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LOOKING FORWARD TO DONINGTON
25/07/2006
SEAT driver Darren Turner says he’ll need to buy new underwear before he rejoins the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at Donington Park this Sunday – not because he’s frightened of his rivals, but after losing his luggage on a flight back from America.
Turner, who’ll be lining up on the grid as Jason Plato’s team-mate at Donington, discovered his suitcase had gone missing after touching down in the UK yesterday. He’d just returned from the USA where he’s just achieved three podium finishes – including a win – for Aston Martin in the American Le Mans sports car series.
Banbury-based Turner told BTCC.net: “I would be living out of a suitcase if I had one – I’m pretty short on under pants and will need to go shopping for a few pairs before Donington.” This weekend will mark the second of four BTCC appearances for Turner in 2006 – he’s standing in whenever Plato’s usual team-mate James Thompson has clashing World Touring Car Championship commitments with SEAT’s international squad.
Turner’s priority for SEAT will be to score as many points as possible for the Spanish make as it seeks to consolidate its lead over arch rival Vauxhall in the BTCC Manufacturers’ Championship. And he feels better prepared to take on the BTCC grid after making his series debut at Thruxton in May. The 32-year-old’s initial experience of the BTCC was a mixture of highs and lows – he finished third and on the podium in his first race, but ended his day with a heavy crash into the barriers after contact with Team Halfords rival Gordon Shedden.
“Getting a whack is part and parcel of what happens in touring cars,” said Turner. “It probably looked worse from the outside. I don’t have any grudges about it. “I probably got a taste of everything at Thruxton – a podium, hard racing and then the barriers. The whole weekend was an education but if there’s one thing I learnt it’s that I’ve got to improve my starts. “Also, you can’t leave the door open anywhere because someone will have a go. The BTCC is very much about ‘here and now’ racing – not like the endurance racing I’ve become used to. There’s no time to work out a race plan; you’ve got to react to everything instantly. You can’t afford to wait for things to happen.”
Turner is also confident that at Donington he will have sufficient speed to challenge for outright race wins. He will inherit Thompson’s car and success ballast (18kgs thanks to Thompson’s fourth place in the championship). “Hopefully I’ll be up near the front in qualifying,” added Turner. “I was very close to Jason in qualifying at Thruxton, just over a tenth adrift, and I hope to be closer this weekend, if not ahead. I’ll just do my race and if I can win then I’ll win."
Darren, 34, lives near Banbury in Oxfordshire. Successful in many different categories of motorsport, his most notable and high profile victories have been at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and in the British Touring Car Championship. He's a firm favourite with teams, fans, and media alike from around the world.
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