More ups than downs at Donington Park for Rob Collard

An eventful weekend for Rob Collard saw the West Surrey Racing man reflect on one “perfect race,” a podium that got away and a final dash to bring back memories of his hot rod heritage.

Collard charged from 13th on the grid to fourth in the first race at Donington Park, passing team-mate Colin Turkington in the process, but then span out of third after the safety car period in the second race.

This set him up for a mighty charge from the back in the final encounter, coming through to seventh, just ahead of team-mate Nick Foster.

Collard now has 56 points in the championship and sits seventh, just a point behind Donington winner Sam Tordoff.

“In race one, we made a cracking start in the dry and on the opening lap we made up four or five places. Just instantly I was in the groove,” said Collard to TouringCarTimes.

“I was a little bit frustrated from Saturday’s qualifying if I’m honest, as I didn’t feel we qualified where we should have done.

“The car felt really good, and those mixed conditions really suit my style. I feel I’m very good in those conditions where you’re exploring the grip.

“That for me was a perfect race. To come through and challenge Andrew [Jordan] at the end was good.

“Race two is one of those races you want to forget. I made a nice start, slotted in behind Jason [Plato] and after the safety car I was pushing on quite nicely.

“As we went down through the Craners, I just used a bit too much of the kerb, and it unbalanced the car. The car went into a big powerslide at 125mph and I just couldn’t control it.

“I was a little bit too eager to get on the kerbs, as I was using them in race one there. I probably needed to wait a couple more laps in hindsight.

“It was my mistake completely. I have to take 100 per cent responsibility for it. The track soon dried and I think we would have been guaranteed a podium.”

Looking back on race three, Collard said: “I enjoy those sort of races. They bring back some of my heritage, with hot rod racing. The best cars always start at the back and you have to overtake 30 cars in 30 laps if you want to win the final.

“In traffic I can sometimes anticipate where people are going to go. To come through and overtake 21 or 22 cars was good. It was one of those races where I was praying for a safety car with eight laps to go, as we could have got on the podium.”

Asked for his analysis of the weekend as a whole, Collard said: “I have to take the real positives from the start of the season. We have had a seventh and a DNF, and other than that we have been in the top six [in every race].

“That podium’s been very close, with two fourth places. We’re at the front and putting Colin [Turkington] under pressure when we can, and it’s nice the BMW is very competitive.

“The weekend could have been a little bit better, but a fourth and seventh are still good results.”