Mikey Doble produces 'drive of his life' to secure maiden BTCC podium at Oulton Park
Mikey Doble produced what he described as ‘one of his greatest drives to-date’ to score a first-ever podium finish in the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship at Oulton Park.
On what will long be a weekend to remember for the Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing driver, Doble showed why he is a star of the future by leading a majority of the reverse grid finale before going on to clinch a sensational second place.
In addition to his heroics at the front of the field, Doble also triumphed in the Independents’ Trophy and tallied a fourth victory of the year in the Jack Sears Trophy, where he further extended his lead at the top of the standings.
Arriving at the fifth meeting of the campaign as one of only three drivers to have scored points in every race - a statistic he would go on to maintain - Doble kicked off his visit to the Cheshire venue by showcasing commendable pace across Saturday’s two practice sessions.
Come qualifying later that afternoon the Vauxhall Astra racer came oh-so close to progressing into the Top 12 but despite his best efforts and just a thousandth of a second, he had to settle for 13th on the grid for race one.
Lining up on the seventh row of the grid and with the option hard tyre bolted onto his front-wheel-drive machine, the 25-year-old set himself up for a strong remainder of the day by progressing to 11th at the chequered flag.
Switching to the more competitive soft tyre for race two, Doble’s race day soon came alive as he carved his way up the order to finish sixth, which netted him pole position for race three virtue of the reverse grid draw.
Joined by team-mate Aron Taylor-Smith on the front row, Doble made a perfect start to the finale and quickly established a small lead over the chasing pack who were all squabbling for the remaining spots on the podium.
Seemingly unfazed by the position he found himself in, Doble was wheel-perfect as the laps ticked by however the pressure soon began to mount as his mirrors started to become filled by the charging BMW of Jake Hill in the final few laps.
Despite withstanding multiple attacks from Hill, the decisive move for the lead came on the final lap as the pair ran side-by-side through the chicane - with the BMW taking the position virtue of being on the inside at the exit of the corner.
Shadowing Hill to the finish line, Doble was met with wild celebrations as he claimed runners-up laurels and led home a first-ever double podium for Power Maxed Racing.
Heading into the BTCC summer break, Doble sits on the fringes of the top ten in the Drivers’ Championship while he has extended his lead in the Jack Sears Trophy and maintained second place in the Independents’ Drivers standings.
Mikey Doble, Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing: “What a way to end the first half of the season! To bring home a maiden BTCC podium and to be a part of the first Power Maxed Racing double podium is something really special.
“Going into the weekend I had a feeling that we could achieve a result like this and we’ve done it. The car felt great on Saturday and we were so unlucky to have missed out on progressing in qualifying by just 0.001s.
“We didn’t let that get us down though and on race day we strategised a game plan that brought us towards the front as the day wore on. Race one was about maintaining things on the hard tyre but then when we jumped on the softs in race two it was game on.
“I managed to nail the start in race three and then I was just focused on hitting my marks and not making any mistakes; it was calming being out front and leading. The better man ultimately won as Jake is so strong in the BMW but I’m still so happy to have finished second.
“It’s just been the perfect weekend as on top of the overall podium I’ve also picked up more wins in the Independents’ and Jack Sears Trophy. I’ve got say a massive thank you to the whole team for their efforts - it’s been a dream weekend and the perfect end to a brilliant first half of the year.”
The Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship season continues at Croft Circuit on July 27-28.










