BTCC Season 2025 – croft – preview / fp1
Welcome to the second half of the season and Croft Circuit. Nestled in the heart of North Yorkshire, Croft Circuit boasts a rich and varied history that mirrors the evolution of British motorsport itself. The site began its life as RAF Croft, serving as an airfield during the Second World War. After the war, the expanse of tarmac and perimeter roads naturally attracted motorsport enthusiasts, leading to the first motor races being held there in the 1940s and 1950s.
Officially inaugurated as Croft Autodrome in 1964, the circuit quickly developed a reputation for exciting club-level and national racing events. Over the years, Croft has undergone several transformations, including a major redevelopment in the late 1990s that modernised its facilities and track layout, making it suitable for high-profile series such as the British Touring Car Championship and British Superbikes. Today, Croft Circuit remains a real drivers venue, renowned for its technical corners, fast straights, and the passionate community it draws—continuing to build on decades of motorsport heritage.
Free Practice 1 started at 09.30 with 2 notable features. Firstly, it was cool, cloudy and grey, and secondly were the thousands of wasps buzzing around waiting for the ice cream vans to open! Naturally with this being the first Free Practice session after the long layoff, it was more of a bedding in session than an all out assault on the timing sheets and both Charles and Aiden completed 18 laps each gathering the vital data to help get the best out of the cars in qualifying.
So close were the two that there was only 7/100ths of a second between them at the end of the session, showing just how good they both are at getting the cars to perform. The team are now busy analysing the data with Aiden and Charles to see what we can learn and then to see what we want to try in Free Practice 2 at lunchtime.
We’ll bring you the news from that session later, and then the all-important Qualifying later on.