EAST MIDLANDS TRACK GEARS UP FOR BRITAIN'S TOP RACE
CHAMPIONSHIP
The countdown has begun: there are now less than two weeks
to run before the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship
(BTCC) headlines at the Donington Park circuit on Sunday 30
July. It is the only time this year that Britain's biggest
motor racing championship - watched by millions on ITV1 -
will race at the picturesque Leicestershire circuit.
The Donington track is soaked in BTCC history having staged
some of the championship's greatest races throughout the past
three decades. Its location, just off junction 24 of the M1
by East Midlands Airport and with the cities of Derby, Birmingham,
Leicester and Nottingham all nearby, means the BTCC's meeting
there traditionally draws huge numbers from across the Midlands
region.
And this year's crowds, lining Donington's tall grassy spectator
banks, will have plenty of home grown stars from the Midlands
to cheer on - notably Droitwich's Matt Neal, the reigning
champion in his Team Halfords Honda Integra. Neal has won
five of the 15 rounds held so far and leads the current standings
but faces continual threats from rising Northern Irish star
Colin Turkington, in Team RAC's MG, and Jason Plato, driving
for the SEAT Sport UK team.
Other local heroes include Sutton Coldfield's Mike Jordan,
in his Team Eurotech Racing with John Guest team's Honda.
Jordan is in his debut BTCC season but has already achieved
a race win and is sure to figure heavily in the fight for
a podium result at his home track.
Also in action will be Solihull's Adam Jones in the Xero
Competition team's Lexus - Jones is a potential star of the
future with a proven record of winning titles - and Hednesford's
Mark Smith in his small family-run team InFront Motorsport's
Alfa Romeo.
Race day admission for children aged 15 and under is FREE
and adults can still book tickets in advance at the discounted
price of just £20.00 via Donington's website www.donington-park.co.uk
or the ticket hotline 01332 810048. That includes access to
the BTCC's star drivers for autographs and giveaways during
the hugely-popular morning Pit Lane Walkabout session. In
addition to the three BTCC races, there will be eight more
races on show from championships run by high-profile manufacturers
BMW, Porsche, Renault and SEAT.
BTCC Series Director Alan Gow says. "Donington's BTCC
race day is guaranteed to provide the crowds with top-class
entertainment - it always does. The lay-out of the circuit
is very fast so requires not just a lot of skill but also
a lot of bravery from the drivers. We often see some of the
most exciting and controversial moments of the season occur
at Donington and I have no doubt that it'll be the same this
time around.
"Matt Neal has built himself a strong championship lead
and will very much be the home hero. But things can have a
habit of suddenly changing around and I know that Colin Turkington
and Jason Plato - and probably the entire grid - will be giving
Matt a lot of stick at Donington.
"We always make a great effort to put on a show for
the public and really encourage families to feel part of the
action - children can come along for free and the paddock
is open for people to rub shoulders with the drivers. The
BTCC very much looks forward to meeting the crowds at Donington
on 30 July."
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