Motorbase expecting Donington to showcase “genuine pace”

Motorbase team manager Oly Collins says he feels that Donington Park this weekend could give a better indication of the pecking order in the race for the 2019 BTCC title.

Mixed weather conditions across race day at Brands Hatch earlier this month resulted in some surprise results on track, with some unexpected names well placed in the early season standings and other more fancied runners being left with early ground to make up.

Despite losing a race win to a post-race penalty, Motorbase’s Tom Chilton sits second in the standings behind Josh Cook and with sights firmly fixed on the points lead, Collins said he felt Donington would show where everyone stands.

“Following on from Brands Hatch, we’re going into the Donington rounds upbeat,” he said. “Both Ollie [Jackson] and Tom had great pace at Brands on race day and we head into the weekend P2 in both Team and Drivers’ championship standings.

“Donington always gives a good indication of where the competition is. Brands Hatch threw up a few challenging weather conditions, which mixed it up a bit. Weather permitting; we will see who has the genuine pace in their cars after the Donington weekend.

“Everyone involved in the team at Motorbase is on top of their game right now and the intention is to let the results continue to show that.”

Chilton himself said a strong recent test in the Ford Focus RS left him confident about the weekend ahead.

“Donington Park is a great track,’ he said. “We had a really productive test there a couple of weeks back. We found some extra time in the car and made some great headway with the handling and the balance of the Focus. That work should hold us in good stead.

“We’re in a great position going into the weekend. The BTCC title fight is all about consistency and scoring points. That’s the plan for Donington, to pick up straight from where we left off at Brands.”