An Interview with 710 Brett Townsend

Congratulations on qualifying for the championship for the second time after making your debut in 2011, are you pleased to be in the championship again?
Yes I am, really pleased to be fair because it is the only championship race I have qualified for this year and it's the big one of the year on shale and there are a lot of top drivers in the race so it's great to be out there with them and I'm looking forward to it. I got married last year so we cut back a lot on the racing which was why I didn't qualify last year because I didn't do very much racing at all but this year we've been able to do a bit more. A lot of that is because I have been concentrating on racing shale. Because of the costs we sold the tarmac car and all the tarmac equipment and by concentrating more on the shale racing it has allowed me to do more and do better at what I've been doing and that's why it's good to have qualified for this race.

At the start of the season did you have an eye on the championship series and was it one your goals to qualify again?
I didn't really but I did want to try and get in the race again if it could. I've been trying to do most of the shale meetings this year and as it turned out I only missed a couple of qualifying rounds which was because we moved house earlier in the year and so we had a few weekends off racing as a result and the timing was a bit unfortunate because I missed a couple of qualifying rounds which was a real shame because a few more points would have made quite a difference in my starting position but it couldn't be helped and I'm pleased to have finished just outside the top 10. 

Your form at Mildenhall is patchy at best, how do you feel about the final being there?
To be honest I really don't like the track or perhaps I should say the track doesn't like me! I had a terrible year there last year and rarely finished a race and didn't qualify for one final so I started to hate going there which wasn't any good really but I had a win at the final World of Shale qualifier there in July which was a big boost. Those points helped my grid position a little but it did wonders for my confidence at Mildenhall and it came at the perfect time because I did need a bit of a lift. That was why we went back (on August 10) as that meeting wasn't originally in my plans but after the win at the weekend in July I wanted to try and build on that. I didn't have as good a time last time but the car was still going well, I just didn't have the luck so hopefully it will all come together for the championship.

Who do you think the leading contenders for the race are going to be?
It's hard to say but I think George Turiccki has got to be a favourite. He's been so quick at Mildenhall this year and if he can get away at the start and not make any mistakes he is going to be very hard to catch from there but Chris Bradbry is also on the front and he has been excellent this year. But the thing is everyone is so close together now in terms of performance it is very hard to say who it's going to be. There isn't so much of a difference between the top drivers and the lower drivers on shale and that is especially so at Mildenhall I think so it's going to be a lot down to the guy behind the wheel and the luck they have on the night, it's a lot more level pegging between all the drivers now and I think that is great.

You failed to get a top 10 finish in your championship debut, is that a goal for this year?
Yes it is I suppose but I would be happen just to finish because last time I was out of the race in the first four laps so I would first like to finish and anything more would be a great bonus. I would love to get a top 10 or even top six finish that would be really special. I think the first four laps are going to be pretty important for me. I can see the first lap and bend being pretty hectic but you have no idea what to expect and whether anyone is going to be brave and go for it all from the start. It would help me if there a big crash at the start and I was able to get through but I might get caught in it, you just don't know what to expect.

What do you think about the changes to the series format this year?
It's a catch 22 for me. I like having the overseas drivers in because it's good for the race and the sport and gives the race a bit more significance but I do feel for the guys in 21st and 22nd who other years would have qualified comfortably but now have to race in the last chance race. 

Is there anyone you would to thank or mention?
My dad who drives me to all the meetings and helps mend the cars, my mechanics Derek and Neil, my misses and kids who are very supportive of the racing and to Sharon Blood who has sponsored me two tyres for the championship.