BTCC: Winning team back to attack at Donnington
25 July 2000
Leslie replaces Blair in Primera as Neal takes Independents crown One of the most potent partnerships of the 1999 Auto Trader British Touring Car Championship is back on track for rounds 17 and 18 of this year's series, at Donington Park, Derbyshire, this weekend (July 29/30). Scotland's David Leslie is to be reunited with Nissan's Primera. Leslie won three races last year in the Primera, finished runner-up in the Drivers' Championship to team-mate Laurent Aiello and helped Nissan to both the Manufacturers' and Teams' titles. And one of his most impressive performances of the season came at Donington, when he broke the qualifying lap record to claim pole position and went on to dominate the race, taking his first win of the season. The Scot will race the ex-Aiello Primera, which is now in the hands of Michelin Cup for Independents outfit PRO Motorsport, for the remainder of the season. He replaces Glasgow's Colin Blair who has withdrawn from the series to concentrate on business commitments. Says Leslie: "It's fantastic to be back again. The team asked me to drive because I'm the one with the knowledge of the Primera and I think I'm the best person to get the most out of the car. I don't think I'll be in a position to win outright. This is an Independent team and it doesn't have the funds of the manufacturer teams. I'm realistic about it, I don't expect to be doing what I was doing last year, but I will be going out to have fun and hopefully mixing it in the pack." Blair's decision provisionally hands the Michelin Cup for Independents title to Matt Neal, giving him his second successive championship. With 232 points, and a maximum of 140 up for grabs, the Team Dynamics Max Power Racing star cannot be caught. He says: "It's great to be champion again, now I can just concentrate on trying to get an outright race win. "I'm sorry Colin has left but David taking over his seat is good for me because hopefully we can push each other to go quicker and take the challenge to the manufacturer boys. But I'm sure David will be trying to win races for himself." Another Scot who will be looking to spoil Leslie's return is Ford's Anthony Reid. The Donington Park event will be the first race weekend since the opening two rounds that title-challenger Reid's Mondeo carries no success ballast. At Snetterton's night races a fortnight ago, the 1998 runner-up failed to finish on the podium for the first time this year - but that will play to his advantage at Donington. Reid, third in the championship before Donington, says: "My aim is to capitalise on the lack of ballast this weekend. My team-mates have won races when they were in the same position, so hopefully I can do the same thing. I always try to win every race and I've been a bit unlucky not to win so far this year." Reid needs to start winning to close the gap to his team-mates Rickard Rydell, in second, and championship leader Alain Menu. He's also under pressure from a pair of Vauxhall Vectra aces who have both won races this year. Frenchman Yvan Muller is just 15 points behind while Britain's Jason Plato is only a further two points adrift. During the last two meetings, at Snetterton and Croft, the Vauxhall team has endured more than its fair share of bad luck with all three of its Vectras suffering substantial damage in on-track incidents. That run has dented the Griffin-badged team's title hopes but with eight races remaining nothing is settled yet. One man who has publicly renounced his championship chances is Honda's James Thompson. A bad crash at the season's opening meeting at Brands Hatch, which forced him to miss four races through injury, saw the Accord ace lose too much ground in the title battle. But round 17 at Donington will be a landmark for Thompson - his 150th BTCC start. He will want to celebrate in style by claiming his second victory of the year. Making his BTCC debut this weekend is young driver Lee Linford. The 26-year-old breaks into the Class B ranks behind the wheel of a Touring Car VIP Club Peugeot 306 GTi to support that division's leader Alan Morrison. It is a big jump for Hyundai World Rally Championship team technician Linford, who has not raced this season but last year competed in a national one-make GT sportscar championship, where he won ten out of 14 races. He says: "It's a huge leap, but I tested the car last week and I did fairly well. My dad used to take me to watch the BTCC and it's been an ambition of mine to race in it." BTCC spectators at Donington Park also will be able to witness an exciting package of support racing action, including: Slick 50 Formula Ford Zetec; Ford Credit Fiesta Zetec; Autobytel Lotus; Formula Renault 2000; Elf Clio Renaultsport UK Cup; The Pick Up Truck Racing; and Avon Junior Formula Ford championships. The BTCC contenders are testing at Donington Park on Thursday, July 27. Qualifying takes place on Saturday (July 29) afternoon. The races are on Sunday (July 30) with round 17 (Sprint Race, 15 laps, 37.5 miles) starting at 12.30pm and round 18 (Feature Race, 30 laps, 75 miles) scheduled to begin at 4.10pm. BTCC fans unable to attend Donington Park on Sunday will be able to catch the action live on Grandstand on BBC2. Donington Park ticket hotline: 01332 810048.