Power Maxed Racing has revealed that 2019 British GT4 Champion Ash Hand will complete its driver line-up for the 2022 British Touring Car Championship season.
Hand, 29, will partner Michael Crees in one of the team’s two Vauxhall Astra BTCC cars, as the team faces a complete change of drivers for 2022 after Jason Plato and Daniel Lloyd left the team for pastures new.
Hand spent his early career racing in karts, before stepping up to the Renault UK Clio Cup in 2013, where he was ninth overall in his first season of car racing.
The Warwickshire racer stayed in the series for the next two years, ending up eighth overall in 2014 before finishing as the runner-up behind eventual champion Ash Sutton in 2015, Hand claiming seven wins in the process.
After receiving a place on the BRDC Rising Star programme, in 2016 he looked at a move into sportscars, taking part in selected races of the Renault Sport Trophy in endurance racing.
He also returned to selected Clio Cup races in 2017 and 2018. His last full season of racing came in 2019, when he lifted the overall GT4 honours of the British GT Championship in an Aston Martin, pairing with Tom Canning.
“This is a dream come true for me,” said Hand, who has brought with him a ‘long term and strategic partner. “The dream after this one is a race win in the BTCC and the dream after that is to be crowned BTCC Champion.
“The deal we have put together, I believe, gives me, the best possible chance of achieving this. A multi-year deal securing my future in BTCC is the holy-grail of deals as a race driver.
“Adam [Weaver, Team Principal] and I have been working on this for years and to be honest when we started I only thought about a one year deal, getting one that could become a five-year deal is something all racers generally only dream of.
“I’d like to take the opportunity to thank Adam for the faith that he has already put in me and the work he has put in over the last few years to help get this over the line and put me out in one of his cars.
“Most will never truly grasp just how hard he and the team work quietly behind the scenes. I can assure you there has been some setbacks along the way but you just cant keep him down.
“I promise I am going to reward that with the results him and all the team deserve.”
Team Principal Weaver welcomed Hand to the team, admitting that it had not been easy to secure his drive with the Warwickshire-based outfit.
“He is just a great guy – I absolutely loved watching the Clio Cup in between BTCC races and the battles between Ash Sutton and Ash Hand were just incredible to watch, many of which I watched again on catchup when I got home from racing,” said Weaver.
“I have watched them all again on YouTube recently, just to remind myself of why I’ve nearly killed myself with stress to get him in a BTCC car.
“Everyone knows the talent Sutton has and this may be controversial but I believe Hand really should of won the Clio championship that year and I just can’t wait to see him go and challenge Sutton again and very hopefully come out on top this time.
“I know Ash and Creesy will get on brilliantly and I’m really looking forward to being a part of this team.
“It’s everything we have been working towards and I have never been this excited about the BTCC year ahead.”