Welch Motorsport holds a great deal of hope and optimism, with a strong belief that its fight to solve debilitating reliability issues is now over as the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) heads to the Fleet-based team’s home circuit, Thruxton (9-10 May).
The plucky and resourceful Welch Motorsport outfit went to Donington Park in the East Midlands three weeks ago revitalised and raring to kick off its 2015 BTCC campaign after a stalled start to the season at Brands Hatch in early April, only to be stymied by further mechanical issues.
Persistence, determination and technical know-how led the Fleet-based team to the root cause of a debilitating engine issue that severely hampered its 2014 season and threatened to derail this year’s campaign.
Curing that problem inadvertently triggered other, more minor issues, but extensive dyno testing has given Welch Motorsport cause for optimism that its power units will be up to the job when the BTCC arrives at the super-fast Thruxton circuit, which places the emphasis on engine performance.
With the highest average speed of any track in the UK, Thruxton is a formidable and intimidating venue that demands respect and it traditionally provides some of the most spectacular racing action of the year.
Andy Wilmot is primed and ready to get his maiden full-time BTCC campaign going and the 34-year old from Dartford, Kent has diligently been preparing for his first competitive appearance at Thruxton, learning the ultra-high speed circuit’s intricacies during a recent track day.
Daniel Welch, meanwhile, relishes the challenges posed by his home track and built an impressive record there while ascending the motorsport ladder, notching up several race wins, podium finishes and pole positions in various motor racing categories.
The Hampshire racer, keen to begin a fresh new chapter and leave his team’s reliability woes behind, says: “We really want to achieve something at Thruxton, which remains my favourite circuit, and there’s a lot of positivity and belief within the Welch Motorsport camp that our reliability issues are now in the past. Both engines are back in our Proton Gen-2s following three days on the dyno and, while we still need to extract a bit more power from them, we’re effectively back to where we were at Brands Hatch in April 2014.
“The engines are better than they have ever been and I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m able to fight the top ten and Andy (Wilmot) is in the thick of it with those other drivers who have yet to race at Thruxton. The fact is, Thruxton is an unforgiving track that demands respect and it’s one of the hardest circuits to master. Nevertheless, Andy has prepared well and recently took part in a track day to acclimatise to the track, so he should be primed and ready for the challenge ahead.”
Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) free practice is scheduled for 10.00 and 12.45 on Saturday (9 April), while qualifying will be streamed live on the dedicated www.itv.com/btcc web page later that day from 16.05.
Rounds 7, 8 and 9 of the 2015 season at Thruxton will take place at 12.00, 14.20 and 17.05 respectively and will be broadcast live and in high definition on ITV4 and ITV4HD, as well as the www.itv.com/btcc website.