Colin Turkington and Team BMW gear up for 2018 British Touring Car Championship

Colin Turkington will remain with Team BMW and West Surrey Racing for the 2018 British Touring Car Championship (BTCC).
Portadown racing star Colin TurkingtonPortadown racing star Colin Turkington
Portadown racing star Colin Turkington

Confirming their continued partnership on Wednesday, Portadown driver Turkington, 35, made clear his commitment to BMW and WSR insisting there was never any doubt over his future with the team.

The two-time BTCC champion came close to a third title with the BMW squad in October last year, but in the end had to bow out in second after a dramatic final race of the season.

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Receiving a standing ovation from the 40,000-plus spectators at Brands Hatch, Turkington cast a spell of magic on the 2017 finale. His race two victory was hailed by an emotional Murray Walker as “one of the greatest races I’ve ever witnessed,” after the BMW driver came through the field to win in sensational fashion.

“It is clear to me that Team BMW is my Motorsport home and a place where I perform my best. West Surrey Racing have been in the Championship since 1996 and continue to set the benchmark," said Turkington.

"Returning to WSR last year was a dream come true and I was extremely proud to help them retain the Teams and Manufacturers title for BMW.

"We head into 2018 with the experience of 2017 under our belt and I believe this will add to the potential of what we can achieve together. We had a lot to learn last year with the new Dunlop tyres and on many occasions, I knew there was still so much more to come.

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"We can now build on this and aim to hit the ground running with an accurate and detailed pre-season test plan. We were able to begin this in November and will restart the track work in February.

"Consistency within a team is important and along with the engineering department, it's great to have both Rob and Andy returning for another season.

"It's good to have super quick team mates and we pushed each other hard in 2017.

"But last year is signed off now and the 2018 title is there for the taking. I’ve spent considerable time over the winter on 2017 analysis and now all my attention is fully focused on this season. With training well underway I feel recharged and eager to get going. We’ll be doing everything we can to move the game forwards and have already made great progress.”

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