TURKINGTON TESTED AT OULTON PARK

DOUBLE CHAMPION PROVES HIS WORTH OVERTAKING 22 CARS

There was a huge round of applause in the Team BMW #4 garage late on Sunday afternoon as Colin Turkington crossed the line in 5th place. Not the most celebrated of results on a normal weekend, but on one such as this, it was a massive feat.

They say you don’t win Championships on your good weekends, you win them with your bad ones and in a series such as the BTCC, a truer word was never spoken. The rescue mission applied by Turkington at Oulton Park was a text book display of skill and determination.

QUALIFYING

Hampered by a mystery misfire throughout Saturday’s practice and qualifying sessions, Colin and the team worked meticulously to find a solution. Despite the depth of expertise and efforts to isolate and cure the problem, Turkington found himself sitting P21 with five minutes remaining in Qualifying. On the very last lap Colin crossed the line and clocked a time rocketing him up to P4, leaving even his own team in awe.

READ THE QUALIFYING REPORT HERE

HIGH HOPES

Team BMW worked long into the night carefully executing a detailed procedure to resolve the issue. Unfortunately, it was a problem as stubborn as Turkington and although every solution available to the team was applied throughout the day – improvements were made, but it was unable to be fully rectified.

RACE 1

Colin dropped to P6 early on in race 1 and after contact with another car on lap 15, finished out of the points in P28. Pulling a stunning qualifying lap together with a misfire is possible, but holding off a pack of BTCC cars in battle was a challenge on a completely new level.

PUSHING FOR POINTS

Races 2 and 3 were classic BTCC with barely a lap going by without some sort of drama. They were also classic Turkington, as Colin carefully threaded his way through the pack, overtaking 22 cars. Showing a masterclass in overtaking, he reinforced his race craft reputation with clean and clinical passing and recorded the third quickest lap time in the #4 BMW. Collecting 14 points, it was a far cry from the pre-event target, but has cemented his position in the Championship battle. Sitting P4 in the standings, Colin is only 31 points off the leader with 18 races still to go. Arriving at Croft on the 10^th June for rounds 13, 14 and 15, Colin will carry 48kgs of success ballast.

150 FOR WSR

Sunday also proved to be a day of great celebration once more for West Surrey Racing, as they celebrated their 150^th BTCC podium. Team BMW #5 Rob Collard secured podium number 150 as he stormed to a second-place finish in race 2. Delighted for Dick Bennetts and his highly successful team, Colin is proud to have contributed 89 podiums to the overall tally.“What a fantastic achievement for WSR to record their 150^th BTCC podium. I have seen first-hand the commitment and expertise that Dick and his team has shown over the years and how he leads WSR by example. 150 podiums is a target that many great teams can only dream of.

I’m sure the next big milestone won’t be too far away.

I was disappointed not to add to that tally at Oulton Park, but it wasn’t for the lack of trying. We were unlucky not to find a solution during the weekend, as our crew of engineers, mechanics and data specialists immersed themselves into the job. We’ve all been in this game for long enough to know that sometimes these things just happen. I felt incredibly indebted to the team on Sunday evening, as I know the lengths they went to for me.

I really wasn’t planning on starting race 2 out of sight of the start lights, but I gave everything I could. Salvaging two points scoring finishes from the back of the grid around Oulton Park is a massive feat. I was determined to make it onto the podium in the third race, but it just wasn’t meant to be.”