Dan Cammish: “The title has to be the aim”

Dan Cammish insists that overall title can be his only aim as he prepares to embark on his second season in the British Touring Car Championship.

The current Jack Sears Trophy winner will remain with Team Dynamics alongside Matt Neal as the Honda squad seeks to build on the knowledge it gained with the FK8 version of the Civic Type R last year.

Cammish ended his debut season in the series tenth in the standings, taking a pair of wins at Brands Hatch in the final meeting of the campaign and finishing just five points behind Neal.

After a roller-coaster season, Cammish admitted he was expecting to come back stronger in year two and was “in a good position” ahead of the start of pre-season testing.

“2018 wasn’t a bad year for me on my debut,” he told TouringCarTimes. “Expectations were high coming in to replace Gordon [Shedden] and the team I joined isn’t known for being at the back so there was an element of pressure. However, for my first year, I think I learned a huge amount as it was a big difference to what I’d done before – getting used to a new team, a new team-mate, the switch to front-wheel drive and a new style of racing.

“I think I showed that the speed was there from the opening round, but I didn’t always have the luck and my judgment wasn’t always right. There’s no doubt that there were mistakes that cost me big time, but to end the season in the top ten in the standings and to be so close to Matt was good.

“I was learning all the time in 2018 and we were developing the car, so we now go into 2019 with more knowledge of what works with the FK8 and of what I like. We’re coming back a lot stronger.”

With wins and podiums to his name, Cammish added that his focus now was on fighting for the championship title, with a need for consistency during the year ahead.

“I’m here to fight for wins and we have to be looking at the title,” he said. “There 29 other drivers who are looking to win and the reality is that there are at least twelve who you would say will be in the mix for the title. We have to be quick and consistent and also have some luck on our side.

“With a strong end to 2018, I’m feeling confident, and if I can right some of the wrongs from my rookie season, then I’m sure we can consistently be in the top four or five and remain in the mix until the end.”