The clock is ticking: there is now little more than a fortnight to go before Britain’s premier motor racing series – the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – arrives at the Rockingham circuit in Northamptonshire for its latest rounds on Sunday 22 April.
This will be Rockingham’s first BTCC race meeting for four years and promises to be one of the Midlands region’s biggest sporting and social events of 2007. With swift access from the A1 and M1 motorways and with a large catchment area reaching Beds, Bucks, Cambs, Herts, Leics, Lincs, Northants, Notts and Norfolk, thousands are expected to flock to the event.
BTCC Series Director Alan Gow comments: “Rockingham is truly one of the UK’s top-line sporting venues for the public to come and enjoy, with first-class facilities.
“Its huge grandstands make not only for a very dramatic backdrop, but also ensure that the spectators do not miss a single second of the action with views of the entire circuit.
“I’m also very pleased that Rockingham is making this event as accessible as possible for the public with some great ticket deals and free admission for children, plus plenty of pre-event promotion and activities to keep the crowds entertained during the race weekend.
“The BTCC and its supporting championships all guarantee fantastically close racing and you don’t have to be a motor sport nut to come along and become hooked. In value for money terms, I couldn’t think of a better family day out. We very much look forward to welcoming the public to Rockingham on 22 April.”
Jason Plato (Oxford) will arrive at Rockingham the early championship leader – he won twice in his SEAT Leon at Brands Hatch last Sunday to build a nine-point gap to reigning champion Matt Neal (Droitwich) in his Team Halfords Honda Civic.
Rockingham will mark something of a home event for Plato’s SEAT Sport UK squad – its headquarters are in Northampton where his Leon and that of team-mate Darren Turner are race-prepared. Also on the 26-strong grid will be Northampton’s own BTCC racer Nick Leason, in his BTC Racing Lexus.
All-day adult tickets to Rockingham’s BTCC meeting on 22 April are priced just £21 if booked in advance, either via Rockingham’s website rockingham.co.uk or by calling its hot line 0870 166 0438. That’s a saving of £6 on the day. Admission for children is FREE.
The price includes access to the BTCC’s paddock and the popular Pit Lane Walkabout when the public is openly invited into the pit lane to meet the teams and drivers for autographs, photos and plenty of fabulous giveaways. An 11-race bill of action awaits spectators, including three rounds of the BTCC plus supporting action from BMW, Porsche, Renault and SEAT.
