been excited by the opportunity to run in the BTCC and it has been the plan since we purchased the car early in the year. We feel that we’re well geared up for it as a team now and it’s also great for our Clio Cup drivers to see a career progression with the squad. Time will tell how Aiden gets on but we haven’t put any pressure on him and he’s knows Knockhill well, so we’re all looking forward to the challenge.”

BTCC