Turkington 'delighted' with 'excellent result'

Team BMW's Colin Turkington says he's pleased to be starting tomorrow's first British Touring Car Championship race 'on the front foot' after qualifying in fourth at Knockhill.

Despite running 75 kilos of success ballast, Turkington found himself in the thick of the fight for pole position after the current BTCC points leader hit the top of the timesheets at the halfway point of the 30-minute shootout.

Although Turkington eventually dropped to fourth, the two-time champion crucially out-qualified his main title-rival Tom Ingram, who starts two-spots behind in sixth.

"After free practice, if you told me P4, I’d have jumped at it," Turkington told Crash.net. "I’m delighted. It’s an excellent result. I think like everyone, I’m a bit frustrated because there was a bit more left in the car.

"It was about getting a clear lap and getting the best three sectors together. That’ll be the story of the day. Everyone will have that gripe. I’m happy with P4. It’s good track position for tomorrow.

"We’ve really improved the car through the day. It’s been a really positive day."

With the circuit being resurfaced since the BTCC's last visit to Knockhill last season, Turkington believes the faster lap speed has been aided by the lower kerbs.

Pole-man Dan Cammish's time [50.929] was almost 0.6s quicker than Jason Plato's previous record set during the 2016 season. Turkington himself also eclipsed the existing benchmark by 0.4s in fourth.

"You don’t feel the extra grip," Turkington continued.

"I think the lap time maybe comes from the kerbs being a bit lower. You’re hanging in the air for less time so you can get back on the throttle. The track doesn’t feel that much grippier. You don’t necessarily feel it."

With rain set to play a pivotal factor during tomorrow's action, Turkington says gaining track position at the sharp end will potentially allow him to avoid a multitude of spray, while enjoying the high ground over his main title rival Ingram.

Turkington currently leads the title battle by four-points ahead of Ingram.

"The important thing is that we’re starting on the front foot. I don’t have to go chasing him [Tom] down. Track position is important, especially if there’s a lot spray," said the Team BMW driver.

"We’ve done a lot of good work today but tomorrow is going to be completely different so we just have to try and use our experience."