Daniel Rowbottom made his British Touring Car Championship debut at Brands Hatch impressing at times in his first weekend in his Cataclean Racing with Ciceley Motorsport Mercedes-Benz A-Class.
Rowbottom like many had a good first race for the first part with him getting up to fourteenth place but from there the wet-tyre lost it’s edge and as he described, his drop-off as ‘cataclysmic’. Despite a finish of twenty-third he showed there was real potential.
“It was alright for the first few laps,” said Rowbottom. “I got up to fourteenth which was great – running in the points – but then the cars on slicks started to come through and our wet tyre dropped off. I think we may have been to aggressive on set-up so when the tyres did go away, the drop-off was cataclysmic!”
Race Two wasn’t as good for the Kidderminster ace with him gaining a place on the opening lap but when trying to gain a place on Team HARD’s Michael Crees; he was sent into the tyre barrier.
This meant that the car needed to be repaired and as a result, Rowbottom started from the pit lane for Race Three getting up to twenty-third in the end after starting at the back. He admitted this gave him even confidence heading into Donington Park next weekend.
“Race three was interesting! We only just got out in time so I have to say thanks to the guys for their efforts. It was important to get out there and gain mileage and I gained a few places as well which was good and I feel more confident now,
“I’ve seen how manic the racing really is, but it has been a great weekend with the reaction from the fans, and Cataclean Racing has certainly felt the benefits of being in the biggest championship in the UK. I’m looking forward to Donington now and making progress and scoring points.”
