Photo: PSP Images

Colin Turkington: “We have to focus on ourselves”

Colin Turkington insists that his WSR team can’t worry about the opposition and has to focus on maximising the pace in its own package through the remainder of the BTCC season.

Turkington heads to Rockingham this weekend sitting second in the standings having slipped behind Tom Ingram over the course of the Diamond Double meeting at Snetterton last month.

It means the former champion will carry less weight into the weekend at a circuit where he has finished on the podium at least once in each of the past five seasons – including a double victory during his 2014 title winning campaign.

With the close nature of the points, a strong weekend on track will be vital for Turkington to maintain his championship challenge and he admitted that his team was doing all it could to keep him in the mix at the front.

“Last year we defied the odds here by qualifying P5 with the full 75kgs of success ballast and went on to score a trio of top six finishes,” he said. “The script changes all the time in the BTCC but if we can be closer to the sharp end in race one than at Snetterton, then that’s a good place to start.

“I’m honing in on every detail that I can to improve, and what we as a team can do to find gains for the weekend. Now is not the time to become distracted by the competition. It’s time to look inward, look forward and look positive about what we can achieve. We need to find a step in pace if we are to stay ahead.

“We have races nearly every two weeks now and the momentum is building. I’m hopeful that my difficulties are behind me and we can push on to the end. It’s not going to be an easy ride, but I’m fired up and ready to fight.”