Josh Cook: ‘I’ve never felt more prepared’

Josh Cook says he is in a really good place for this year’s British Touring Car Championship, with the Speedworks star having qualified in third for Sunday’s opening race at Donington Park.

Cook goes into the 2026 season with stronger preparation than in 2025 when he contested the first half of the season in one of One Motorsport’s ageing Hondas.

Having joined the Speedworks Toyota team for the final three events of the 2025 season, Cook has been able to carry some momentum into the 2026 season.

That immediately showed on Saturday at Donington Park, when the 34-year-old qualified his Corolla in sixth for the qualifying race, where he went on to finish in third, in part thanks to the demise of the Ford of Ash Sutton ahead of him.

“Obviously, the Ford being taken out of the race helped, but I don’t think we’re bad [on pace],” said Cook to TouringCars.Net.

“This circuit layout doesn’t play to the strengths of our car. It’s very high speed, it’s very flowing, it’s very power-orientated.

“So the fact that we’re able to score fairly strongly in the qualy race and start P3 for the races tomorrow is the best of the situation we’re in.

“I’m pretty comfortable in the car. We can still do a few things to make it better, but I’m comfortable.

“It’s the only time where we’ve all got the same [boost], so it shows that we’re in a good position with our car. Maybe, perhaps not as quick as the Hyundai, and possibly one of the Fords at least. But other than that, I think we’re really strong.”

Cook believes he can be a genuine title challenger in 2026 and that he can return to some of the form he enjoyed in the early 2020s when he was consistently an outside title challenger.

“I think we’re in the mix in the top three, and we’ve felt that since pre-season testing, so it’s nice to get that real life confirmation of the pace that we’ve got in the car.

“I feel like we’re going to start strong and that’s a good indication of how your season’s going to go.

“We finished really, really well in 2024 in this car – in the latter six races we were one of the highest point scorers. We were really strong.

“Now it’s the start of 2025, we have a different campaign, with different goals and different objectives.

“We knew that we weren’t going to be starting strong last year [at One Motorsport]. But I was lucky enough to jump back in the car with these guys at the end of last year.

“Through a lot of work with Christian [Dick, Team Owner], Amy [Dick, Team Owner], and Danny [Buxton, Head of Racing], we put on some really good performances. At Silverstone, we were very strong, and at Brands Hatch, I think we would have had a shot for pole in qualifying, and we still managed to win the final race of the day.

“I’m comfortable in the car and I’m comfortable with the team around me. The team have done an absolutely mega job over the winter.

“I’ve never felt more prepared, and I think we’re in a really good place.”