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Kizilirmak Saves Best Till Last at Rockingham |
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Tuesday, 24 April 2007 |
Arkas Racing’s Erkut Kizilirmak saw his learning curve continue at Rockingham Motor Speedway today, Sunday, 22nd April, during the latest three rounds of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – the day culminating in fine style with the Turkish star just missing out on his first top 10 finish of the season.
Taking 16th position overall in the opening race of the day, round four of the campaign, Erkut’s fortunes took a downward turn before round five had even begun when a rare mechanical glitch struck his Vauxhall Astra Sports Hatch on the green flag formation lap.
Round six had a much more favourable outcome though with the
37-year-old producing a great performance to finish in 11th position on
the road, fifth in the Independents class, and to take six well
deserved points towards his Independents Trophy total.
Having started down the order in 22nd position due to the problems he
encountered ahead of round five, Erkut’s improvement was impressive and
although assisted to a degree by a couple of notable incidents
involving a handful of front-runners, nothing should be taken away from
his round six drive.
Delighted with his car’s preparation, which is handled under the Arkas
banner by Leamington Spa-based Tech-Speed Motorsport, Erkut is
confident the experience he is gaining will only enhance his
understanding of the Astra. One thing is certain, the Arkas star is
absolutely loving every minute of being in the all-action BTCC.
“I really enjoyed today but I know I need to work on my understanding
of the car”, said Erkut, “As we keep saying, I am learning all of the
time. I cannot complain about the car at all, I just have a lack of
knowledge of how to set the car up at this level and so I guess that is
probably what is missing for us.
“When I can set the car up better we will have some better results but
today we had fun and it’s great to record our best result. There was
certainly plenty of action in the last race – it was a very big fight
into the first hairpin on the opening lap.
“I just managed to miss a car which had spun in front of me and then I
was hit by another car. You just wanted to close your eyes and then
open them again when you thought you were through the corner safely! It
was unbelievable. We obviously had some good fortune but the car was
great, the team is perfect and everyone is working very hard.”
Arkas technical director Brian Ashwood added: “If there was a lesson we
learned today then it was that we perhaps played with the set-up too
much rather than being a bit more patient. The team did a great job
though and Erkut is improving every time he is in the car. As he gains
more knowledge, we will only get stronger and stronger.”
Highlights of today’s Rockingham race action will be screened in the UK
later tonight at 01.30 on ITV1 with a replay to be shown on digital
satellite and cable channel Men & Motors at 19.30 this Friday, 27th
April.
The BTCC will be back in action two weeks from now, 5th/6th May, at
Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire for the seventh, eighth and ninth rounds
of the season.
Provisional Dunlop MSA BTCC Independents Trophy Standings (after Rd6)
1st Mat Jackson, 58pts; 2nd Mike Jordan, 47pts; 11th Erkut Kizilirmak, 12pts
Provisional Dunlop MSA BTCC Independents Team Trophy Standings (after Rd6)
1st Team RAC, 67pts; 2nd Jacksons Motorsport, 60pts; 8th Arkas Racing, 18pts
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