TELEVISION motor presenter Tiff Needell has been signed up by Southampton-based GT team Brookspeed for the inaugural British Interactive SportsCar Championship.

Off screen, Needell is one of the UK's most experienced racing drivers. The man from Petersfield has competed in Formula 1 as well as the British Touring Car and World Sportscar Championships.

He drove the Brookspeed Lister in the last two Privelege GT British Championship rounds last year and won them both.

For this season Brookspeed have finalised a deal which will see them running the 2000 American Le Mans Series Championship-winning ORECA Viper (driven by Wendlinger and Beretta) and its sister car in the inaugural year of Britain's Interactive Sportscar Championship.

The 2000 Lotus Sport Elise Champion, Adam Wilcox, will drive alongside Needell and discussions are continuing with a number of drivers to fill the total of four seats available.

Team Principal, Martin Braybrook, says: "Being given the opportunity to run cars of this pedigree here in the UK, coupled with a free reign on choice of driver line up is a task I am relishing.

"We have a lot of work to do between now and the first round at Brands Hatch on May 7, but to have the cars and engineering side of things sown up this early, and be a long way down the road with driver negotiations is great news for Brookspeed.

"Unlike last year, we will be in a position to hit the track early on with a full test programme."