Plato to Celebrate his 200th BTCC Race at
Croft
11
July 2006
Jason Plato will make his 200th Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship
appearance at Croft on Sunday 16th July and the 38-year old 2001 Champion
is determined to celebrate it with a win.
Two victories and five podiums this season has given Jason an on-going
BTCC career total of 27 wins and 1469 points in 198 races – which
is the best wins-to-race ratio of any driver on the current BTCC grid.
With SEAT leading the Manufacturers' table, Jason is aiming for
more race wins to close the 45 point gap on defending champion Matt
Neal, who currently leads the Drivers' table.
Raised in the North East, Jason regards Croft circuit near Darlington
in North Yorkshire as his 'home track', and it will be an
all-local driver line-up in the SEAT Sport UK camp as Jason's
team-mate is Harrogate-based James Thompson. Unlike his BTCC rivals,
there has been no six-week break for the 32-year old globetrotter to
enjoy. Since the last BTCC race at Thruxton on June 4th , James has
been on FIA World Touring Car Championship duties –testing in
Spain and strengthening his challenge for the drivers' title by
taking his success-ballasted Leon to 5th and 4th in Brazil. James has
also spent a week in South Africa helping launch the SEAT brand in a
new market – but for once he'll have a relatively short
journey to his next race, arriving at Croft in 4th place in the BTCC
(he is currently 2ndin the WTCC drivers' standings).
His focus at Croft will be to score Manufacturer points for SEAT Sport
UK, and after two victories and four podiumsalready this season –
in a BTCC career which currently stands at two titles, 263 races, 32
race wins and 1855 points - James will be aiming for more success as
the BTCC approaches the halfway point in the series.
Jason said: "I'm really looking forward to Croft for a
number of reasons. Firstly, there has been a six week break in the BTCC
and everyone in the team has had a bit of time to reflect on the season
so far and recharge the batteries. We've had some good results
and we've had some disappointments, but Croft is where our championship
campaign must start. It's a good feeling to have a very precise
focus on what we have to do. Everyone knows, including myself, that
we have to raise our game, operate at the very highest level, come up
with the goods and win this championship.
"Secondly, Croft is a circuit I really enjoy racing on and where
I've been successful in the past. It's also a track which
will suit the Leon, because it has a good mixture of slow and fast corners
and it rewards a car with a good balance. Finally, I was brought up
in the North East, so racing at Croft is very much like going home.
Every time I'm racing there I visit family and friends and a lot
come to Croft to watch the races. Croft puts on a great effort for the
BTCC and it's a nice place to go.
"Two hundred BTCC starts is a nice landmark, but I'd rather
have two hundred wins! It really doesn't seem that long ago that
I was making my BTCC debut, but I remember it well because back in 1997
I started on pole for my first three touring car races. A lot has changed
since then, but the fact I want to be on pole and win at Croft shows
that maybe some things never change. Make no mistake, I'm going
to Croft with one mind-set and that's to win races. The championship
is a long haul and we're bang on target to win the Manufacturers'
title, but the Drivers' title is there to win as well and to be
able to do that we have to make sure that in each race we score more
points than Matt Neal. We have to keep eating into his lead, and there
is plenty of time to do it."
James said: "It was strange not racing at Thruxton and knowing
that the team was there racing without me. I didn't like it at
all, although Darren Turner did a really good job. I'm really
looking forward to returning to the BTCC at Croft, because it's
my local circuit and I think the Leon will be exceptionally good around
there. It's quite a technical track and the critical parts of
the circuit are where you need a car with a really good chassis, and
that's where the Leon excels. Personally I've got a good
record at Croft. I've started a lot of races from pole and I've
won more often than not there, so that will be the aim this time. We're
leading the Manufacturers' standings and I'll be there to
try and score as many points for SEAT as possible and to help us increase
that lead. The third and final race at Croft will mark the halfway point
in the BTCC, so there is no better time to push our advantage home and
put us in a strong position for the second half of the season."
The BTCC race weekend at Croft begins with two 40 minute free practice
sessions on Saturday 15th July, starting at 09.30 and 11.50, followed
by a 30 minute qualifying session starting at 15.30. Rounds 13, 14 and
15 of the BTCC take place on Sunday 16th July, with the three 15 lap
races starting at 12.01, 14.45 and 16.50.
Motors TV (Sky 413, ntl 173) will be broadcasting live throughout race
day, while ITV1 will show recorded highlights of the first two races
and the third race live on Sunday afternoon.
SEAT
See series calendar for British
Touring Car Championship 2006
Related Story 31.05.2006 - BTCC
Drivers Pass Bravery Test Ahead of Thruxton Challenge
