Tom Boardman (racing driver)

This page is about Tom Boardman the racing driver. For the British politician, see Baron Boardman

Tom Boardman

Nationality British
Born (1983-10-15) 15 October 1983
Forton (England)
Car no. 22
Starts 6
Wins 0
Poles 2
Fastest laps 2
Previous series
2008–10, 2012–13
2010–11
2008
2008
2006–08
2004–05, 2007
2001–03
2000
1999		 WTCC
BTCC
SEAT León Eurocup
Copa de España Resistencia
SEAT León Supercopa
SEAT Cupra Championship
BTCC – Production
National Saloons
T Cars
Championship titles
2008
2005
1999		 SEAT León Supercopa
SEAT Cupra Championship
T Cars

Tom Boardman (born 15 October 1983 in Forton, Lancashire) is a British auto racing driver. His greatest achievement to date is winning the 2005 SEAT Cupra Championship for the Triple R team which he runs with father, John, who was previously a rallycross driver in the 1970s. He competed in the World Touring Car Championship on and off between 2008 and 2013.

Racing career

Early years

Boardman first started driving cars at a very young age on the farmland where his father's recovery business was based. After a chance visit to a local 1/4-mile oval track he and his dad were taken with the idea of entering a car and so Boardman's first experience of competitive motorsport was in 1993, in Ministox. Four seasons and four championships later he moved on to autograss where he took two further championships in two seasons.

After these early successes he moved into the brand new T-Car Series for 1999 where he took seven wins from eight races to come out on top of a field of promising youngsters. A fast-pass to motorsport success seemed assured.

In 2000 he acquired a Peugeot 306 which, having waited patiently for his 16th birthday to comply with the rules, he entered in selected rounds of the National Saloons Championship. This was just one small step away from the British Touring Car Championship and his arrival on the scene at such a young age sparked many people to question whether or not he was too young.

British Touring Car Championship (2001–2002)

Boardman on the grid in 2001, his debut BTCC season.

Boardman would become the youngest driver in the history of the BTCC when he joined the Production Class of the 2001 with his family-run Tom Boardman Racing team.

The following season he joined Peter Briggs' Edenbridge Racing team, finishing 6th in the production class in a BMW (well behind team-mate Norman Simon), before joining John Batchelor's Team Varta in 2003. Both years were trying with 2002 seeing him struggle with rear wheel drive and his 2003 blighted by his teams mistakes towards the end of the season which meant that, despite winning more races than any other driver, he would finish only fourth in the final class positions.

Boardman has always looked to compete in a large variety of machinery and took to the rally stages towards the end of 2003, with some success, and this led to the formation of Special Tuning (UK) Ltd. He has also competed in the Renault Clio Winter Series with TCR and has tested a number of BTCC cars including the VLR Peugeot 307 and the Seat Leon.

SEAT Cupra and Triple R

A late deal saw him enter the 2004 SEAT Cupra Challenge with backing from his father's Special Tuning operation. At this time the series consisted of identical cars prepared by a single team and, despite a total lack of any pre-season testing, Boardman impressed many observers by shrugging off his previous reputation and demonstrating a new-found maturity. He would score a podium result first time out and a win at the second meeting. He was always up against it as many of the drivers were in their second season in the championship but he managed to stay in with a shout of championship victory right up to the final meeting of the year when a 'do or die' gamble on tyre choice saw him drop down to third position in the final standings.

2005 saw a rule change in the championship allowing independent teams to enter cars and the Boardman family, having enjoyed success on the rally stages, took the decision to reform the family team which had entered as Tom Boardman Racing back in 2001 and who had provided the infrastructure for the now defunct Team Varta operation. It was an impressive return to competition with Boardman taking the championship crown and a cheque for £100,000. The team would also run a second car for Jonathon Young for the second half of the season with Boardman taking on a 'mentor' role.

With the champion driver barred from returning to the championship, a strange situation engineered by Seat Sport UK, Boardman decided to concentrate on managing the team for 2006. Triple R would also enter a car in the Spanish series for Boardman himself to keep him 'match fit' and to give them experience of the new model that would not be used in the British championship until 2007. However, Boardman remained in the Spanish series for 2007.

For 2008, Boardman competed in the SEAT León Eurocup, and won the Spanish SEAT León Supercopa.

World Touring Car Championship (2008–2013)

SUNRED Engineering (2008–2010)

Boardman managed to hold off a charging Norbert Michelisz during Race 1 of the 2012 FIA WTCC Race of Japan.

Boardman made his World Touring Car Championship début in June at the Estoril round of the series as a reward for his performances in the Eurocup.[1]

He contested a full season in the WTCC for the SUNRED Engineering team in 2009. He finished fifth in the Independent's Trophy, taking one Independent win at the Race of UK. He contested his home round in 2010, for SUNRED Engineering.

