Teenager Finn Leslie will join Toyota Gazoo Racing UK for this weekend’s British Touring Car Championship races at Oulton Park, replacing Ronan Pearson.
Leslie made his touring car début earlier this year in TCR UK, where he has already impressed with Power Maxed Racing, having scored two podiums already out of the 11 races staged thus far.
Part of the Junior Touring Car Program, Leslie began karting at the age of eight and graduated to car racing in 2023 in the BRSCC Fiesta Junior Championship, where he won on his début at Silverstone and went on to secure the Mk7 class crown.
He steps into the seat recently vacated by Ronan Pearson, who has stepped aside for this weekend after citing “unexpected commercial challenges”.
“Firstly, it’s a pleasure and an honour for me to join a team that has achieved so much success in the BTCC as Speedworks and with the support of such a major manufacturer as Toyota,” said Leslie, who will be the youngest driver in the field in Cheshire.
“When you add in the experience of my team-mates at TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK with IAA, I really couldn’t ask for a better place to be making my debut in the series. Oulton Park is also somewhere I like racing and where I have always gone well.
“Growing up watching it on TV, it’s been a lifelong dream of mine to compete in this championship – it’s all I’ve ever wanted to do since the beginning of my career.
“To be able to say I’ll be on the grid this weekend is an incredible opportunity and honestly means the world to me. It’s a dream come true.”
Christian Dick, Team Principal, admits he hadn’t expected to be giving a youngster such as Leslie a chance in the BTCC this weekend.
“First and foremost, we are pleased to welcome Finn to the team this weekend,” said Dick. “He initially came onto our radar when he was competing in the Fiesta Junior Championship; he was a step above the drivers he was racing against.
“When he then moved up to senior-level competition in TCR and immediately finished on the podium, it was clear that he is a very promising young talent indeed and somebody to keep an eye on.
“We didn’t expect an opportunity to come around so quickly, but it has, and while we could have plumped for a more established and experienced driver, we wanted to give Finn a shot and this represents a superb chance for him to showcase his skills on a major stage.
“Having only had a very limited amount of running in the Corolla, he faces a tall order at Oulton, but everything we’ve seen so far suggests he is more than up to the task.”