Colin Turkington delighted to grab additional point

Colin Turkington admitted he was delighted to secure the additional point for pole after topping the times in qualifying for the BTCC season finale at Brands Hatch.

The defending champion mastered tricky conditions to secure his third pole position of the campaign, despite the additional success ballast on his BMW 330i M Sport.

As well as securing his place at the head of the field for race one, the additional bonus point for pole allowed Turkington to extend his lead over Dan Cammish to 17 points.

It means Turkington has now scored 13 additional bonus points this season, two more than team-mate Andrew Jordan and nine more than Cammish.

“The bonus points add up and I’ve had a few this season,” he said. “You have to grab them when you can and that set’s us up nicely for tomorrow. I can only control what is within me, and I’m ready to put my best foot forwards.

“You have to enjoy the pole positions when they come along and I think that was the toughest session of the year. It’s been difficult all day to know what tyres and what set-up to be on, but I think we got it just about right and I was confident from the moment we went out on track.

“I’m pleased with the job I’ve done and with the car that the team gave me, and to secure pole for the third time this season is great.”