Special Tuning Racing (2012–2013)

Boardman returned to the WTCC in 2012, driving for his own Special Tuning Racing team in a 1,600 cc (98 cu in) turbocharged SEAT León Mk2; the team's engines were supplied by SEAT Sport.[2][3] Due to a shortage of parts, Boardman was forced to miss the first event of the season, the Race of Italy.[4] With a shortage of new SEAT 1.6-litre turbo engines, STR elected to install the 2.0-litre TDI engine in Boardman's car until a new unit was available and he took part in the Race of Spain.[5] Boardman finally switched to the turbo engine at the Race of Portugal.[6] At the Race of China, he finished ninth in the race one provisional classification but along with four other drivers was issued with a 30-second penalty after the race, for missing a chicane to avoid a pileup.[7] A late season improvement in form, including a double points finish at Macau, saw Boardman finish 17th in the drivers' standings.

Boardman stayed in the championship for the 2013 season, driving the sole car entered by STR for the season opening Race of Italy.[8] He clashed with James Nash on the penultimate lap of the Race of Italy, breaking the steering arm on the SEAT and forcing Boardman to stop on the track. The race was completed with yellow flags in the second sector as Boardman's car was stranded on the racing line.[9] Repairs meant he had to start from the pit lane for race two.

Back to the BTCC (2010–2011)

Boardman returned to the BTCC in 2010, racing for the family-run Special Tuning UK team sponsored by Club SEAT. Boardman continued in the BTCC in 2011, with the rebranded Special Tuning Racing team and took his first victory at Knockhill on Sunday 4 September, in the third race of the day. Special Tuning Racing confirmed plans to remain in the BTCC in 2012, with an option to move into the WTCC.[10] The team later confirmed that Boardman would move back to the World Touring Car Championship,[11] while the team left the BTCC.

Racing record

Complete British Touring Car Championship results

(key) Races in bold indicate pole position (1 point awarded – 2001–2002 all races, 2003–present just for first race, 2001–2003 in class) Races in italics indicate fastest lap (1 point awarded all races, 2001–2003 in class) * signifies that driver lead race for at least one lap (1 point given – 2001 just for feature race, 2010–present all races, 2001 for leading in class)

Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Pen. Pos Pts
2001 Tom Boardman Racing Peugeot 306 GTi P BRH
1
8		 BRH
2
17		 THR
1
Ret		 THR
2
10		 OUL
1
10		 OUL
2
8		 SIL
1
Ret		 SIL
2
17		 MON
1
12		 MON
2
Ret		 DON
1
18		 DON
2
Ret		 KNO
1
14		 KNO
2
Ret		 SNE
1
15		 SNE
2
13		 CRO
1
DNS		 CRO
2
DNS		 OUL
1
16		 OUL
2
18		 SIL
1
7		 SIL
2
Ret*		 DON
1
16		 DON
2
12		 BRH
1
12		 BRH
2
11		 11th 66
2002 Edenbridge Racing BMW 320i P BRH
1
Ret		 BRH
2
10		 OUL
1
DNS		 OUL
2
DNS		 THR
1
16		 THR
2
17		 SIL
1
Ret		 SIL
2
22		 MON
1
16		 MON
2
15		 CRO
1
18		 CRO
2
Ret		 SNE
1
19		 SNE
2
13		 KNO
1
20		 KNO
2
22		 BRH
1
16		 BRH
2
Ret		 DON
1
17		 DON
2
15		 6th 98
2003 Team Varta Peugeot 307 P MON
1
Ret		 MON
2
Ret		 BRH
1
Ret		 BRH
2
DNS		 THR
1
12		 THR
2
12		 SIL
1
Ret		 SIL
2
15		 ROC
1
13		 ROC
2
DSQ		 CRO
1
14		 CRO
2
Ret		 SNE
1
Ret		 SNE
2
13		 BRH
1
Ret		 BRH
2
16		 DON
1
Ret		 DON
2
DSQ		 OUL
1
Ret		 OUL
2
13		 −60 5th 57
2010 Special Tuning UK SEAT León THR
1
5		 THR
2
16		 THR
3
13		 ROC
1
4		 ROC
2
Ret		 ROC
3
10		 BRH
1
9		 BRH
2
6		 BRH
3
8*		 OUL
1
Ret		 OUL
2
8		 OUL
3
Ret*		 CRO
1
12		 CRO
2
6		 CRO
3
6		 SNE
1
8		 SNE
2
Ret		 SNE
3
11		 SIL
1
12		 SIL
2
12		 SIL
3
Ret		 KNO
1
Ret		 KNO
2
14		 KNO
3
Ret		 DON
1
7		 DON
2
13		 DON
3
Ret		 BRH
1
10		 BRH
2
13		 BRH
3
Ret		 13th 48
2011 Special Tuning UK SEAT León BRH
1
Ret		 BRH
2
Ret		 BRH
3
10		 DON
1
7		 DON
2
Ret		 DON
3
Ret		 THR
1
5		 THR
2
9		 THR
3
3		 OUL
1
Ret		 OUL
2
NC		 OUL
3
5		 CRO
1
10		 CRO
2
Ret		 CRO
3
Ret		 SNE
1
Ret		 SNE
2
DNS		 SNE
3
DNS		 KNO
1
8		 KNO
2
6		 KNO
3
1*		 ROC
1
8		 ROC
2
Ret		 ROC
3
10		 BRH
1
Ret		 BRH
2
11		 BRH
3
9		 SIL
1
Ret		 SIL
2
6		 SIL
3
3		 11th 76

