“We’re leading through hard work,” says Dick Bennetts
In the eyes of some BTCC competitors, the rear-wheel drive BMW 125i has a number of advantages – anything from starts to balance to tyre life. But in the eyes of West Surrey Racing boss Dick Bennetts, their pace is down to one major thing – hard work.
Bennetts admitted his frustration at the “background noise” from Jason Plato and Triple Eight over the perceived advantage of the rear-wheel drive BMW 125i in recent races, but says he’s been keeping his counsel on responding.
It comes in the wake of a hugely successful first half of the season for the team, which sees 2009 champion Colin Turkington leading the points, and a rejuvenated Rob Collard keeping him honest after a trying 2013 on and off the track.
It’s the second season for the 125i M-Sport, which is the first car WSR has built for the BTCC since the MG ZS, and has quickly been turned into a genuine championship contender.
TouringCarTimes caught up with the legendary New Zealander this week to discuss a hard winter’s work, the dynamic between his drivers, and the ongoing battle for funding and works support.
It’s clear Bennetts is happy with the efforts of his two top drivers, Turkington and Collard. He is famed for his long debriefs, and points to Turkington sharing his meticulous attention to detail. The Irishman makes detailed notes on every session and often stays late into the evening on a Saturday poring through the data.
And the boss says it makes Collard’s achievements even more notable, considering he runs three businesses and compares favourably to professional racing driver Turkington.
He says both their successes are down in no small part to a winter spent fine-tuning the 125i, designed to the notoriously tricky NGTC regulations.
Bennetts said: “Last year was our first attempt at building an NGTC car and we were late getting it ready. When we went testing it was zero degrees and wet, so we didn’t learn much.
“Things started to come along between Thruxton and Oulton Park, and by the end of the season, Colin’s talent got him five wins. Both Rob and Nick [Foster]said the car was hard to drive.
“We worked out a plan for the winter and we pretty much stuck to it. We did our homework at base before we went out on track.
“We visited the wind tunnel with what we thought was good, and then we went back a second time. We also built a four-poster rig which taught us quite a bit. By the time we got out on track, the car was quite different.
“Neil Brown improved the engine to make it more driveable; the aero balance was better and the weight distribution was better.
“And me engineering Rob’s car has helped me get closer to the issues. Other parts of the business have suffered a bit, but it has paid off.
“Rob wasn’t enjoying it last year. He had some issues away from the track, and his head wasn’t in the right place. He’s enjoying driving the car again this year, and Nick is enjoying his gentleman racing.
“And Rob’s admitted Colin is good! I’ve always said he can learn from him. In some corners he is better, and if they work together, they both improve. They are both pushing each other and learning that extra bit.”
The 2013 championship saw three MG one-twos finishes, five Honda one-twos and none for BMW. This year, that reads two for MG, three for Honda and one for BMW.
This is just one of a myriad of statistics WSR have been collating to illustrate what they see as unfair complaints about their performance in 2014.
Bennetts said: “It’s frustrating that there’s been some background noise from my dear friend Jason! For Jason and H [Ian Harrison] to say they have developed to the limit, that is rubbish, because the Honda is quicker than them. And there is nothing wrong with that TOCA engine through the speed traps.
“It just frustrates me when they go public. We have worked bloody hard and spent a lot during the winter – we spent more than we had, to be honest.
“I suppose it is a compliment when they are calling it a BMW championship!”
Bennetts also points to the fact that the front-wheel drive machinery can lock the differential during qualifying, which he believes gives them around 0.2 second per lap advantage. “We are only getting back what we lose on Saturday,” he said.
TOCA’s decision to make the rear-wheel drive teams run a longer first gear has also caused some issues, not least the fact that it comes at eye-watering cost: the best part of £4,000 each for three new clutches, and £1,250 for three new first gear ratios.
It was this change which contributed to Turkington’s DNF in the last race at Croft, which Bennetts says the team has got to the bottom of.
He said: “Colin held the clutch for a long time with the delayed start in the first race, and you have to slip the clutch more with the longer first gear. Hindsight’s a wonderful thing, but we should have pulled the clutch out of the car after the first race.”
The current set of BTCC regulations make it possible for teams, and the championship as a whole, to thrive without the need for manufacturer support.
But this isn’t to say teams such as WSR aren’t still actively chasing support from the car companies, especially considering one of Bennetts’ criticisms of the series.
Bennetts has around 22 people working in the team over a race weekend, with 10 at base during the week. This compares with between 30 and 34 during the factory MG days, when the team was only running two cars.
He said: “There is virtually no prize money in this championship, which is one of my gripes. If you are putting on a show, you should get more money for it. Alan Gow says: ‘It’s the prestige, Dick’…but prestige doesn’t pay the bills.”
On the prospect of manufacturer backing, he added: “We keep our fingers crossed. They are aware of us in Munich. The brief we get is the funding is for DTM and the Z4 GT, and they are also building the M235i for cheap customer racing in the VLN.
“We are going to try again now we are in a good position. We pride ourselves on reliability and presentation. BMW GB can’t help us at the moment, and we are hurting for sponsorship.
“It is about getting to the right people, and we would like to get some financial backing.”
Given their association with rear-wheel drive, would WSR accept a manufacturer deal if it meant switching to front-wheel drive?
“I would take it, obviously. But it appears the manufacturers are getting themselves in a position where they are not having to give people money, but their brand is doing well,” said Bennetts.
With just over two weeks until the BTCC returns to the track at Snetterton, Bennetts is remaining cautious over the team’s prospects for the rest of the season.
He said: “Snetterton we’re not sure, Knockhill we should be strong, and Rockingham we should be good at the end of the races with the tyre degradation.
“Silverstone is a power circuit, and Brands Hatch you never know with the weather. Plus when it is colder at the start and end of the year, it is harder for us to get tyre temperature. It’s not going to be easy.”
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