Motorbase ready for season opener
It's going to be one of the biggest weekends in the history of Motorbase Performance as the 2008 HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship kicks off at Brands Hatch this weekend (29/30 March).
With thousands of fans expected to pack into the Kent track and extensive live coverage of all the race action on ITV4, Motorbase is geared up to start its most ambitious season of racing to date with a pair of BMW 320s for Steven Kane and Rob Collard.
However, having the season starting at the team's home track - Motorbase's workshops are five minutes down the road from Brands Hatch - brings added pressure to the weekend as lots of sponsors and team supporters will be on hand to watch the action.
Team boss David Bartrum also knows that the coming season will be one of the most competitive in the 50-year history of the British Touring Car Championship. "In effect, we are a year behind the teams that ran BMWs last season, so they are our benchmark for the weekend. Even though the times will be incredibly close, a top 10 position in qualifying has got to be our target."
Sunday's three races promise all-action racing typical of the BTCC and the tight 1.2-mile Brands Hatch Indy circuit regularly delivers some of the most dramatic racing of the BTCC season. Bartrum knows that good or bad fortune can play a major hand in races results at Brands, but recognises that a podium finish is within reach if things go well.
"Getting a podium finish in one of the three races would be a great start for our BTCC campaign with the BMWs, but it's going to be very tough!"
Kane will be making his BTCC debut after showing tremendous pace in the 2007 Porsche Carrera Cup GB and is expected to be one of the bright new stars of the BTCC. Collard, meanwhile, returns to the BTCC after a year's sabbatical and is determined to re-establish himself as one of the leading contenders in the championship.
It's going to be a fabulous weekend to start the 2008 season and Motorbase Performance will be in the thick of the action. The first of Sunday's three races starts at 11.30am, while live coverage of the afternoon's action will run from 12.30pm to 5.30pm on ITV4.
Other news reports:
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