WSR began the second half of the British Touring Car Championship season with a solid Saturday at Knockhill in Scotland.
Charles Rainford and Daryl De Leon stayed out of trouble in a Safety Car-interrupted Qualifying Race to take fifth and sixth places respectively, while local driver Lewis Gilbert continued his BTCC apprenticeship by climbing five places from his starting position to finish 16th.
Horsham driver Rainford qualified fifth and moved his BMW 330i M Sport up to fourth off the line. Despite losing a spot as rain began falling after an early Safety Car restart, he kept pace with those around him and brought the car home in fifth spot.
Daryl also had a clean race, having maintained his sixth-place starting slot and avoiding incident on the opening lap. From there, it was an uneventful race for the Anglo-Filipino, who lapped almost identically to Charles throughout.
The top-six finish gives both Charles and Daryl a good base from which to attack in Sunday’s three races.
Having never raced at the Knockhill circuit prior before today, Ayrshire driver Lewis started 21st on the grid after suffering a left-rear puncture in qualifying.
The 22-year-old avoided incidents in front of him and proceeded climb the order and secure a 16th-place starting position for the first of Sunday’s races – his best Qualifying Race result to date,
Charles Rainford: “It’s great to be back at Knockhill. The fans are always great and, although the weather hasn’t been the best, we’ve had a decent day with some points. Fifth place in the Qualifying Race gives us a good position for the first race tomorrow, which could be a bit damp. Our objective is to move forwards and get on the podium.”
Daryl De Leon: “Saturday at Knockhill has been interesting. We started really strongly in Free Practice – where we were first for most of the session – and then added third in my qualifying group. In the Qualifying Race, I was by myself and maintaining my position, but happy enough to start and finish sixth. Our eyes will be focused on moving forward and getting some nice trophies in the races tomorrow.”
Lewis Gilbert: “It has definitely been a good end to the day. Qualifying was a bit difficult with a puncture on my last run with the new tyre, so that disrupted my rhythm and we never quite got what we were looking for. The Qualifying Race was really good, starting 21st and finishing 16th. I was probably quick enough to get another two or three places, but that’s just the way the race played out. Overall, I’m really happy with the day. We’ll move forward tomorrow so let’s see how Race One goes.”
Dick Bennetts, Team Principal: “It’s been a solid day for the team and all cars made it home in one piece. Fifth and sixth for Charles and Daryl is a positive and Lewis had a great race as well. We need to understand if we’re missing a little bit of speed or if the others have found something, so we’ll do our homework ahead of tomorrow to see if we can get ourselves a bit closer to the front. Nevertheless, it’s good base from which to try and kick on tomorrow for all three cars.”
