Colin Turkington: ‘The safety car saved us’

Colin Turkington admitted that the lap one safety car in the final BTCC race of the weekend at Croft had been critical in him securing a record-extending 14th win at the North Yorkshire venue.

The WSR driver had secured seventh and sixth place finishes in the opening two races of the weekend, which resulted in him then being drawn on pole position for the final race when the number six was pulled out by race two winner Ash Sutton.

With oil having been dropped on the circuit before the start, Turkington admitted he had been concerned about whether or not he would be able to retain his position at the front, but he saw off the early challenge of Josh Cook to hold onto P1 before the safety car was called out.

Running under caution provided the chance to get heat into the tyres on his BMW and on the restart, Turkington was able to keep ahead of Tom Ingram – who had jumped Cook shortly before the safety car period.

It meant a third win for the season for the Northern Irishman, who now sits third in the points as a result.

“Sitting on the grid before that final race, I wasn’t confident because of how the track felt,” he said. “The Legends had put fluid down and then Ricky Collard dropped more on his way to the grid, so on the green flag lap, there was just no grip.

“When the lights went out I thought ‘Oh, here we go’ but the safety saved me. I was able to get heat into the tyres and it was a different race when I was at the front compared to races one and two when I was running in the pack. It just shows that I need try and make sure I qualify on pole!

“We had to graft for the win so a big well done to all at Team BMW. That was an important victory and races are getting harder to win, so it feels so good to be back on the top step.”