WORCESTERSHIRE racer Rob Austin will contest this weekend's British Touring Car Championship meeting at Thruxton after working round the clock to fix his Audi A4.

The car, nicknamed Sherman, suffered extensive rear-end damage after being rammed by another car during the previous meeting at Donington Park last month.

Mechanics from the Pershore-based Rob Austin Racing have worked through the night on several occasions in recent days in a bid to restore the car.

“The damage was worse than we first thought but the work that’s gone in since Donington has been unbelievable and yet again my crew have done the most remarkable job in the timeframe,” said Austin.

“After the graft the lads have put in the least I can do now is go to Thruxton and drive the hell out of it.”

He added: “The speeds are incredibly high all the way round the lap – we’re nudging 150mph in some places with some of the corners taken at over 130mph. It really sorts the men from the boys."

Meanwhile, Pershore rivals Gordon Shedden and Matt Neal will be looking to heap more pressure on the leaders.

The Honda Yuasa Racing duo are breathing down the necks of joint leaders Andrew Jordan and Jason Plato ahead of the Hampshire meeting.

Shedden is just a single point off the pace with Neal a further seven points back in fifth following rounds at Brands Hatch Indy and Donington.

After the Honda Civic Tourer secured the first victory for an estate-style car in the BTCC last time out, when Shedden won race three, the team are looking to maintain their momentum.

“It was great to see ‘Flash’ break the duck with the new car at Donington,” Neal said. “That was really something special.

"I’ve always tried to take each weekend as it comes and, although it wasn’t a perfect one for me, I still scored a lot of points.

"To be close to the top but a little further down in the classification is a blessing in many ways – we’ll have less ballast on-board than our rivals, so we need to capitalise upon that."

At the Thruxton meeting last season, triple champion Neal won the first two races with Shedden making it three-out-of-three in the final contest.