Coming from a string of point-scoring finishes, Daryl DeLeon was disappointed after he was left outside the points during Round 4 of the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC). 17th place was his best result at Thruxton Circuit, with electrical issues robbing him of a potential Top 10 finish in Race 3.
Daryl commented that the 3.793 km track was “definitely an eye-opener” as he went out on his very first exploratory laps.
“You’ve got blind corners because of how long and fast they are. That makes it a hard track to learn as quickly as some other tracks, but very enjoyable, ”the Filipino-British driver commented.
Driving the #18 Duckhams Cupra León by Un-Limited Motorsport, he used both Free Practice sessions to familiarize himself with Thruxton’s high-speed layout and find its limits, eventually landing P18 in the time sheets. Daryl later found small improvements in Qualifying to earn himself P16 on the grid for Race 1 on Sunday.
A quick getaway allowed Daryl to gain 2 places on the opening lap and move up into P14 just before the Safety Car came out. He then continued his charge as soon as the race was back under green and was right in the mix for a Top 10 spot. But a small error proved to be very costly as it dropped him down to 18th where he would stay until the chequered flag dropped.
Now starting from P18, Daryl once again made a lot of progress in the first 2 laps of Race 2. He found himself as high as P14, but came under immense pressure from his rivals. Daryl’s best efforts to defend his position could only manage him 17th place across the line and outside the points.
Daryl got one last shot at ending the weekend on a high note in Race 3. Another clean start saw him gain several places and was up to P12 at the end of lap 3 – his highest position so far at Thruxton. But as soon as things were starting to look good, an electrical problem caused his #18 Duckhams Cupra León to lose power. He was forced to make several visits to the pit lane in order to fix the issue. Unfortunately, all the team’s efforts were for naught as he finished 7 laps down behind the leaders.
Putting behind him a disappointing weekend, Daryl DeLeon now focuses on regaining lost ground at Round 5 of the BTCC at Oulton Park on June 22/23.
Daryl DeLeon: “It was unfortunate not to score points at Thruxton given the momentum we had, but gain a lot of experience with the track, the car, and the team. It’s also a hard track to learn as compared to other circuits. My first lap was definitely an eye-opener and I enjoyed it. Although we ran into technical issues, it’s good that it’s now all sorted and we have a good setup going into Oulton Park.”
Daryl DeLeon is supported by Un-Limited Edition and Train Maintenance Services (TMS).