Defending champion Gordon Shedden is hopeful that the works Halfords Yuasa Racing outfit can continue their recent run of good form at Thruxton when the British Touring Car Championship heads to Hampshire next weekend [7th-8th May] for it’s third meeting of the season.
Team Dynamics have been the team to beat at the notoriously challenging Hampshire venue in recent seasons, taking a total of nine race victories over the past six seasons. Of that figure, Shedden outscores his team-mate, three-time champion Matt Neal, by double, having claimed six of those victories compared to Neal’s three.
This is even more impressive when it is considered the team has run three different models of car in that time, more than any other team currently at the sharp end of this year’s standings. The team completed several laps of the 2.4 mile circuit during the off-season as well, with Shedden clocking miles on the 2016-spec Type-R.
The start to the season has been as expected for Honda, with both drivers currently sitting atop the championship table, having both taken a race victory and three podiums apiece. Shedden admits that the weight gained as a result of this form will make the weekend even more difficult to work through, but insists the objective is, as always, to outscore the opposition and nothing else.
“With the success ballast on-board, we’ll have to work hard again in qualifying but we’ll give it our best shot and ultimately, our objective is simple – to score more points than anybody else,” he summarised.
He also shed some light on the harsh and difficult nature of the circuit, which necessitates it’s own special compound of Dunlop Sport Maxx tyre to deal with the abrasive circuit conditions over the course of a race distance.
Factor in the high-speed corners such as Church and the tighter, trickier ‘Complex’ section in sector one and the flagship BARC venue paints a very intimidating picture for the 32-strong field.
“Thruxton is one of those circuits where you need to take a deep breath, tighten the belts a bit more and just hang on! It’s somewhere that always generates great racing and entertainment and historically, the Civic has gone very well there, so we’re hoping for more of the same,” added Shedden.
He also paid tribute to the strengths of his Honda Civic Type-R package, which delivered him a second drivers crown last season and looks in good shape to add to that tally second time around. He believes the cars advantages correlate perfectly with the challenges the circuit represents.
“The Type R is really nicely-balanced with an excellent chassis, which is essential at Thruxton. The key factor is the speed and flow you can carry round the back of the lap, which is where our car is particularly strong and we need to take advantage of that.”
The three races next weekend will get underway at 12:12, 14:32 and 17:17 respectively, with live television coverage on ITV4 and in HD, and live text commentary available via TouringCars.net.