Halfords Yuasa Racing’s new signing Dan Cammish says that his ‘aspirations are high’ for his British Touring Car Championship début at Brands Hatch this weekend, where he predicts he will be inside the top five from the outset.
Cammish, who is a two-time Porsche Carrera Cup GB champion and one-time British Formula Ford champion, has been signed by Honda to replace Gordon Shedden, who has moved to the FIA World Touring Car Cup in 2018.
The 28-year-old will be making his BTCC début this weekend in Kent in one of the team’s newly-completed Honda Civic Type-R FK7 cars, and is optimistic that despite his lack of BTCC experience he will be on the pace from the outset.
Cammish recently took part in testing of the car in Spain in the first completed chassis, with his own car only finished just before the season launch at Donington Park last week.
“Out-of-the-box, the new Civic Type R seems really impressive, which is very confidence-inspiring,” said Cammish. “The guys pulled off a marathon effort to get my car finished in time, and notwithstanding a few minor niggles in the group test – which are only to be expected during a shakedown – it ran like clockwork, which is testament to all the boys at Team Dynamics for the superb job they did.
“I think we are pretty much there pace-wise, too, so going to Brands Hatch, my aspirations are high. I’ve got a great team behind me, and there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be able to challenge inside the top ten or even top five from the outset.
“I’ll be giving it absolutely everything, and I’ll be disappointed if I’m not fighting for podiums sooner rather than later. I’m really looking forward to letting this car off the leash!”
The Leeds-based racer also said that he had settled in well at Team Dynamics, where he hopes to learn off team-mate Matt Neal – the championship’s most experienced racer.
“I’ve settled into the team very well,” added Cammish. “We’ve had a few weeks together now, and we headed straight to Spain after I joined for the test, which was a good opportunity to break the ice and really get to know everybody at Halfords Yuasa Racing.
“It’s been great to build up a rapport with the guys on my side of the garage, and Matt and I are getting on really well. He’s the most experienced driver in the championship, and what he doesn’t know about racing touring cars almost certainly isn’t worth knowing.
“He’s been very open with me, and I’ve been picking his brains as much as possible and absorbing everything I can.
“We seem to share a similar driving style, and the same kind of comments and feedback on changes.”