final drive - Mundo Motorizado

pics: EbrEy, FErraro/LaT, dEvEnT imaging
meeting last year. I enjoy it but it can
be really stressful. It was getting to
the point last year where I couldn’t
remember the drivers’ names! We
won’t run so many this year –
especially if we end up to doing GTs.”
Having become a fixture at the front
of MX5 racing, Roche is finally planning
to step up this year by teaming up with
former Welsh Sports and Saloons
champion Dom Evans in British GT3
– provided drivers can be found to
race Evans’ Blendini-run Ginetta G50
in GT4, and Roche can find the money
to pay his own way.
“I’d like to do a bit of Mazdas on my
favourite tracks, but to be honest I’ll be
totally skint!” he says. “Racing money
doesn’t seem like real money [further up
the sport]. A set of GT tyres costs more
than all the race weekends in Mazdas…
“But I’m really excited to be moving
on to GTs – I really enjoyed driving
the Lotus last year, because it was
something different, but GT3 will
be a massive step forward. I’ve had
a few people tell me I can’t move on
because I’m ‘Mr Mazda’, but then
I’m also told there are people who
will be glad to see me gone!”
It will certainly improve their
chances of winning Mazda races.
Roche scored his first
win at Croft in 2007
driver profile
tom roche
Big numBer
80
The number of wins (including
class victories) for Tom Roche
since he started car racing in ’07
January 31 2013 autosport.com 79