Jason Plato says straight line deficit harms race day chances

Power Maxed Racing’s Jason Plato said a lack in top-end grunt from the Swindon engine in his Vauxhall Astra will make it “bloody hard” to move forward on race day at Oulton Park, after qualifying on the fourth row.

The two-time BTCC champion gave a blunt assessment of his chances, saying the stock TOCA engine is losing two car lengths at the end of straights compared to its nearest rivals.

Plato, who said he was aiming for P4 on the grid after a strong showing in practice, eventually wound up in eighth after being impeded by Mark Blundell on one of his two runs.

He also argued that the equalisation among the top cars was “miles out,” following West Surrey Racing’s Colin Turkington qualifying on pole with maximum ballast.

Speaking to TouringCarTimes, Plato said: “I am a bit disappointed. Bless him, [Mark] Blundell got in my way and I just didn’t quite get the lap right. Then the second set of tyres we lost the balance – the car was not as it should have been and Rob [Collard] reported a similar thing. I was hoping for P4, to be honest.”

On his chances of moving forward on Sunday, Plato added: “Our engine is not good enough in a straight line – the TOCA engine isn’t, relative to the other engines, where it was last year. The other engines have moved on and the TOCA engine hasn’t.

“The problem is, at the end of the straight you’ve lost two car lengths, and we’re not racing against idiots. If the bloke behind goes back two car lengths, the pressure’s off. You can brake where you want and you can’t lunge from three car lengths away.

“It is going to be bloody hard to go forward. At the end of the straight, they’re not under pressure. And if you look at Matt Neal’s performance at Croft, he just went through everyone like a dose of salts because at the end of the straight, he’s faster.”

One area where Plato isn’t struggling is with the heat, as the UK basks in sweltering conditions on the hottest day of the year.

He said: “I think any of the lads who have been doing it for a while get used to it. There’s something quite dirty and sexy about driving round and sweating your nuts off!

“You watch some of the young kids who are arguably fitter than I am and they suffer. You just get used to it – but it is hot. It is getting on for close to 60 degrees in there and we don’t have any ventilation.

“We only have a fan which blows hot air out – that is better than nothing.”