VX Racing heads to Croft for rounds 13, 14 and 15 of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, but not before stopping off in Newcastle to put on a spectacular display for fans. Former BTCC champion Yvan Muller takes the wheel of the VX Racing Astra Sport Hatch to blast along the Newcastle Gateshead Quayside, with team mates Colin Turkington and Gavin Smith on hand to meet the fans and sign autographs.

The street demonstration takes place at 6pm on Thursday 14 July, just two days before the Croft race weekend, and provides fans with the opportunity to meet the VX Racing drivers and see the VX Racing Astra Sport Hatch cars in close proximity. As well as the exhibition runs, the VX Racing team will also demonstrate a pit stop.

Muller is sure the event will be a success. "This is great for the fans," comments the Frenchman. "Instead of the people coming to a race track to see us, we are taking the excitement and thrills right to them on the city streets. Not only that, road cars are the inspiration and roots of the BTCC. The VX Racing Astra Sport Hatch I drive on track is a development of the Vauxhall Astra road car, so it will be a fantastic experience to drive it on the streets."

The event is a preview to the race weekend at nearby Croft circuit, and VX Racing heads to the North Yorkshire track determined to put its, so far, mixed season behind it and return to the winning ways it has become accustomed to in recent years. VX Racing driver Turkington explains,"You never really know how the car will go until you get out on the track in the first practice session. We will be working hard during the free practice sessions to get the optimum set-up for both qualifying and the races. Croft is one of my favourite circuits and I usually get some decent results there, weâ?Tre determined to improve our points tally."

Gavin Smith is also hungry for some good points finishes. A run of bad luck has curtailed his progress, but Smith and the VX Racing team will demonstrate the grit and dedication that has made VX Racing four time BTCC champions. "It has been frustrating so far this season, but that just makes us more determined than ever. The car is going well and weâ?Tve had the speed, but mostly through bad luck we just havenâ?Tt had the results. Croft is a challenging track, but we relish a challenge."

Croft will host rounds 13, 14 and 15 of the 2005 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship on 16 and 17 July 2005. VX Racing is aiming to extend its lead in the manufacturersâ?T championship and improve its standings in the driversâ?T and team championships.

Hot Facts

VX Racing holds both the BTCC qualifying and the race lap records at Croft. James Thompson set both times in 2002, with the quickest qualifying time standing at 1m 25.267 secs and the race time at 1m 25.749 secs

VX Racing has won four of the nine races held at the circuit since 2001 and has claimed nine podium finishes

Colin Turkington has recently graduated from Stirling University with a degree in Business Studies. The Turkington family attended the graduation ceremony last weekend

In 2001 VX Racing scored a 1-2-3 finish in both races at Croft and was the only team on the podium for the entire weekend!