| Ronan Pearson | |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  British |
| Born | 4 October 2001 Fife, Scotland |
| British Touring Car Championship career | |
| Debut season | 2023 |
| Current team | Bristol Street Motors with EXCELR8 |
| Car number | 14 |
| Starts | 30 (30 entries) |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Poles | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 1 |
| Best finish | 18th in 2023 |
| Previous series | |
| 2022, 2021, 2020 2019, 2018 2017, 2016 | Mini Challenge JCW Michelin Clio Cup Series Junior Saloon Car Championship |
| Championship titles | |
| 2019 | Michelin Clio Cup Series |
Ronan Pearson (born 4 October 2001) is a British racing driver from Scotland currently competing in the 2023 British Touring Car Championship, driving for Bristol Street Motors with EXCELR8. He was the 2019 Michelin Clio Cup Series champion.
Career
Karting
Pearson competed in club karting in his native Scotland for six years before his car racing debut, competing in cadet karts before moving up to juniors.[1]
Junior Saloon Car Championship
Pearson made his car racing debut in 2016, driving in the Junior Saloon Car Championship for 6 of the 9 rounds.[1] He finished 20th in the overall standings. Returning to the championship for a full season in 2017 with Westbourne Motorsport, he finished 10th in the overall standings, with one podium at the Snetterton round.[2]
Michelin Clio Cup
For 2018, Pearson would step up to the Michelin Clio Cup, driving again for Westbourne Motorsport.[3] He finished on the podium five times throughout the season, also recording two pole positions and four fastest laps.
He returned to the championship in 2019, continuing with Westbourne Motorsport,[4] where he won the championship.[5]
Mini Challenge UK
In 2020, Pearson moved up to the Mini Challenge UK with Lux Motorsport.[5] With one podium throughout the season, he finished 11th in the overall standings.
Switching to LDR Performance Tuning for the 2021 season, he finished 8th in the standings, with one podium and one fastest lap.
He continued in the championship for the 2022 season, this time switching to EXCELR8 Motorsport, and becoming a development driver for their BTCC team in the process.[6] He won three races across the season, including one at the opening round at Donington Park,[7] and two at his home round at Knockhill,[8] which together with eight podiums, one pole position and five fastest laps, brought him to 4th place in the overall standings.
He initially signed a contract to compete in the 2023 season with EXCELR8 Motorsport,[9] but would not race after his surprise move to the British Touring Car Championship.[10]
British Touring Car Championship
In November 2022, it was announced that Pearson would compete in the 2023 Mini Challenge UK with EXCELR8.[11] However, after a new sponsorship deal with Macklin Motors, in February 2023 it was announced that he would drive for Bristol Street Motors with EXCELR8 in the 2023 British Touring Car Championship,[12] alongside Tom Ingram, Tom Chilton and Nick Halstead. In the first round of the season at Donington Park, Pearson qualified in a respectable 11th place.[13] In a mixed-conditions race in the second race of the weekend, after starting 24th due to a driving error in the first race, Pearson climbed 21 places to finish third following a successful strategy call,[14] what would have been his first overall podium in the championship. However, he was disqualified from the race after his car failed the post-race ride-height test.[15]
Racing record
Racing career summary
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Junior Saloon Car Championship | ? | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 20th |
| 2017 | Junior Saloon Car Championship | Westbourne Motorsport | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 187 | 10th |
| 2018 | Michelin Clio Cup Series | Westbourne Motorsport with Hillnic Homes | ? | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 | ? | ? |
| 2019 | Michelin Clio Cup Series – Race | Westbourne Motorsport | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | 1st |
| 2020 | Mini Challenge – JCW | Lux Motorsport | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 284 | 11th |
| 2021 | Mini Challenge – JCW | LDR Performance Tuning | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 484 | 8th |
| 2022 | Mini Challenge – JCW | EXCELR8 Motorsport | 20 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 704 | 4th |
| 2023 | British Touring Car Championship | Bristol Street Motors with EXCELR8 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 69 | 18th |
Complete British Touring Car Championship results
(key) Races in bold indicate pole position (1 point awarded – 2002–2003 all races, 2004–present just in first race) Races in italics indicate fastest lap (1 point awarded all races) * signifies that driver lead race for at least one lap (1 point awarded – 2002 just in feature races, 2003–present all races)
| 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 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Bristol Street Motors with EXCELR8 | Hyundai i30 Fastback N Performance | DON 1 24 |
DON 2 DSQ |
DON 3 19 |
BRH 1 16 |
BRH 2 13 |
BRH 3 13 |
SNE 1 12 |
SNE 2 14 |
SNE 3 Ret |
THR 1 15 |
THR 2 19 |
THR 3 19 |
OUL 1 18 |
OUL 2 16 |
OUL 3 17 |
CRO 1 NC |
CRO 2 24 |
CRO 3 19 |
KNO 1 5 |
KNO 2 7 |
KNO 3 4* |
DON 1 14 |
DON 2 14 |
DON 3 15 |
SIL 1 24 |
SIL 2 11 |
SIL 3 5 |
BRH 1 20 |
BRH 2 Ret |
BRH 3 16 |
18th | 69 |
References
- 1 2 "Ronan Pearson". Panda Racing. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ "Ronan Pearson | Racing career profile | Driver Database". DriverDB. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ Paice, Simon (24 March 2018). "Returning Champions Lead 2018 Clio Cup Series Entry". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ Paice, Simon (15 January 2019). "Pearson Returns For Second Clio Cup Series Campaign". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- 1 2 MacKay, Peter (16 December 2019). "Catching Up With: Ronan Pearson". Mini Challenge UK. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ "Ronan Pearson Targets Mini Challenge Honours in New EXCELR8 BTCC Driver Development Role". EXCELR8 Motorsport. 10 November 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ "Mini Challenge UK – Ronan Pearson Storms to Success at Donington Park". Cobra Sport. 25 April 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ "Ronan Pearson Back In The Fight After Home Double". Mini Challenge UK. 5 August 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ "Motorsport: Kelty's Ronan Pearson to continue in Quaife Mini Challenge". Dunfermline Press. 23 November 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ "Ronan Pearson makes surprise BTCC switch with EXCELR8". TouringCarTimes. 15 February 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ "Ronan Pearson Targets JCW Crown With New EXCELR8 Deal". Mini Challenge UK. 9 November 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ Simmons, Marcus (15 February 2023). "Mini ace Pearson gets final Excelr8 Hyundai BTCC seat". Autosport. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- ↑ Gill, Samuel (22 April 2023). "Rowbottom seals Donington Park pole position on debut for NAPA Racing UK". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
- ↑ "Tom Chilton ends four year victory drought in chaotic second race". TouringCarTimes. 23 April 2023. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
- ↑ Salisbury, Matt (23 April 2023). "Ronan Pearson loses maiden BTCC podium". TouringCarTimes. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
External links
- Ronan Pearson career summary at DriverDB.com