All-new 2019 Toyota Corolla to compete in BTCC

Toyota Corolla racer will carry Toyota Team GB branding

Toyota Team GB announces plans to race new Corolla with Speedworks Motorsport and driver Tom Ingram

The all-new Toyota Corolla will compete in the 2019 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship (BTCC).

The Corolla - which goes on sale as a road car next spring, with the racing championship starting at Brands Hatch in April - will be prepared by  Speedworks Motorsport and driven by two-time BTCC Independent class champion Tom Ingram. Team Toyota GB is the official entrant of the car.

A rival for the Ford Focus and VW Golf in the road car market, the Corolla previously competed in the BTCC, with Chris Hodgetts winning back-to-back championship titles in a Corolla GT Coupe in 1986 and 1987.

Last season, driving a Toyota Avensis, Ingram scored nine outright victories in the BTCC and he and the Speedworks team scooped both the Independent Driver and Team trophies in 2017 and 2018.

While the road-going Corolla will only be sold in the UK with a choice of two hybrid powertrains, it will compete in the BTCC with a two-litre petrol engine.

BTCC organisers have outlined plans to introduce hybrid power to the series from 2021, having already moved forward a mooted 2022 start date.

Read more: 2018 Toyota Corolla 2.0-litre hybrid prototype driven