Stunned Colin Turkington proud to draw level with Andy Rouse

Colin Turkington admitted he was stunned to have secured a record-equalling four British Touring Car Championship title after a dramatic final race of the weekend at Brands Hatch.

Contact with Matt Neal in race two had left the defending champion on the back foot going in to the final race, with his BMW starting down in 25th and with eight points to make up on Dan Cammish in the standings.

Turkington was able to fight his way up through the order to find himself on the tail of the Honda and even though he then got ahead, wasn’t in a position to be able to take the title.

However, when Cammish then suffered brake failure and went off into the tyres, Turkington found himself back in the championship lead and was able to snare the title by just two points from both Cammish and Jordan, who found themselves level in the standings.

“I can’t believe what has just happened,” he told TouringCarTimes. “After race two, I thought it was all over and from P25 with eight points to make up, it was over. However, I didn’t give up and I’m stunned and proud with what we have achieved.

“For me there was no option but to get ahead of Dan but even when he was out, I didn’t know know if it was going to be enough because of where Andrew was. It’s a special day that could have gone a different way very easily. I feel for Dan as he would have deserved the title but I’m thrilled it went my way.”

Turkington now joins Andy Rouse as only the second driver to win four titles, and the Northern Irishman said it was a fact that filled him with pride.

“It’s special to be mentioned alongside Andy,” he said. “When I started racing, he was the man, and he still is the man. It’s amazing to have won four times, but I am just here to win and I’m pleased we have won again in 2019.

“It gets harder and harder every year, but I know this team will keep pushing to improve. However, we’ll leave worrying about next year until tomorrow.”