The 'Home of British Motorsport' is the destination for Team Shredded Wheat Racing with DUO this coming weekend as the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship reaches its penultimate race meeting of the 2017 season at Silverstone (September 16/17).
Heading into the weekend, the Motorbase-run squad has a nine point lead at the top of the Independent Teams’ standings, with Mat Jackson still firmly in the running for the Independent Drivers’ Crown after a strong showing at Rockingham where the 36-year-old secured his third podium and sixth Independent win of the season so far.
“After the pace we had in the car at Rockingham we're looking forward to Silverstone;” said Team Manager Oly Collins. “Historically it has been more suited to the FWD cars which will be a welcome change after the last few race meetings which have all been more suited to RWD.”
“There is no reason why we can't be challenging for wins this weekend, we're light and the car works well around Silverstone. Qualifying as usual will be key to a good weekend and that’s where we need to focus.
“The hard tyre may throw up a few questions around there;” added Collins. “We saw differing performances from our own cars at Rockingham on the hard tyre so it’ll be interesting to see how that develops during the races.”
Historically, the National circuit layout has delivered some memorable victories for the Wrotham-based outfit. Marking its 6th win of season here in 2016, the team also celebrated the most successful results in its BTCC history in 2015 - with Jackson setting a new qualifying lap record before going on to secure pole for all three of Sunday's races and adding yet another new race lap record and outright win in the Focus ST.
Team-mates Martin Depper and Rory Butcher both have pivotal roles to play in the weekend’s proceedings as the Team Shredded Wheat Racing with DUO team looks to increase its Independent advantage and defend its Teams’ title. Both drivers have shown that they’re capable of breaking into the fiercely contested top ten at previous meetings and are eager to add to their respective points tally on Sunday.
“Mat is a bit of a Silverstone specialist so we're hopeful he can carry that form into this weekend;” Collins continued. “Martin and Rory will hopefully be able to benefit from that and perform in a similar way. The BTCC is still very new for Rory but he's applied himself well in his first couple of race meetings and has experienced the ups and downs of the BTCC. Martin is showing great pace but unfortunately was a bit of a victim of other people’s accidents last time out.”
Rounds 25, 26 and 27 of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship take place at on the Silverstone National circuit, Northamptonshire on September 16/17. Race day coverage will be broadcast live and in high-definition on ITV4 and via the ITVhub on Sunday 17th September 11.00 – 18.330. Live streaming of Saturday's (September 17th) qualifying session between 15.45 – 16.15 is also available via itv.com/btcc
Mat Jackson #3:
“Silverstone has always been a happy hunting ground for us. The layout suits the Ford and it’s a place that I really enjoy racing on. We have a had a challenging season so far and with Silverstone being the penultimate race meeting, I am hoping that we can go out with a bang!”
Martin Depper #30:
“I’m approaching Silverstone in a positive mind-set. I used the last race at Rockingham as a test session due to a puncture after contact and found some great pace, so hopefully we can carry that into this weekend.
“My plan for the weekend is to nail qualifying. I really need to break the back of Saturdays and find our pace early. Race day…well that’s always my specialty!
“I’ve been strong at Silverstone in the past, so I’m going to make it count after my bad luck at Rockingham!”
Rory Butcher #6:
“I'm approaching Silverstone with more learning after my experiences at Rockingham. Every time I take to the grid I pick up something new, so I'm ready to keep building on our results at Silverstone.
“Rockingham was extremely close in qualifying so I’ve got to extract as much out of the car as possible and drive the socks of our yellow Focus! If we do our jobs right then we will be at the sharp end!
“I enjoy Silverstone as a track and have enjoyed success there in Formula Ford, Porsche Carrera Cup and more recently in the European Le Mans Series. The national track is made up of just 5 corners so every hundredth of second will count!”
