Halfords Yuasa Racing drivers Matt Neal and Dan Cammish head to the next rounds of the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship at Oulton Park in an optimistic mood, following the team's previous success at the Cheshire circuit.
Both drivers bagged a solid points haul in the most recent rounds at Croft, despite the North Yorkshire circuit typically being more suited to rear-wheel-drive cars.
Just five points separate Honda from rivals BMW as the manufacturers head to Oulton, while Halfords Yuasa Racing leads the Teams' championship and both Neal and Cammish remain in strong positions in the drivers' points chase. Dan in particular will be in a confident frame of mind after making his third podium appearance of the season at Croft.
In contrast to Croft, Oulton Park is considered much more friendly to front-wheel-drive cars such as the Civic Type R, and the track holds many happy memories for Honda. Seven race wins have topped a host of podium finishes at the circuit over the past ten seasons, including one memorable weekend in 2012 when the team locked out the top of the podium in all three races. They will be looking to continue this trend at the Cheshire circuit at their ensuing visit on 30th June.
“Croft was another weekend of what could have been for us,” said Neal. “But I was happy with my race pace and particularly some of my overtakes and to come away with a decent points haul was great as it's not a circuit we traditionally go well at.
“I'm looking forward to Oulton, I really like the track, it's a fast flowing, old-school style circuit that is very unforgiving! I've personally gone well there over the years with 11 podiums including four wins in the last ten seasons, so I'm hoping I can add to that tally.”
“I was pleased with another solid performance at Croft and ending up on the podium was an added bonus,” said Cammish. “I managed to stay out of trouble, in the main, and come away with some good points for both myself and the team.
“I'm looking forward to Oulton as it's a track that suits my driving style, particularly in the high-speed, technical elements of the circuit. Qualifying is again going to be critical, so I'll be working closely with Matt to extract the most we can from the car and hopefully continue to progress up the leader board.”
