Mikey Doble Shows Pace but it goes Unrewarded at Oulton Park in his Motor Parts Direct with Power Maxed Racing Astra
Mikey Doble and the Motor Parts Direct with Power Maxed Racing team delivered a weekend of “what could have been” at Oulton Park, as the 2025 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship continued its high-paced drama in front of a packed Cheshire crowd.
Coming off the back of a problematic weekend at Thruxton, all eyes were on Doble as he returned to action with growing ambition and confidence. Despite a tricky qualifying session, due to a damper issue, that left him qualifying mid-pack, the young racer battled hard across all three races, showing strong pace, clean overtakes, and smart race management.
With the option tyre being the Hard compound the team decided to employ the same strategy that led to Mikeys Maiden Win at Snetterton just 4 weeks prior, bolting on the less favourable hard compound in Race 1. Lining up 11th it was felt he could defend his position and optimise performance when everyone else was on Hard tyres later in the day. The Sun and heat promised for the Oulton crowd never materialised and this made sure that the Hard tyre was at its worst with Mikey dropping back to 17th before the finish Flag.
Race 2 was more successful as he gained further positions, fending off experienced competition with composure, making his way to 11th position and therefore fingers were crossed for a beneficial reverse grid draw. Unfortunately number 9 was pulled and no gains in starting position made however almost everyone around the Motor Parts Direct with Power Maxed Racing Astra would be running the Hard Tyre in the last race whilst Mikey would be on the softs generally producing 0.5 seconds a lap benefit over the less favourable compound.
It wasn’t to be, the heavens opened yet again, drenching Oulton Park and everyone there. The race was declared a wet race and everyone lined up on wet tyres, the tyre advantage that was expect was removed.
Race 3 got off to a frenetic start, Mikey managed to navigate the conditions well and the many incidents around him. Gaining several places and sitting comfortably in 7th. It was looking like a top 5 finish could be on the cards when Tom Chilton out-braked himself and collided with the back of Mikeys Vauxhall Astra. Sending him sideways across the track, narrowly missing being hit by several cars and in to the barrier, ending what should have been the team’s best race of the day.
Mikey Doble said:
“Oulton’s always a challenge, but we didn’t expect to have this much of one! The car felt strong, and we definitely had the pace to fight. It was all about being smart, staying out of trouble, and picking our moments. The team at Power Maxed Racing did a brilliant job once again sadly that’s not been rewarded. We topped the times at the pre-season Croft test, so we will be pushing for another big result next time out.”
Adam Weaver, Team Principal of Power Maxed Racing, added:
“Mikey continues to impress us with his maturity and race-craft. Oulton Park can punish even the smallest mistakes, but he handled the pressure well and delivered strong drives. We can’t help but be disappointed with the results at last two rounds, all due to situations out of our control, but we are really proud of how far he’s come already this season, and there’s plenty more to come. Thanks as always to Motor Parts Direct for their continued support.”
With the season now at its midway point, Doble remains firmly in the mix and continues to build his reputation as one of the BTCC’s most exciting up-and-coming talents.
