Colin Turkington praises Subaru squad after Rockingham charge

Colin Turkington was full of praise for his Team BMR outfit after keeping his BTCC title hopes alive with an impressive podium finish at Rockingham.

The Subaru driver was on the pace across the weekend at the Northamptonshire circuit, topping the times in second practice and then securing a fifth on the grid in challenging wet conditions in qualifying, just behind team-mate Jason Plato on the grid.

Fourth place behind Plato in race one was followed by 15th in race two after the double champion survived a lurid, high-speed slide on the turn one banking whilst running on the harder compound tyre.

Starting right in the middle of the pack as a result in race three, Turkington produced a storming drive through the field to finish on the podium in third spot, allowing him to end the weekend 49 points off the championship lead.

“After Saturday we knew that no matter what the weather held on Sunday, I would have a great car to challenge with,” he said. “Our pace in FP2 topped the time sheets and we also showed considerable promise in the wet. It really was the most extreme of circumstances during that qualifying session, and I’m not sure I will ever drive in such dramatic conditions again.

“The first race confirmed our strong pace and despite the hard tyre in race two, I made considerable strides forward after a pretty scary moment at turn one. Some races just don’t go your way, and that was a classic example.

“The car felt brilliant in race three and we have done an incredible job to turn this first year BTCC car, with very limited testing, into a package that allows me to consistently fight for podiums.”

Despite the impressive performance on track however, Turkington’s title hopes have taken a hit by a pair of penalties across the weekend that have triggered a drop to the rear of the grid for race one at Silverstone, with the Northern Irishman admitting he was disappointed with the decision taken by stewards across the weekend.

“This was certainly not part of the plan and unfortunately nothing can be done at this stage to revert the decisions,” he said. “It’s disappointing after such a memorable third race and I know my fans and supporters feel the same.

“I feel hard done by as both penalties were issued for minor infringements but it’s out of my hands. I promise we haven’t given up on the title fight yet and this will only further inspire me to perform.”