Two in two thrusts Dan into BTCC title contention
Dan Rowbottom bagged his second British Touring Car Championship win in as many weeks, writes Dan Hickey.
The NAPA Racing UK driver, from Kidderminster, shot out of the blocks from fifth on the grid, climbing to second on his first lap and taking the lead on his second. Rowbottom is now third in the standings with 132 points after winning race three at Thruxton.
He sits behind Team VERTU’s Tom Ingram and championship-leading team-mate Ashley Sutton in the standings, who won races one and two respectively to intensify the title race ahead of travelling to Oulton Park on June 21.
Rowbottom said: “The car’s been really, really good all weekend. Not quite on the mark in race one and two. All the engineers, we looked at everything together and that's the result. They just made a couple of tweaks and the NAPA Racing Focus is on form.
“It was a great way to end the day we had. We've had a good points haul this weekend. I'm really pleased. At the end of the day, we've just got to try and keep eking the points out of Ash, you know, he's got a bit of a head start but we'll do our best.”
On his triumphant third race of the weekend, Rowbottom was sat behind fifth-placed Laser Tools Racing’s Jake Hill going into the second lap, before fighting and taking the top spot to get his second win after race two at Snetterton.
“We had a couple of big moments, Jake and I, we've been scrapping all day. It's actually been a really enjoyable day. I've really enjoyed racing with him.
“We've had our moments in the past, Jake and I, but I think there's a mutual respect there for sure. And we've had a good day battling together. So yeah, I've really enjoyed it.
“We've got a long way to go for sure, but I think we're trying to show that we're here and we mean business. And we do mean business, so, we’ve just got to keep working away at it.
“And I've said it so many times before, I don't really care if I win this championship with one win or no wins, but fortunately that's a goal and we're going to keep pushing for it.”
There are six events left this season for Rowbottom to close the gap to second, as Ingram and Sutton sit 40 and 49 points ahead of him respectively.
