COLLEGE LOOKS TO FORMULA FORD TO HELP TRAIN ITS STUDENTS

One of the UK’s leading educators of motorsport team personnel, Myerscough College, is hoping to return to top-flight Formula Ford racing this season. The Lancashire-based college has a long and successful history with Formula Ford, having run cars powered by Kent, Zetec and Duratec engines, and now plans the addition of an EcoBoost-powered chassis to its fleet with which to contest the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain.

“We are talking to two or three drivers currently, have the offer of a chassis from Mygale, and very much hope that a deal can be struck to return the Myerscough College team to the top level of Formula Ford,” said Myerscough motorsport lecturer Phil Egginton.

“Formula Ford is an ideal environment not just for young drivers seeking to learn their trade but also for team personnel, as we have proved over the years – our students have gone on from a grounding in Formula Ford to working in the highest echelons of motorsport. The new EcoBoost cars are state of the art technically and the championship offers a high profile, which is ideal for publicising the college.

“We have a number of motorsport professionals within the team and the college students work under their direction, gaining experience at the sharp end. We aim to be as good as the best, and we have an advantage for drivers seeking a professionally run team in that while we cannot run cars for free, we are not looking to make a profit.”

Myerscough offers further education diplomas in motorsports vehicles. It also offers foundation and honours degrees in motorsports management with logistics and motorsport competition car technology.

Formula Ford championship manager Sam Roach is ready to welcome Myerscough back to the series: “Formula Ford has always been about educating drivers and team members, and you have only to look up and down the Formula 1 pit lane garages to see how successful it has been in the development of some impressive careers. It would be great to have Myerscough back in the fold for 2014.”

This year’s Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship will feature 30 races at 10 rounds alongside the biggest attraction in UK motorsport, the British Touring Car Championship. The championship will boast live coverage on ITV4, as well as bumper trackside spectator attendance, and boasts a £30,000 cash prize fund.