Complete World Touring Car Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 DC Pts
2008 SUNRED Racing Development SEAT León TFSI BRA
1		 BRA
2		 MEX
1		 MEX
2		 ESP
1		 ESP
2		 FRA
1		 FRA
2		 CZE
1		 CZE
2		 POR
1
Ret		 POR
2
17		 GBR
1		 GBR
2		 GER
1		 GER
2		 EUR
1		 EUR
2		 ITA
1		 ITA
2		 JPN
1		 JPN
2		 MAC
1		 MAC
2		 NC 0
2009 Sunred Engineering SEAT León 2.0 TFSI BRA
1
11		 BRA
2
19		 MEX
1
16		 MEX
2
21		 MAR
1		 MAR
2		 FRA
1
9		 FRA
2
Ret		 ESP
1
17		 ESP
2
19		 CZE
1
13		 CZE
2
19		 POR
1
15		 POR
2
Ret		 GBR
1
11		 GBR
2
10		 GER
1
9		 GER
2
13		 ITA
1
10		 ITA
2
18		 JPN
1
18		 JPN
2
14		 MAC
1
15		 MAC
2
Ret		 NC 0
2010 Sunred Engineering SEAT León 2.0 TFSI BRA
1		 BRA
2		 MAR
1		 MAR
2		 ITA
1		 ITA
2		 BEL
1		 BEL
2		 POR
1		 POR
2		 GBR
1
13		 GBR
2
Ret		 CZE
1		 CZE
2		 GER
1		 GER
2		 ESP
1		 ESP
2		 JPN
1		 JPN
2		 MAC
1		 MAC
2		 NC 0
2012 Special Tuning Racing SEAT León TDI ITA
1		 ITA
2		 ESP
1
20		 ESP
2
Ret		 MAR
1
14		 MAR
2
DNS		 SVK
1
8		 SVK
2
11		 HUN
1
Ret		 HUN
2
DNS		 AUT
1
18†		 AUT
2
DNS		 17th 16
SEAT León WTCC POR
1
14		 POR
2
Ret		 BRA
1
19†		 BRA
2
12		 USA
1
10		 USA
2
8		 JPN
1
12		 JPN
2
12		 CHN
1
12		 CHN
2
8		 MAC
1
10		 MAC
2
9
2013 Special Tuning Racing SEAT León WTCC ITA
1
18†		 ITA
2
16		 MAR
1
DNS		 MAR
2
DNS		 SVK
1
Ret		 SVK
2
18		 HUN
1
Ret		 HUN
2
15		 AUT
1		 AUT
2		 RUS
1		 RUS
2		 POR
1
20†		 POR
2
DNS		 ARG
1		 ARG
2		 USA
1
21		 USA
2
22†		 JPN
1
26†		 JPN
2
Ret		 CHN
1
9		 CHN
2
11		 MAC
1
10		 MAC
2
Ret		 22nd 3

† Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as they completed over 90% of the race distance.

Complete TCR International Series results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 DC Points
2015 Proteam Racing Ford Focus ST MYS
1
 MYS
2
 CHN
1
 CHN
2
 ESP
1
 ESP
2
 POR
1
 POR
2
 ITA
1
10		 ITA
2
Ret		 AUT
1
 AUT
2
 RUS
1
 RUS
2
 RBR
1
 RBR
2
 SIN
1
 SIN
2
 THA
1
 THA
2
 MAC
1
 MAC
2
 42nd 1

References

  1. ↑ English, Steven; Straw, Edd (5 June 2008). "Boardman to make WTCC debut". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 5 June 2008.
  2. ↑ "SEAT León S2000 1.6T in WTCC 2012". SEAT Sport. SEAT. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  3. ↑ "Tom Boardman Confirmed for 2012 WTCC". LeonOC. Leon Owners Club. 7 February 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  4. ↑ Meissner, Johan (8 March 2012). "No Tom Boardman at Monza WTCC premiere". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  5. ↑ Hudson, Neil (23 March 2012). "Tom Boardman to run diesel engine in Spain". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  6. ↑ "New engine for Tom Boardman". World Touring Car Championship. Kigema Sport Organisation Ltd. 27 May 2012. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  7. ↑ Mills, Peter (4 November 2012). "Yvan Muller stripped of podium after Menu collision". Autosport. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  8. ↑ Hudson, Neil (15 March 2013). "Full entry list for the first round of the 2013 WTCC". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  9. ↑ Abbott, Andrew (24 March 2013). "Muller takes first win of year". TouringCars.net. Andrew Abbott. Retrieved 25 March 2013.
  10. ↑ "STR plans for 2012 BTCC". Special Tuning Racing. Tom Boardman. 8 September 2011. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
  11. ↑ Hudson, Neil (6 February 2012). "Tom Boardman confirmed at STR for WTCC". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. Retrieved 10 February 2012.

Media related to Tom Boardman at Wikimedia Commons

Sporting positions
Preceded by
James Pickford		 SEAT Cupra Championship
2005 		Succeeded by
Mat Jackson
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/4/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.