JOHN George has happy memories of Croft and the touring car driver is looking forward to making a return this weekend.

The 47-year-old manager of JAG Communications achieved a pole position start at the circuit last year and it was at Croft that he won his first ever race, driving in the Formula Ford series.

Team JAG has consistently performed very well at Croft.

"It's a great circuit. We're expecting rain on Sunday and the first race I ever won was at Croft in the wet, so we're very positive about the day," said George, from Cornwall.

Thruxton, last time out, may well have been the turning point for Team JAG.

Following a breakdown in race two, George treated the rest of the race as an extended practice session, helping to familiarise him with the circuit.

By race three, the problems with the Honda Integra's alternator and power-steering had been fixed and the 12th place finish was an encouraging sign of things to come.

George added: "Race three was also the only session of the day when nobody hit us, which always helps!"

George has been receiving intensive race coaching from John Pratt over the past week, including a session at Croft on Monday.

"It brought back some good memories," he said. "Our strategy for this weekend is to limit the number of laps we run in qualifying in order to make the best possible use of our tyres.

"If things go well in the qualifying session then I'll find myself in a reasonable starting position, ahead of some of the less experienced drivers with an opportunity to get some points on the board."

Mechanical problems have hounded Team JAG all season, but the introduction of new, exhaustive check-lists is likely to iron out the majority of issues.

Trevor Humphrey, of TH Motorsport, has been working flat-out on the car since Thruxton to ensure a consistent performance this weekend.