BMW’s Colin Turkington was relieved to leave Croft with an increased lead at the head of the British Touring Car Championship standings, despite failing to take victory in any of the three races.
Turkington extended his lead by seven points over the three races in North Yorkshire, claiming two fifths in race one and three respectively, as well as a podium with third in race two.
Those results came despite hauling the maximum 75 kg of success ballast around in race one, a penalty given for leading the standings going into the weekend.
The two-time champion was pleased with his performances, even though the most victorious driver in the BTCC’s history at Croft failed to add to his win tally at the weekend.
“In my opinion it’s been a super weekend,” said the Northern Irishman. “Coming in with a heavy car you can very easily get stuck at the back all weekend.
“We had a strong qualifying and got faster through the weekend, which is quite common on our side of the garage.
“Of course it’s nice to win, but we did what we set out to do which was secure points and build on our championship lead.”
Turkington heads into the Summer break with a 19-point advantage over Speedworks Motorsport’s Tom Ingram, a feat he admits is encouraging given the competitive nature of the series.
“These days everybody is fast in this series and it‘s easier to lose points than it is to earn them, so to be 19 ahead at the end of this weekend is mission accomplished.”
WSR Team Principal Dick Bennetts added that Turkington’s ability to extend his lead is testament to the work put in by the Team BMW squad.
“We always aim to win,” said the New Zealander. “But to come away from Croft having extended our lead in the Manufacturers’ standings and be 38 points ahead of our nearest rivals in the Team’s Championship is a strong performance from everyone in the team.
“It proves that in a series that is turning out to be so competitive, the BMW 125i M Sport, and our team, are capable of mounting a very serious championship challenge.
“Again, three drivers finished in all three races and that is a testament to all the staff and the reliability of the cars.”