Rob Collard is aiming to close the gap to team-mate Sam Tordoff at the summit of the British Touring Car Championship at Croft this weekend [18th-19th June] after a frustrating triple header at Oulton Park hampered the series stalwarts title push.
Collard started the weekend in Cheshire as joint championship leader with Matt Neal, but incidents in the first two races meant that the Hampshire-based driver was able to take just a single points scoring finish away with 6th in the final contest.
The end result sees Collard head to Croft in 3rd overall, with a 26 point deficit to reclaim to Team JCT600 with GardX partner Sam Tordoff. He also faces pressure from behind, with defending champion Gordon Shedden (Honda) just a single marker adrift in 4th.
“Oulton Park wasn’t what I’d hoped for in terms of results, but the speed of the BMW was really strong – especially once the weight came off – and I was able to pass about 40 cars despite it being a track where overtaking is very difficult.” reflected Collard.
Despite the disappointment, Collard pointed to the historic strength of the BMW 125i M-Sport at Croft and believes that the team are in for another suit of strong performances once again, at a circuit where they claimed all three race wins and a first ever 1-2-3 finish in 2015.
“Just like Oulton, Croft is a circuit that’s traditionally been good for me and for the BMW. I’ve been on the podium there nine times including a win and a third for Team JCT600 with GardX last year and I’m sure we can put on a strong show again.”
Collard also underlined his objective for the weekend – to close the gap at the top of the championship before the BTCC heads into its annual summer haitus.
“I’m third in the championship and the points gap at the front is minimal, so the aim is to make sure we go into the summer break in the heart of the title battle.”