SILVERSTONE PREVIEW

IN THE ZONE TURKINGTON INSISTS IT’S ‘BUSINESS AS USUAL’ FOR TEAM BMW AS THEY PREPARE FOR THE PENULTIMATE PUSH AT SILVERSTONE

The BTCC rolls into Silverstone this weekend (15th / 16th September) as the ‘Home of British Motorsport’ plays host to the penultimate event in the 2018 season. Championship leader Colin Turkington currently holds a healthy 43 point advantage at the top, but insists his strategy will remain the same. With the results of Sundays three races deciding the title contenders that will enter the final showdown with a chance of glory, it promises to be another nail-biting instalment of the British Touring Car Championship at its best.

DOING WHAT HE DOES BEST

Turkingtons controlled and calculated approach has proved successful thus far, and in a championship with such dramatic highs and lows, sets him apart. Combined with his fast and consistent credentials, the BMW star has reinforced his reputation as one of the great BTCC drivers.

SWINGS AND ROUNABOUTS

Despite enduring his own fair share of misfortune at the beginning of the season, Turkington has dug deep to recover and punched out the results when it mattered. It is far from chance that he finds himself at the top of the leader board. Securing three top four finishes at a sodden Scottish Knockhill last time out, he strengthened his bid for the 2018 crown with the BMW showing improved pace in the slippery, tricky conditions.

Recap on the double podium at Knockhill here

SILVERSTONE STRAIGHTS

With its three long straights, qualifying at Silverstone typically favours those free of success ballast. Team BMW know the effort required to put the ballast laden BMW 1 series in a strong grid position for race 1, but along with Turkington, are no strangers to this pressure. Both have been title contenders for the past five seasons and this joint experience should only bolster the push for this one.

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COLIN TURKINGTON

“We’ve had an extra week between events this time and it’s been really useful to thoroughly examine our recent progress and plan for the final two events. The 2018 Champion will be crowned in less than three weeks and within that time we will continue to be persistent in our preparation.

The determination in Team BMW remains the same, and it’s 100% business as usual on that front. Of course we know we have to push our rivals to the limit, but I believe that if we keep on doing what we do best, the results should follow.

Now is not the time to start changing strategy. Winning has been the goal since the beginning and that hasn’t changed, so it’s important to keep our focus.

Drawing on the experience from all departments within Team BMW will be the secret in ensuring we keep the pressure on and keep delivering the results.

We unlocked a lot more performance from the BMW in the wet conditions last time out at Knockhill and this is a confidence boost ahead of the Autumnal events. The 1 series has also been performing well on the hard tyre which is the option we use at Silverstone. The Silverstone Circuit has been completely re-surfaced since our last visit, so I expect the grip levels to be pretty good.

I’m looking forward to this last stretch of the season and find that the intensity of the final few weeks releases an added level of focus for me. My pursuit of performance certainly heightens and I’m happy in that zone.

This is one of the toughest championships in the world to win and I’m under no illusions of the journey ahead of me, but I’m prepared to give it all I have.

We’ll be taking it one race at a time, but you can rest assured we’ll be throwing everything and more behind it.”

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RACE WEEKEND SCHEDULE

SATURDAY

FP1: 9:25am
FP2: 12:05pm
Qualifying: 3:15pm
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SUNDAY

Race 1: 12:10am
Race 2: 2:40pm
Race 3 : 5:20pm
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WATCH LIVE ON ITV4

On your ITV4 screens this Sunday from 11:15am, join Steve Rider, Louise Goodman and Paul O’Neill as they take you through the penultimate BTCC race weekend of 2018 with a packed day of BTCC and support class action broadcast LIVE!

TYRE CHOICES

The option tyre for Silverstone will be the HARD compound and must be used in one of Sunday’s three races. Drivers and teams will select which race they choose to run the option tyre before qualifying on Saturday. At this stage of the season the choice may be predetermined by race options made during the year.

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