BTCC champ Plato sets sights on Busch

Plato, who won the BTCC crown for Vauxhall last year, has switched disciplines for 2002 and will race on the ovals at Rockingham in England and Eurospeedway Lausitz in Germany. He sees his long-term future, however, in America and hopes to use his maiden season in ASCAR as a springboard to NASCAR's Busch series, second only to the Winston Cup.

"I've been a fan of this type of racing in the States and I've been itching to try these cars for a while," said Plato. "If all goes to plan next year then I want to make the switch to America next year and race in Busch. It's going to be tough this year, I've never raced on an oval and a lot of these other guys have, but I'm looking forward to the challenge."

Should Plato win the ASCAR Championship, however, his path to the States should be smoothed as series organisers are offering a test with a Winston Cup team as part of the prize package.

"A lot of European drivers have aspired to racing in the States, but few have ever been able to achieve it," said ASCAR organiser Bob Berridge. "With the incredibly high quality of drivers in ASCAR, we know the series can be a benchmark for the best UK oval racing drivers to graduate to the ovals in the United States. We have the contacts across the Atlantic to help drivers on their way.

For an insight into Jason Plato's switch to ASCAR read this week's AUTOSPORT magazine, on sale Thursday, February 21.