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Blanckley Looking To Score More Points At Home Event |
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Tuesday, 22 May 2007 |
Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship driver and independent team owner Simon Blanckley is busy preparing for his home event on June 3rd at Croft, North Yorkshire, for rounds 10, 11 and 12 of the season – and is confident he can score more outright championship points.
Blanckley, born in Durham and currently living just south of the city in Tudhoe, is about an hour’s drive away from Croft. He has raced at the circuit many times since he took up racing in 2001, mainly in the popular Northern Saloons Championship. Now, having satisfied his dream of racing in the BTCC, Blanckley is relishing his return in front of his home crowd.
“I know the track really well; I’ve been there countless times. This
should give me an advantage so you never know what we could achieve.
I’m really looking forward to it and I’ll be putting my all into
getting the best result we can in all three races on Sunday. Croft is
a great track as it’s so technical and every corner is a different
challenge. The esses out at the back of the circuit are fantastic for
getting your adrenaline pumping, but I also like the final series of
slower turns at the complex, which I know aren’t universally popular
amongst other drivers,” the 39-year old explains. “It’s going to be an
interesting weekend because the first few corners are quite tight and
twisty so I wouldn’t be surprised if there are fewer cars on track by
the end of the first lap than started it.”
Speaking about his baptism into the ultra-competitive series that is
the BTCC, Blanckley speaks rationally. “It’s been tough, sure,
especially being on a much lower budget than most teams, but I am
competing in the same races as some of the best racing drivers in the
world, so its not meant to be easy!”
Blanckley will have many of his sponsors present – many of whom are
based in the North East such as AWD Chase De Vere, Pyeroy, Robson
Brown, Panis Café and Stone Soup - together with friends and family
members, so it’s a big weekend for the Durham driver off-track, too.
Sibsport, Blanckley’s team, have now attended all rounds of the
championship so far and as the season races towards its mid-point, they
want to start moving up the grid. “We’ve performed in the first few
races and personally I’m getting used to the atmosphere and the demands
of being in a championship as big as the BTCC,” says Blanckley. Coming
into the Croft weekend, the team has achieved its initial aim of
scoring an overall championship point, much sought after by the
lower-budget independent entries such as sibsport. Blanckley lies 13th
in the Independents’ Championship but is just three points away from
10th. In the Independent Teams’ Championship, sibsport are currently
in 10th. At Croft, the team’s aim is to consolidate and improve on its
position in the Independents’ Championship, whilst Blanckley hopes to
better his position in the Independent Drivers’ Championship. But as
an outright result, Blanckley has a clear target: “In terms of race
aims, another point like the one we scored in round 6 at Rockingham, or
more, would be good. I know the car a lot better now; it’s very
reliable and simple compared to most cars to set up. We’ve also got
strong wet weather data so should the heavens open, we’ll be ready.”
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