Jeff Smith: We have more in reserve

Jeff Smith insisted that there was still more to come from Eurotech despite securing his first top ten qualifying result since 2013 ahead of the opening BTCC race of the weekend at Thruxton.

Smith put his Honda Civic Type-R in seventh place on the grid, ahead of the likes of Andrew Jordan, Gordon Shedden and all three WSR BMWs; leaving him well placed for the first 16 lap battle around the quickest circuit on the calendar.

Despite his impressive performance however, Smith said there was more time in his car that could have seen him higher up the grid, with the team now hoping to pick up a strong result to kick-start race day.

“I’m happy we are towards the sharp end of the grid but I think there was more on the table,” he told TouringCarTimes. “I backed off a bit too much on one lap trying to get space and then I also had to deal with traffic, but the car was good all day and we are in a good position for the opening race.

“We’re up there with the quick boys and to be honest, I think all three races are going to be races of attrition. On our race run in practice, we saw that the tyres were good for three or four laps and then the performance dropped away so it’s going to be important to manage them as much as possible.”

Saturday’s track action marked the first time Eurotech had operated as a three car team following the addition of Dan Lloyd in a third car, with the former sportscar ace showing strong place in practice only to hampered in qualifying that saw him lose a rear wheel.

“The core of the team was in place ready for if we got the third car, so it’s not been a problem in terms of bringing everyone together and they’ve worked well,” he said. “Dan has driven very well although the issue with the wheel in qualifying was unfortunate and held him back. It’s still early days for him back in front wheel drive so the pace he has shown so far is very encouraging.”