Pole was the goal, says Colin Turkington

Colin Turkington says a “hooked up” car was the secret to taking pole position at Oulton Park, and achieving half of his pre-weekend target of being at the sharp end and winning race one.

The West Surrey Racing driver took pole in the final two minutes of the session, deposing long-time leader Jason Plato to end up more than six tenths clear of the MG.

It rounded off an excellent day for the Northern Irishman, who also topped the opening wet practice session and finished second in the second.

Speaking to TouringCarTimes, Turkington said:  “I’ve had a very fast car all day, wet or dry. Qualifying was a difficult session and it became pretty clear at the start that the track was dry, but not 100 per cent dry, so the time was going to be done in the last few minutes.

“We set our stall out accordingly and tried to be on the track for those last few laps. At that stage it did start to spit, so it was not easy to drive with the rain on the windscreen.

“But with the high ambient temperature today, the car was really hooked up, and I think it was going to be hard to beat today.”

Turkington set two laps good enough for pole at the end of the session, but said he wasn’t aware of his performance at that time.

He said: “You’re out there wringing its neck because you’re not sure what anyone else is doing, so I didn’t know I had pole position. It was just about getting the most out of what I had.

“The goal before the weekend was to qualify at the front and win race one. The pace has been pretty good up until now, but we have been winning race three and rescuing the weekend.

“It’s still a track which seems to suit the BMW. The car was strong here last year, but it is completely different to what we had then.

“The race is different, but I’ve given myself the best chance to try and win.”

The 2009 champion said he was also happy with the BTCC’s return to the full International layout at Oulton Park.

He said: “It is so nice to get your teeth into something new. We do the same tracks every year, and this is only an extra three corners. But it’s a technical section, and Island bend is a big corner. You can really gain or lose time there. I really enjoy it.”