Jason Plato says he is confident of a good run at Donington Park next weekend as the SEAT Sport UK team prepares to gamble on a new untested set-up on its Leon TDi for the third round of the HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship.
Having only managed to complete limited testing ahead of the opening rounds of the year at
Brands Hatch last month, the team has been forced to work hard to get the most out of the diesel powered car in the opening two rounds of the campaign – with Plato and team-mate Darren Turner having picked up ten points finishes from a possible twelve so far.
However, the team has yet to secure a win since following the lead of the WTCC squad in switching to diesel power but with work having been ongoing to try and find the best from the package, Plato said he was hopeful that a set-up gamble for the Donington weekend could work in his favour.
"I'm really upbeat about our chances at
Donington," he said. "We learned something about the Leon TDi last time out at Rockingham which, although unproven, gave us a good reaction. If this new theory on set-up works well at Donington, we'll be looking really good for the rest of the season. We don't know for sure if it's going to work, but we're hopeful.
"I've got a sneaking feeling that we're honing in on the car's sweet spot and when we find it we'll be quick. It's a risky strategy to take on a race weekend, because if it doesn't work in the first free practice session, do we go back to a set-up we know works well-ish or do we persevere, knowing that if it still doesn't work we'll have destroyed our chances of qualifying well?
"It's a situation we find ourselves in having been unable to do any pre-season testing, but I'm up for taking the risk."
Despite a double win for Plato last season, albeit one that was helped by the conditions playing into the hands of the petrol Leon, Donington hasn't traditionally been one of the SEAT teams strongest circuits.
However, with the diesel expected to be a stronger performer at the East Midlands venue, SEAT UK motorsport manager Scott Dennis said the team is confident of improving on its average Donington finish of fourth during next weekend's race meeting.
"We've had mixed fortunes on our previous visits to Donington, but I'm confident that we can improve on our average race finishing position this time out," he said. "Results at Donington won't make, or break our season but it's important that we perform at the highest level as a team to ensure we stay in touch with the leaders in each of the championships.
"Hopefully all the hard work the team has put in since Rockingham will be rewarded with our first win this year."
Win tickets for Donington:
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