Hell Energy with KCMG’s Josh Files believes his pace during the two TCR Europe practice sessions at Barcelona are representative of the Honda Civic Type R’s potential pace this weekend, with some small gains left on the table.
Setup changes to Files’ car between sessions brought about a near-2 second improvement as the double TCR Germany Champion leapt from P17 to P6.
As KCMG prepare for a Teams’ title showdown with Hyundai outfit Target Competition – the pair split by just 7 points – Files also admitted his focus, predominantly, is on helping the Honda squad come out on top in that regard.
“I’m really happy. We took a gamble on setup because this morning it was really difficult to drive; it’s paid off, we’ve still got a little bit more work to do for qualifying tomorrow but I know exactly the direction I want to go and I think we’ll be quicker tomorrow,” explained Files to TouringCars.net
“The tyres were good tyres, they only had a couple of laps on them from Monza so it’s quite representative. I do think we have a little bit of time to find, but not much.
“At the end of the day, there’s a lot of new drivers in and I’m sure Norbi [Michelisz] has a lot more he can unlock yet. The competition for us is Target – so we just have to be ahead of them.”
Looking ahead to qualifying at 11:45 CEST tomorrow, Files also believes pole position is a realistic prospect.
“I honestly said that I think I could come here and fight for pole position and after that session, having what we have, I think that’s realistic. We’ll never know until tomorrow, I suppose.”