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Ex-BTCC champ in Brands bid

Former British Touring Car Champion Robb Gravett has revealed himself as one of the five contenders bidding to buy four of Britain's racing circuits - Brands Hatch, Oulton Park, Snetterton and Cadwell Park

Gravett, who won the BTCC title in 1990, has formed a company named Brands Racing Ltd with his former manager Kimmy Cockburn. The pair claim that the finance for their bid has been secured.

The Interpublic group, which owns the four tracks through its Brands Hatch Circuits Ltd arm, has drawn up a shortlist of five bidders after a lengthy process of elimination from the applications that were made when estate management firm Jones Lang LaSalle was commissioned to find a buyer in July.

The final five must submit binding offers for the circuits by Friday this week. The successful bidder will be notified on November 17.

Gravett said: "There has been a lot of talk about the buy-out, so we feel it is correct for us to announce our intention. We have completed due diligence on the circuits and our plans extend way beyond simply buying them.

"Brands Hatch itself is in a sorry state and we have a lot of plans to develop the circuit for British motorsport into something good. We want to put something back into British motorsport.

"Everything I have done in the past, I have won, and I hope that will be the case this time too. We are reasonably confident. What we offer is good for everyone in motorsport. We are looking at championships, club racing - everything in UK motorsport. We have radical, positive plans."

Cockburn added that Brands Racing Ltd believes it has the highest bid of the five. Rival bidders include former grand prix driver Jonathan Palmer and BTCC team owner John Batchelor.

The bids are said to range between £10million to £30million, although sources have also indicated that the highest is in the region of £70million. Neither Gravett nor Cockburn were willing to reveal how much they are offering, but confirmed that it is a "high bid".

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